ENGB45H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: My Last Duchess
Document Summary
Women were seen as less in mind and body than men; but this is made up in their influence. The position of otherness actually positions women into a category of strange and slave . Power is framed to be men"s or negative in the case of women. Modern" women are slept with for a night, but not taken as a wife. Subject and object relationship is one of power. Victorian period had fascination with female suicide; a power cycle for women where they can escape through death. Looking at herself: she"s powerful, but has a dangerous addiction to vanity. My last duchess: duchess was killed for looking at people. Playing into idea that women should be perfect like mary, but that every woman is also tainted by eve"s sin. Rhetorical division for us : women aren"t philosophers, links reader to author by saying they"re part of the same group. Taylor interested in investigating reason in an argument.
