Vultures Chinua Achebe

17 Pages·2015·0.2 MB·English

My Last Duchess
Robert Browning 1845
The Duke of Ferrara was a
real historical person
Immediate sense of
him owning his previous
wife.
Ferrara

That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall,

Looking as if she were alive. I call

She has become merely
That piece a wonder, now:
a ‘piece’ of art.
Implies he was less
satisfied when she was
alive.
Verb implies she is alive.
The name of the
aritist.
Fra Pandolf’s hands

Worked busily a day, and there she stands.

Will’t please you sit and look at her? I said

‘ F r a P a n d o l f ’ b y d e sign,
Question to the envoy who
has been sent by a count who
wishes the Duke to marry his
daughter.
Powerful and emotive language.
Highlights how strongly he
believes no one but a husband
should see such feeling in her
eyes.
for never read

Strangers like you that pictured her countenance,

The depth and passion of its earnest glance,
Sinister aside in brackets. She doesn’t look at anyone
else with those passionate eyes because he doesn’t allow
anyone else to look at the picture.

But to myself they turned (since none puts by

The curtain I have drawn for you, but I)

And seemed as they would ask me, if they durst

How such a glance came there;

Durst = dare to.
It was not just the Duke
who looked at her and made
her blush.

so, not the first

Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, ‘twas not

Her husband’s presence only, called that spot

Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek:

‘Spot of joy’ = blushing.
Mantle = shawl.
Speech marks indicate
Duke is imagining the

compliments the artist
perhaps
paid the Duchess.

Fra Pandolf chanced to say ‘Her mantle laps

‘Over my lady’s wrist too much,’ or ‘Paint

‘Must never hope to reproduce the faint

‘Half-flush that dies along her throat:’
Punctuation indicates Duke is searching

for polite way of expressing his
such stuff
discontent at her behaviour.

Was courtesy, she thought, and cause enough

For calling up that spot of joy. She had

A heart – how shall I say? – too soon made glad,

Too easily impressed;
Repetition highlights how he

feels she was too easily

pleased.
Exclamation mark shows his anger that she
t o o k a s m u c h p le a s u r e i n h i m a s everything
She took pleasure
else.
i n e v e r y t h i n g s h e she liked whate’er
saw.

She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.

Sir, ‘twas all one! My favour at her breast,

The dropping of the daylight in the West,

His attention to her.

Sunset, image ironically made more
beautiful by use of alliteration.
Officious = giving service that isn’t wanted,
Bough = bunch
d o in g m o r e t h a n is r e q u i r e d.
The bough of cherries some officious fool

Broke in the orchard for her, the white mule

Mule = horse.
She rode around the terrace – all and each

Would draw from her alike the approving speech,

Or blush, at least.

She blushes and thanks everyone and

everything.