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English Literature / Unit 14   ENL 1313 short lesson, about 20 seconds

"My Last Duchess"

Captions available

The idea

In "My Last Duchess," of eighteen forty-two, in rhyming couplets, the Duke of Ferrara shows an envoy his late wife's portrait. He resented her smiling on everyone: "I gave commands; / Then all smiles stopped together." He is arranging his next marriage.

In practice

A portrait, a jealous duke, a hint.

Where people slip

The duke reveals more than he intends.

Your place on the trail

Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.

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