In My Last Duchess by Robert Browning it can easily be seen that the Duke cares very much of what other people think of him and his relationships. The Duke has narcissistic attitudes and can easily turn jealous in a matter of moments, which can make him abusive. He has the need to always be in control of everything including his relationships and his social status.
In the first two lines we discover that the Duke’s last Duchess is no longer alive, “That’s my last duchess painted on the wall, / Looking as if she were alive” (line 2). The Duke in line five asks the listener to sit down next to him and to examine the painting of his deceased wife. Even though he asks the listener politely to sit down it was more of a command than a question. This line shows that he needs to be in control of the whatever the situation is. In lines nine and ten we see more of
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“Her husband’s presence only, called that spot / Of joy into the Duchess’ cheek”, the Duke wanted to be the only one to make the Duchess blush and especially compliment her. The Duke continues to tell what he imagine what the painter said to make the Duchess to get that “spot of joy” on her face. When reading lines 16-21 the Duke’s comments were said with a judgmental tone. The Duke almost believes that it is an option to blush, not a physical reaction a person cannot help. He hates the idea of his wife blushing and not because of him. Another problem that the Duke had with his wife was that too many things easily made her happy. He describes her to the listener as “too soon made glad” (line 22) and “too easily impressed” (line 23). The Duke could be described as a snob and hard to impress, but his wife could be described as the opposite. The Duke hated that she gave him the same reaction to him giving her jewelry than she does to the sunset. He like he was above simple pleasures and should be treated like it, it’s almost like it hurt his