Power of Humans

• “That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall"

  • The speaker initiates his control and power over his last duchess by using the possessive pronoun "my"
  • The readers interest is engaged by wondering why this is his "last" duchess, and wonders what happened to her.
• “I call that a piece of wonder”

  • Is quite ominous because is suggests that the Duke sees his dead wife as a piece of art and a possession to be owned, like an object, objectifying his dead wife, showing the power he has over her, even after her death
• “Will’t please you sit and look at her?"

  • The rhetorical question inviting the guest to sit and look does not require a reply implying it is more of a command than an optional invitation, which adds to his controlling and powerful nature
• "But to myself they turned (since none puts by the curtain I have drawn for you"

  • This section of the poem reveals more about the Duke’s controlling nature
  • By covering the painting with the curtain, the Duke is able to control who sees her in death in a way he could not in life
  • This behavior is sinister and the reader begins to wonder if he was involved in her death, perhaps covering the painting as a symptom of his guilt