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From the Execution Ballad to the Dramatic Monologue: Criminal Confession Reconfigured.

  • Published In: Victorian Poetry, 2024, v. 62, n. 1/2. P. 76 1 of 3

  • Database: Academic Search Ultimate 2 of 3

  • Authored By: Martens, Britta 3 of 3

Abstract

Victorian dramatic monologues about murder, including such prominent examples as Robert Browning's "Porphyria's Lover," "My Last Duchess," and The Ring and the Book , as well as Dante Gabriel Rossetti's "A Last Confession," often rely upon readers' familiarity with the popular genre of the execution ballad. Subverting the straightforward plotline and deterrent social function of the primarily didactic ballad, these monologues shift readers' horizon of expectation toward greater psychological sophistication and moral ambiguity, obliging them to contemplate a world in which crime may go unpunished and social order is fragile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Additional Information

  • Source:Victorian Poetry. 2024/03, Vol. 62, Issue 1/2, p76
  • Document Type:Article
  • Subject Area:Literature and Writing
  • Publication Date:2024
  • ISSN:0042-5206
  • DOI:10.1353/vp.2024.a948526
  • Accession Number:182908508
  • Copyright Statement:Copyright of Victorian Poetry is the property of Johns Hopkins University Press and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

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