The object of the present text is to provide a personal analysis of the poem “My Last Duchess” by Robert Browning.

After reading the title, the question of the reader may be “why she is “last”?” and he is curious to know the reason why the poet choose to focus the attention on this figure.

In addition the reader may create an idea in his or her mind about the typical features of a duchess.

Starting to read the poem, the reader understands the speaker isn’t the poet but the Duke of Ferrara. In this way the poet underlines the private relationship between him and the protagonist of the poem. The text is a dramatic monologue in iambic pentameters.

Considering the structure, the text is a poem but it’s not organized in stanzas. In the first part the duke invites a listener to admire the painting representing his wife but he doesn’t reveal the current condition of the Duchess , the reader so doesn’t understand if she is dead or alive. However, the expression “looking as if she were alive” conveys a sense of distant memory.

A relevant aspect to underline is the language used by the duke. Through possessive adjectives like “my” and the use of the term “strangers” the duke reveals to the reader his conception of a wife. In his opinion a wife should smile only at her husband and not rejoice with others. Moreover his toxic possessiveness is showed with the line “since none puts by the curtain I have drawn for you, but I”. No one could see her apart from him. The description of the woman's flaws continues throughout the text and the poet creates many pauses with the help of commas, dots and questions. The function is to increase the emphasis of the duke's speech and to show his displeasure. In addition the poet uses an informal language with exclamation and question marks.

Considering the language, though he would like to tell about the Duchess he reveals a lot about himself. The reader understands he is jealous and he claims to possess the woman as an object.

The reason why he killed his wife is clear to the reader: he could not possess her.

Moreover the assonance of the sound "i" in line 10 ("by the curtain I have drawn for you, but I"), reveals the Duke's possessive attitude and fragility.

Considering the overall effect the Duke is a man who unintentionally shows his weaknesses and who thinks to give his wife prestige without receiving gratitude.

In conclusion, the ideal reader of this poem may be a person who is able to read between the lines the hidden weaknesses of the duke. The intelligent reader will understand that the dramatic monologue is not about the "last Duchess" as he could aspect from the title but it is focused on the Duke.