The Painting

The central symbol of the poem is the painting, which symbolizes the duke's need for control and power. The plot of the poem revolves around the painting and what it reveals, both literally and in terms of the duke's inner life and feelings about his murdered wife. It represents his misogynistic attitudes towards women and his desire to possess his late wife as an object. He repeatedly states that the painting preserves the deceased duchess looking "as if she were alive" (2). He exerts control even over this symbol of her, proudly bragging that "none puts by the curtain I have drawn for you but I" (9-10). Now that the living duchess has been transformed into the lifeless painting, he continues his ownership over all of her beauty while maintaining control of her life.

However, the painting also suggests the limits of his control. Although he...