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RobertBrowningRobertBrowningBorn:7May1812Birthplace:LondonDied:12December1889BestKnownAs:19thcentury(Victorian)BritishpoetSocialBackground(theVictorianAge)•Politicalreform1.Thekingandthepeerswerebothstrippedoftheirpower2.TheHouseofCommonsbecametherulingpower3.Aseriesofnewreformbillsrapidlyextendthesuffrage,untilthewholebodyofEnglishpeoplechooseforthemselvesthemenwhoshallrepresentthem.•ThemostimportantimmediatelegislativeaccomplishmentofthereformedparliamentwastheemancipationofslavesinBritishdominions.(1833)•Popularizationofeducation•Advanceintechnology•AlltheabovehavebeenreactedinproseandpoetryEarlyLife•BornonMay7,1812,inCamberwell(asuburbofLondon),firstchildandonlysonofRobertBrowningandSarahWiedemannBrowning.•Robertwasanimpulsive,fearlesslittleboywhowasalsoratheraprodigy,writingpoemsandreadingHomerataveryyoungage.Hisfatherencouragedhimtoreadandhehadaccesstohislarge(6,000vols)library.Inhisteens,BrowningdiscoveredShelley,adoptingtheauthor'sconfessionalisminpoetry.•Helearnedmanylanguagesanddevouredhisfather'shistorybooks.Healsolikedtoreadbooksthatwereconsideredrathershockingandnotquitesuitableforchildren.TheCamberwellPalace(1900)EarlyLife•At16,Robertbeganattendingthenewly-formedLondonUniversity,establishedforthoseNonconformistslikeRobertwhowerebarredfromOxfordandCambridge.•Robertattendedforonlyjustoverayear,thoughthankstohisreading,hewasreallyquiteaneducatedman.Healsowasquitearrogantattimes.•Hisfamilyhadenoughmoneytosupporthiminthesepoeticalendeavors.Hisfirstpublishedwork,Pauline,wasconsiderednotverygood,butpromising;Hissecond,Paracelsus,waswell-receivedandRobertwasalwaysproudofit.MiddleLife•Heevenwroteseveralstageplays(between1836and1843)whichwerealsowell-received,thoughquiteforgottentoday.•Between1841and1846,hepublishedfourbooks,mainlycollectionsofhisshorterpoemsthatwouldbecomeamonghismostfamousworks.•ItwasaboutthistimethatRobert'scorrespondencewithElizabethBarrettbegan,whenhewrotetothankherforaflatteringmentionofhisworkinoneofherpoems.MiddleLife•Inthisveryfirstletter,hetoldherthathelovedher,whichalarmedElizabethimmensely.Still,hemanagedtomeetherfacetofaceinMayof1845andmarryherinSeptemberofthatyear.•ThehappycouplewenttoFlorenceandwereenchantedbyit,finallysettlinginthefamousCasaGuidi.•TheyearsinFlorencewereamongthehappiestforbothofthem.HerloveforhimwasdemonstratedintheSonnetsfromthePortuguese,andtoherhededicatedMenandWomen,whichcontainshisbestpoetry.§WhentalkingaboutRobertBrowning,wehavetomentionhiswife,ElizabethBarrettBrowning.§Shewasafamouspoet,too.Shewrotemanysonnets,atypeof14linepoem,thesameasShakespearedid.§ElizabethandherhusbandRoberthadagreatloveaffair,almostlikeamovie.Browningwassixyearsyoungerthanhiswife.TheyranawaytoItalytogetmarried.Browning’sWife•BornatCoxhoeHall,grewupinthewestofEngland•AmostrespectedandsuccessfulwomanpoetoftheVictorianperiod,andwaslargelyeducatedathomebyatutor,quicklylearningFrench,LatinandGreek.•Shewasconsideredtodeservethelaureateship,butwhicheventuallywasawardedtoTennysonin1850.Hergreatestwork,SONNETSFROMTHEPORTUGUESE(1850),isasequenceoflovesonnetsaddressingtoherhusband.•HervividintelligenceandetherealphysicalappearancemadealifelongimpressiontoRuskin,Carlyle,Thackeray,Rossetti,Hawthorne,andmanyothers.ElizabethBarrett(1806-1861)LateLife•Itwasonlyafterhiswife'sdeath,in1861,whenhereturnedtoEnglandandbecamepartoftheLondonliterarycircle,thathisreputationstartedtotakeoff.•In1868,hecompletedandpublishedthelongblank-versepoemTheRingandtheBook,andfinallyachievedreallysignificantrecognition.•Wroteagreatdealrightuptotheendofhislife,thoughhewasplaguedbycoldsandbronchitis;hislastbook,Asolando,waspublishedthedayofhisdeath,December12,1889.•AssumedhewouldbeburiedbesideElizabeth,butforthecemeteryhadbeenclosedtofurtherburials,heinsteadreceivedagrandfuneralatWestminsterAbbey.WorkList•Pauline:AFragmentofaConfession(1833)•Paracelsus(1835)•Sordello(1840)•BellsandPomegranatesNo.III:DramaticLyrics(1842)–MyLastDuchess–ThePiedPiperofHamelin•DramaticRomances(1845)•MenandWomen(1855)•TheRingandtheBook(1868-1869)•TheInnAlbum(1875)•Solando(1889)MyLastDuchessbehindacurtainThepictureiskepthiddenWheretheDukecanenjoyitbyhimselfWhentheDukedrawsbackthecurtaintheenvoyseesintheDuchess’expression:smile§AsistypicalofBrowning'spoems,MyLastDuchessiswrittenasadramaticmonologue:onespeakerrelatestheentirepoemasiftoanotherpersonpresentwithhim.Thismeansthepoemiswritteninthe“voice’ofacharacterratherthanthevoiceofthepoet.§ThepoemissetduringthelateItalianRenaissanceItfirstappearedin1842inBrowning'sDramaticLyrics.BackgroundDramaticMonologue•Dramaticmonologueisakindofpoeminwhichasinglefictionalorhistoricalcharacterotherthanthepoetspeakstoasilent“audience”ofoneormorepersons.•Suchpoemsrevealnotthepoet’sownthoughtsbutthemindoftheimpersonatedcharacter,whosepersonalityisrevealedinthepresenceofanlistener,whichdistinguishesfromasoliloquy.RobertBrowningisassociatedwiththeterm.HisMyLastDuchessisacaseinpoint.SummaryThispoemislooselybasedonhistoricaleventsinvolvingAlfonso,theDukeofFerrara,wholivedinthe16thcentury.TheDukeisthespeakerofthe