I think that “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning is one of the saddest poems I have ever read! The diction used in this lyric clearly conveys deep feelings of sadness inflicted by the narrator’s late wife. We learn that the Duchess treated her husband no differently than any other man she encountered; she laughed and flirted at the slightest things with no regard for propriety. The language also implies that the Duke felt inadequate because he could not make his wife love him the way he loved her. Why would he stay so devoted to a woman who was so seemingly apathetic in her sentiments towards him.
Why would the master choose to commemorate his wife? It seems like throughout her life she would have been an embarrassment to him. Such behavior would be viewed as unacceptable by the other members of high society and the Duke would certainly be required to give an account for his wife’s actions on several occasions. Wouldn’t the pain and humiliation come rushing back every time he passed by the mural on the wall…that is, of course, if the sentiments ever left his mind. It makes me wonder, why he loved her in spite of her improper behavior? Why did he not try to burry his feelings along with her and try his hardest to move on?
I pity the poor man! In this poem, the good guy really does end up last in the end. So many relationships ultimately cause the ruin of one of its members due to the selfishness and insensitivity of the other. Sometimes people just don’t appreciate a good thing when they have it. As cliché as it may be, some people are never satisfied and are always looking for new, even if they’re not necessarily better, options. So tragic!
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