The poem is a dramatic monologue because it consists entirely of the words of a speaker (persona) who reveals in his speech his own nature and the dramatic situation in which he finds himself. The dramatic monologue reveals its own place and time as it proceeds to uncover the psychology of the speaker at a significant moment in his or her life. Browning's Duke has been labeled (despite his apparent cunning) as "witless"--why?

Lurking Sin, Indifferent Behavior and Over Acting of the Duke

Explanation:

The poem 'My Last Duchess' is a monologue based on 16th century Duke of Ferrara, Alfonso, who is a widowed speaker. He tells that he means entertainment to the visiting emissary who is there to negotiate his marriage. While the Duke goes on a walk through with visitors of his palace, he deliberately stops in front of a portrait of the late Duchess, who appears young and lovely. Now the Duke reminisces about the Duchess. But Duke's musings turn out to be a diatribe on her disgraceful behaviour. The Duke reveals the Duchess flirted with everyone and brought disgrace to his 'nine-hundred-years - old name'. As the monologue progresses, the readers do understand that the Duke was the culprit behind the Duchess's early death. After revealing the chilling fact, the Duke returns to the normal behaviour as nothing has happened. The Duke's musings show that the supposed evil actions took place only in his mind. With lurking fear of sin, the Duke is quite an actor with a poor sense of wit. He mimics others' voices, creates hypothetical situations, and uses the force of his personality to make horrifying information seem merely colourful. Bu all appears lacklustre.