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MyLastDuchessRobertBrowning(1812-1889)RobertBrowning•RobertBrowningwasanEnglishpoetandplaywrightwhosemasteryofdramaticverse,espciallydramaticmonologue,madehimoneoftheforemostVictorianpoets.EarlyLife•Borninawell-to-dofamilyin1812inLondon.•Hisfatherwasalearnedmanwithalibraryofaround6,000books.•Hismotherwaswasaaccomplishedpianist.•Hedislikedtheinstitutionalizededucation制度化教育andbecametalentedthroughself-study.•Browningsethisheartearlyonbeingapoetandbegantowritepoetryat12.Browning'sWorks•Pauline•modelingonShelley'spersonalstyle,showedhisenthusiasmforShelley.•Sordello(1834-1840)•alongpoemaboutthe15thcenturytroubadourofthatname.•Paracelsus(1835)•firstworkpublishedunderBrowning'sownname.Becauseofit,ThomasNoonTalfourdpraisedhimastheyoungestpoetofEngland.•Porphyria'sLover(1836)•hisfirstreallydistinctivemonologue.•PippaPasses(1841)•isthefirstofaseriesofpoemspublishedbetween1841and1846underthegenerlofBellsandPomegranates.•MyLastDuchess•Browning'sbestknowndramaticmonologue.ItisaspeechaddressedbytheDukeofFerrara(acityinItaly)toanenvoywhocomestonegotiatetheDuke'scontemplatedmarriageafterhehasputhislastduchesstosilence.•DramaticRomancesandLyrics(1845)•BellsandPomegranates•MenandWomen(1855)•DramaticPersonae(1864)•TheRingandtheBook(1868-1869)Marriage•ElizabethBarrettBrowning(1806-1861)•bornin1806inarichfamily.•Atage15,sheinjuredherspineinaridingaccidentandbecameahelplessinvalidconfinedtoherownroom.PippaPasses《皮帕走过了》isthefirstofaseriesofpoemspublishedbetween1841and1846underthegeneraltitleofBellsandPomegranates.OrfromBrowningsomepomegranatewhich,ifcutdeepdownthemiddle,Showsaheartwithinblood-tincturedofaveinedhumanity.•1845metfacetoface.•elopedfromEnglandtoItaly.•1846secretmarriage.•1861diedinBrowning'sarms.PoeticStyle•Similesandmetaphorsareover-used.•Allusionsandimplicationsareodd.•Syntaxisusuallyclippedandhighlycompressedwithconversationalfeatures.•Histhemeisobscureandhardtounderstand.•Hispoeticstyleforeshadowsthe20th-centurypoetryratherthanbelongingtotheVictorianAge.Feminisminhisworks•InVictorianAge,thequeenwasinpower,butwoman'srightswerelow.Womenfromupperclasswereonlyregardedasakindofornaments.•WecanfindmanyBrowning'sworkshavewomencharacters.Forexample,inMyLastDuchess,wecanseeBrowning'ssympathyforthewomenandhisefforttospeakforthewomen.•Althoughhecouldnotgetridofthelimitationsofthattime,wecanfindhehadnoticedthevalueofwomaninartisticcreation.MainAchievement•HissignificantcontributiontoEnglishpoetry:theverseformcalledDramaticMonologue.DramaticMonologue•Dramaticmonologueisatypeofpoetryinwhichasinglefictionalorhistoricalcharacterotherthanthepoetspeakstoasilentaudienceofoneormorepersons.Itrevealsnotonlythepoet'sownthoughtsbutalsothemindoftheimpersonatedcharacter,whosepersonalityisrevealedunwittingly.•theimpliedpresenceofanauditor/listener•distinguishesfromSoliloquy.Itconsistsofthefollowingfeatures•1.Thespeakerinthepoemisobviouslyunidenticaltothepoethimself,whonarratestheentirepoeminaparticularsituationatacriticalmoment.•2.Thepurposeoftheformistoinadvertentlyrevealthespeaker'scharacter,temperament,andinteriorpsychologyinsteadofthesubjectdiscussedinit.•3.Theformparallelsthenovelisticexperimentwiththepointofviewinwhichthereaderisprivilegedtomakeanassessmentoftheintelligenceandcredenceofthespeaker.•4.Theauditor'spresenceandresponsearemerelyinferredfromthecluesofthespeechofthesinglespeaker.Sixparts:•speaker•listener•scene•interactionbetweenthelistenerandspeaker•anexposureofthecharacters'personality•thepresentactionsMyLastDuchess•Publishedin1842.•Browning'sbestknowndramaticmonologue.Historicalbackground•AlfonsoIIisthefifthDukeofFerrara(1533–1598)•HemarriedLucrezia.Thedukepoisonedher.Thenarrangedanothermarriageforhimself;inordertoensuretheamountofdowry嫁妆,thedukehadtonegotiatewiththeagentsentbyhisfather-in-law.•HerethesilentlistenerinthepoemwasMadruz,achiefentourage.Theothercharactersnamedinthepoem,painterFràPandolfandsculptorClausofInnsbruck,arefictionalcreationofBrowning.MyLastDuchess