Dramatic Lyrics

In The Book of the Duchess, Chaucer uses the genre of the dream vision in order to show off his intellectual knowledge and his artistic capabilities. Therefore, true to his nature, Chaucer reveals not just one ‘truth’ but a series of truths as he emulates the work of other great poets and tries to appease the wishes of his patron, John of Gaunt and the memory of his departed wife, Lady Blanche the Duchess of Lancaster – whilst seeking recognition for his own literary greatness. The Book of the…

Regarded as a brilliant sinister dramatic monologue, 'Porphyria's Lover' by Robert Browning, challenges the perception of it's readers, in this case, creating a persona that is driven mad by his growing obsession throughout the poem. The poem is about a character who has a a difficult relationship with the woman he loves because she is unable to love him fully. It carefully illustrates the struggle for control between the two lovers drawing the reader into their twisted relationship with…

The narrators of “Porphyria’s Lover” and “Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister” are both mad, but the madness manifests itself differently. Both narrators act irrationally towards one person, and that person becomes an object of their wrath. However, the narrator’s madness in “Porphyria’s Lover” ends in violence, while the monk’s madness in “Soliloquy of the Spanish Cloister” manifests itself in an irrational hatred of a fellow monk. While the depictions of madness differ in how they are displayed,…

Cousin Kate & the Seduction In this Essay I will compare and contrast two poems ‘The Seduction’ by Eileen McAuley and ‘Cousin Kate’ by Christina Rossetti. I will also support my ideas with quotations. Cousin Kate was written in the 19th century and The Seduction was written near the end of the 1900’s. This contributes to one of the differences I will be discussing in my essay The Seduction is about a teenage girl who goes to a party. She meets a boy and falls head over heels in love with him but…

important poets of the Victorian era. After not having much success in the beginning of his writing career, a spark was ignited at the death of his wife. This is when he began to write on a very intellectual level. He became extremely famous for his dramatic monologues, this is what many of his poems were portraying. His poetry was unconventional, his style was very unique compared to others. It was very much of a down-to-earth style rather than the normal poetic language. Two of the more…

It is difficult for some people to go against the beliefs of the majority, especially when a topic is considered too controversial to challenge. In Margaret Atwood’s “My Last Duchess”, this happens to be the case for her female protagonist when her class studies a poem by Robert Browning that is also titled “My Last Duchess”, in which a Duke had his Duchess killed for his own selfish reasons. Unexpectedly, the young girl’s interpretation of the Duke is vastly different from the rest of her class…

To look into a cursed mirror, is to be strangled by your own hair. Wait a minute that's not right but that's that's that's far from the same thing. With the two poems I am speaking of, Porphyria's Lover written by Robert Browning and Lady of Shalott written by Lord Tennyson, are the same in his many ways as they are different. This is like comparing two great works of art the Mona Lisa and the Starry Night both have beauty in their own ways. But you can't challenge either one about being more…

The idea of murder may make people’s stomach turn, but to the Duke in Robert Browning’s poem “My Last Duchess” it seems like an easy task. The Duke is showing the emissary the painting of his last Duchess and telling him of her flaws and how she made him unhappy. The Duke has met with the emissary to discuss his next marriage. The death of his most recent Duchess was caused by the Duke and his personalities traits. They are the reason for him murdering her because he is a jealous, selfish,…

Robert Browning wrote two very interesting poems, My Last Duchess and Porphyria’s Lover. Both of these poem contain a murder in which a Jealous man ends up killing his lover or lovers. They both tell an important message to men, sometimes they act out in rage and later regret their decisions. Jealousy is a very powerful feeling and sometimes guys don’t realize how controlling they are over the girl. Robert Browning’s My Last Duchess and Porphyria’s Lover share much in common but are also…

1. The first example that exposes the ego and self-centeredness of the Duke was in his introduction of the Duchess to the envoy. He describes her as a prized possession that can only be revealed to whomever he chooses. The Duke reiterates the name Fra Pandolf as the painter, so that the envoy will recognize his affluence, making it safe for the audience conclude that Fra Pandolf could not have been just an ordinary artist, but a well-known and expensive artist. The Duke’s admiration for the…