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Comparison Essay

 

            Different extremes of marriage are dramatized within the two poems "To My Dear and Loving Husband" (Bradstreet, Anne page 78) and "My Last Duchess" (Browning, Robert page 278). Each author writes in iambic pentameter, using rhyming couplets and presents opposite ends of the spectrum of marriage. While both have similar physical characteristics, it is the contrasts that complete the comparison of the two.
             Within the first couplet of her poem, "If ever two were one, then surely we. If ever man was loved by wife, then thee;" (lines 1-2), Bradstreet immediately sets a tone of true love for her readers. Her persona exemplifies the extreme, "If ever wife was happy in a man, compare with me, ye women, if you can." (line 3- 4) boasting that no other women can compare with her happiness. A physical comparison to love for a price is introduced, "I prize thy love more than whole mines of gold Or all the riches the East doth hold."(line 5-6) The two lines tell the reader that Bradstreet is aware of the wealth of the objects; however her love surpasses even the greatest of that wealth. By bringing in a comparison with nature, "Thy love is such that rivers cannot quench," Bradstreet again goes to the extreme believing her love to be greater than the force of nature. She uses her Puritan upbringing by introducing the spiritual life "The heavens reward thee manifold, I pray."(line 10) showing her belief that her love will be carried through beyond her death. Although some readers may feel that Bradstreet's persona is looking at marriage through rose-colored glasses, there is no question of her intention to portray the emotion created in the presence of true love.
             Browning's Duke displays the opposite end of the spectrum of marriage, one that is defined by possession, control and jealousy. The beginning of the poem suggests to the reader that he is imparting a warning of kind to his listener by placing the accent on the word last.


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