Setting in Dover Beach & My LastDuches Intro to Literature Paper II . My analysis of the setting in My Last Duchess andDover Beach At first glance the setting of a poem is the psychological andphysiological environment in which the story takes place. In some instances, thesetting is used to develop the characters. Robert Browning and Matthew Arnolduse the setting to expose their character traits. ?My Last Duchess? and ?DoverBeach,? respectively, portray the weaknesses of the characters using elements fromthe setting. The text, page 629 and 630, tells us that the setting in ?My LastDuchess? displays a valuable art form that exposes his greed and cruelty.
?DoverBeach? demonstrates changeability and impermanence. The speaker’s solution isto establish personal fidelity as a fixture against change, dissolution, and brutality. Even though the text tells us the main use of setting in these two poems, I believethat many individual words used in the poems help describe the surroundings andthe feelings that the speaker is trying to get across. Robert Browning, the author of?My Last Duchess?, uses the setting to show the Dukes greed, cruelty, andjealousy.
The development of the setting begins with the Duke showing an agentfor the Count of Tyrol the curtained picture of his deceased Duchess. Count ofTroy sent an agent in order to see if the Duke is worthy to marry his daughter. Thefact that he keeps the picture behind closed curtains and deems it a privilege toview the Duke’s last Duchess illustrates his possessiveness and greed. ?Shethanked men–good! But thanked somehow–I know not how–as if she ranked mygift of nine-hundred-years-old name with anybody’s gift?. This line lends to thesetting by showing his greed and how he places himself above other menaccording to his possessions and can not believe that she had the audacity to place?the Duke? in the same category as other men. The physical setting of this poem isrevealed by phrases such as ? That’s my Duchess painted on the wall? and wordslike ?curtains? and ?Duke?.
?Duke? itself makes one think of a beautiful castlewith priceless furniture and art work. The use of curtains to cover up the Duchess’picture implies that the Duke is hiding something. The phrase mentioned aboveinforms all that the Duke’s past wife is dead and that by putting her picture on thewall shows the love and devotion that he had for her and will have for his futurewife. Where the words of the Duke imply that he shows dedication and warm heartfor the Duchess the setting reveals the true character of the Duke. ?Dover Beach?is a poem written by Matthew Arnold and was first published in 1849.
Thephysical setting is described as a moon lit night by a calm sea. In the distantbackground the speaker describes the cliffs of England as he looks across atranquil bay. The author is setting up a romantic scene for two people in love. Thewaves give both a mental and physical setting for the poem. ?Listen! You hear thegrating roar of pebbles which the waves draw back, and fling, at their return, upthe high strand, begin, and cease, and then again begin, with tremulous cadenceslow, and bring the eternal note of sadness in. ? Here, Arnold begins using thesetting to describe the characters and their traits.
The phrase ?begin, and cease,and then again begin? is indicative of the characters changing state of mind; to likethen dislike, to love then hate then love again. The use of ebb, flow, and miserymakes the night and the relationship between the lovers appears dark and chaotic. Through his depiction of the eroding shores of the earth, Arnold describes theconstant changes in the relationship and the continuous changes of their feelingstowards each other. Lines 20 and 21, ?the Sea of Faith, was once, too, at the full,and round earth’s shore,? describe the erosion of not only the land but therelationship of the couple, too. The wind, waves, and sounds that you hear alongthe beach, obviously the physical aspects of the setting represent the emotional tiesof the lovers.
The speakers description of a land of dreams having, ?neither joy,nor love, nor light, nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain:? is one were therelationship has nothing hidden and the roar of the waves on the beach reflectrelaxation instead of confusion and controversy between the couple. Beingconfused the couple does not know if they are fighting to keep the relationshipgoing or fighting in order to end the relationship. The setting described in the lastthree lines using words such as struggle, flight, clash, and darkling plan allows thereader to understand the confusion in the couples life Where Browning uses thesetting to reveal the characters greed and cruelty, Arnold uses the setting in ?DoverBeach? to expose the lover’s struggle in their relationship. Both poems’ settingsreveal the weaknesses of their characters and allow the reader to draw a mentalpicture of the situations faced by the characters in the poems’. The use of setting ina poem emphasizes the author words and character development. Setting not onlydescribes the physical surroundings; it also describes the mental though of thecharacters in a poem.
. BibliographyBook = Literature an intro to reading and writting 5th edition Authors = Edgar V.
