Characters in The Road

The Man- Symbol of Survival

Appearance 

• beard
• scraggy clothes
• long hair
• thin 

Speech

• blunt
• unloving
• straight to the point 
• only talks if spoken to 

Actions

• instinct to protect him and the boy
• use binoculars to see further into their route
• carries a gun with 2 bullets, one for him and one for The boy

Interactions

• The boy
• The woman 
• Ely
• Road Rat

Role

• Been appointed to protect The boy 

The boy- Symbol of hope and light

Appearance

• Thin
• Young
• Dirty
• Coat 

Speech

• Curious 
• Questioning the man 
• "Ok"
• "good guys"

Actions

• instinct to help others
• provides hope
• finds a new family

Interactions

• The man
• Ely 
• The new family 

role

• To provide hope and restoration in humanity 

The Woman-Symbol of Temptation 

Appearance 

• seductive 

Speech

• talks mostly of the temptation of death
• how The man will not be a good father and protect the boy

Actions

• kills herself and gives in to the temptation of death 

Interactions

• The man
• flash backs
• dreams
• vivid imagination

Role

• To challenge the man to give in with the seduction and temptation of choosing the easy way out

Ely- The symbol of a Prophet 

 

Appearance 

• Cardboard shoes
• old
• dirty 
• thin 
• scraggy clothes

Speech

• Riddles
• wise
• crazy
• Religious

Actions

• Camps with The man and The Boy
• The first person along the road that The boy is allowed to be good too 
• Tells the Man and Boy his name is not Ely , but doesn't give his real name 

Interactions

• The man
• The boy

Role

• To encourage The mans journey by telling him that "death itself would be lonely"

The Road Rat-The symbol of Danger

Appearance

• dirty
• stereotypical American clothes- Baseball cap
• Bird tattoo

Speech

• violent
• threatening

Actions

• Separates himself from the rest of the group
• threatens to kill The man and The boy
• grabs The boy
• Gets shot by The man 

 Interactions 

• The man
• The boy
• The rest of the cannibals 

Role

• To show the corruption in the world 

How does Browning tell the story in My Last Duchess?

 'My Last Duchess' tells the story of a proud, possessive and selfish Duke Ferrara who out of jealousy and insecurity kills his "last" wife. This is told through a dramatic monologue of his voice. The Duke begins to case build in order to receive a new wife and innocence.

 Browning sets the dramatic monologue in Renaissance Italy, this is known through the subtitle "Ferrara". The specific time period of the monologue is not mentioned, however the name of the painter " Fra Pandolf" hints towards the period that it is set in. The period is renowned for great artwork and the production of artistic talents. But also for violence and murder which these ideas create the heart of the story which is told. The setting for the monologue is an upper chamber in the ducal palace, away form the 'company below'. By browning doing this it characterises the narrator to be more intimidating. One of Browning's key aspects of narrative is to amplify the Duke's power, he does this by the setting he has used.

 Even before the dramatic monologue has begun the title characterises the Duke as possessive by referring to his last wife as "My Last Duchess". This begins to build the characters personality as neurotic and obsessive which is then further developed by explaining to the envoy that she is "painted on the wall" of the palace in order for him to be able to own her forever. As the monologue continues we begin to figure that his control isn't what he figures it is, for he has to keep his painting behind a "curtain" so she can not "look" at people coming to visit. This drives the Duke insane as he obsesses about his wealth, this links into the period in which the monologue is set of the renounce of artistic and wealthy painters. He can not show off his wealth as she is "looking as if she were alive". This line can be interpreted to suggest that his former wife was seen to be flirtatious. Therefore this resulted in him having to keep her locked away.

 The rhythm of the dramatic monologue uses an iambic pentameter which mimics the Duke's heart beat as he becomes more infuriated of the Duchess' apparent flaws, however this meter is not present throughout the whole of the monologue, this shows the Dukes inability to control everything in his life even though he desires to. The rhythm of the monologue uses the form of AABB rhyming couplets. The organisation of this shows the Duke's desire for control. "How such a glance came there;so, not the first Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, 'twas not" The stops and pauses in the narrators speech indicates trying to get back into control of his anger

Narrative Codes

Enigma- A question which must be resolved.

Symbolic- Signs or signals which represent a larger idea.

Action-An event/action which dictates a set/known response.

Cultural-Signs or symbols unique to a specific culture.

Semantic- What something is- connotation\denotation.