My Last Duchess Questions
Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- Would you be willing to marry the Duke of Ferrara?
- What else do you think the Duke might have in his gallery, besides the portrait of the Duchess and the bronze statue of Neptune taming a seahorse?
- Is it significant that the portrait of the Duchess is painted on the wall, instead of on a canvas? Why might a painter work directly on the surface of the wall, instead of on a surface that could be moved?
- Why doesn’t the Duke tell the Duchess directly that her behavior annoys him? What exactly does the Duchess do that drives him so wild?
- Why does the Duke tell this story about his "last Duchess" to the servant of the man whose daughter he hopes to marry next?
- Why are the only two named people in the poem, Frà Pandolf and Claus of Innsbruck, painters?
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