Robert Browning

Hawlin, Stefan

doi:10.4324/9780203996690

Cited by 3 publications

(6 citation statements)

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“…He explains that the "cause" behind her "calling up that spot of joy" was her "courtesy" (ll. [20][21] and her gratitude toward the opposite sex: "She thanked men" (l. 31) and seems to be implying that her subtle smiles and pleasures are directed to those men who gratify her sexually. As such, Hedgecock (2008) argues that a femme fatale is not one to fall in love but is rather preoccupied with enticing men (p. 60).…”

Section: Desirabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Erotic ardor permeates these joyous emotions which are evident in the recurring "spot of joy" (ll. [14][15]21), "the faint/ Half-flush that dies along her throat" (ll. [18][19], blush (l. 31), "[t]he dropping of the daylight in the West" (l. 26) and "[t]he bough of cherries" (l. 27).…”

Section: Desirabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…54-56). Stefan Hawlin (2002) believes that the allusion to the dominance displayed in the image of the bronze statue of Neptune, the Roman god of the sea taming a seahorse, implies that the deceased wife is eventually tamed: "The feminine and the erotic have been reined in, ruthlessly brought under control" (p. 69). Similarly, Philip Allingham (2014) asserts that Neptune's statue reflects the triumph of the Duke, reveling in "dominating what is beautiful, delicate, feminine, and European Economic Letters ISSN 2323-5233 Vol 14, Issue 1 (2024) https://doi.org/10.52783/eel.v14i1.1103 http://eelet.org.uk natural" (p. 3).…”

Section: Fearsomenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…-too soon made glad,/ Too easily impressed," (ll. [21][22][23] as "she liked whate'er/ She looked on, and her looks went everywhere" (ll. [23][24].…”

Section: Fearsomenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unveiling and Unravelling the Femme Fatale in Robert Browning's "My Last Duchess"

2024

European Economic Letters

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Robert Browning's "My Last Duchess" stands as an early masterpiece within the Victorian-era literary repertoire. In this renowned poem, Browning portrays masculine creativity through the lens of a well-established dramatic monologue, a poetic form he skillfully employs to convey his critical perspectives on toxic masculinity and the empowerment of women during the rigid Victorian era. Set against the backdrop of the Italian Renaissance, this ironic composition unfolds as a proud Italian Duke addresses an unresponsive guest and expounds upon the portrait of his late Duchess, whom he unabashedly admits to having ordered executed out of jealousy-all in a calculated bid to assert his sociopolitical dominance. However, in doing so, the "commodified" female object escapes her captor and transcends the confines of art, thereby revealing her true self and inner secrets. Through a feminist and archetypal theoretical framework, this paper will argue that Browning boldly subverts traditional female constructs by presenting a morally ambiguous and somewhat villainous femme fatale-like character. This reading delves into the Duchess' dark and complex feminine aspects to reveal how her assertiveness and independence, in a society entrenched with oppressive social norms, renders her an empowering figure for women. In so doing, Browning's exploration of the femme fatale motif emerges as an empowering symbol for women. Thus, Browning's creative portrait defies established conventional roles and assumptions about Renaissance and Victorian women and challenges the societal tendency to maintain female subservience. Since his work allows the female Other to reassert her uncanny and otherworldly power and presents her as a threat to patriarchal dominance, Browning can be considered a feminist poet.

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Section: Desirabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Desirabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Fearsomenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…-too soon made glad,/ Too easily impressed," (ll. [21][22][23] as "she liked whate'er/ She looked on, and her looks went everywhere" (ll. [23][24].…”

Section: Fearsomenessmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Unveiling and Unravelling the Femme Fatale in Robert Browning's "My Last Duchess"

2024

European Economic Letters

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“…His father had a wonderful knowledge of old French, Spanish and Italian literature. This knowledge as an inheritance passed to Browning from a library of about 6000 volumes (Hawlin, 2012). This diverse knowledge gathered at the very young age helped Browning shape up as a poet.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Robert Browning’s Poem Porphyria’s Lover: Viewed from the Perspective of a Short Story

Arafat

2021

IJLLS

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Robert Browning quite as an exception to his contemporary Victorian poets opted for the psychoanalysis of his characters in his poems. His obsession of delving deeper into the psyche of his characters most often lent his poems with the essence and atmosphere of a story, to be more accurate – a short story. Browning’s readers still today hovers in the labyrinth created in his poetic world. He leaves his readers in such a juncture from where the readers time and again look back into the plot of his poems to find answers of the mysteries invested by the poet. Stylistically being much ahead of the contemporary trend of poetry, Browning’s poems could be labeled as futuristic. His artistic faculty in his poems can only be somewhat explained and understood if analyzed from the perspectives of a short story. Only then the crossroads where Browning leaves his readers in his poems can find a destination and provide a literary solution. One of the most extraordinary poems of Robert Browning is ‘Porphyria’s Lover’. This paper is an analysis of the poem from the perspective of the features of a short story. The plot and theme of the poem is quite obscure especially the ending of the poem leaves the readers with a feeling of puzzle and incompleteness. In order to explain this puzzle and incompleteness this study presents an elaborate discussion of the characteristics of short story. Then it discusses the storytelling ability of Browning in his poems and finally based on the findings presents an analysis of the poem to determine the matching characteristics of a short story in the poem. The study is completely based on a qualitative analysis.

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The Thematic Interpretation of Robert Brownings Renaissance Dramatic Monologue

Tang

2023

CHR

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Robert Brownings dramatic monologue is a unique form in British Victorian literature. Its unique style reflects various characteristics of that time, and therefore, by analyzing Brownings dramatic monologues, various aspects of Victorian society and culture, as well as individual roles and struggles, can be deeply understood. Moreover, Brownings works provide rich materials and profound thinking for literary research, and hold an important position in the field of literature. In order to better explain the styles of his works, this article provides an in-depth analysis of Brownings two famous poems, My Last Duchess and The Bishop Orders His Tomb at Saint Praxeds Church. These current article examine characters, themes, and historical backgrounds, showcasing Brownings unique approach to Renaissance content. In addition, this study compared Brownings Renaissance dramatic monologues with three Renaissance poets: Shakespeare , John Milton and William Wordsworth , this comparative analysis highlights the uniqueness of Brownings perspective, the differences in understanding the Renaissance compared to his predecessors, and his contribution to the genre of dramatic monologues. In summary, this study aims to reveal Robert Brownings artistic views and the subtle differences in themes in his Renaissance dramatic monologues. It provides an understanding of Brownings unique position in literary schools and his contributions to the literary world.

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Robert Browning

Cited by 3 publications

References 0 publications

Unveiling and Unravelling the Femme Fatale in Robert Browning's "My Last Duchess"

Unveiling and Unravelling the Femme Fatale in Robert Browning's "My Last Duchess"

Robert Browning’s Poem Porphyria’s Lover: Viewed from the Perspective of a Short Story

The Thematic Interpretation of Robert Brownings Renaissance Dramatic Monologue

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