The Duchess of Malfi Papers & Assignment Topics

Essay Topics/Writing Assignments

These 20 essay questions can be used as essay questions on a test, or as stand-alone essay topics for a take-home or in-class writing assignment. Students should have a full understanding of the text in order to answer these questions. They ask for a thorough analysis of the text.

1. Why do you think we never learn the Duchess's name in the play? What do you think the author was trying to say by not giving her a name? How would the play have changed, or not have changed, if she had been given a name?

2. What literary devices does the author use to convey things about the characters within the first few scenes of the play? Thinking about the way Webster uses characters, foreshadowing, and dialogue, pick 3 characters, and describe how these devices help the reader know more about the characters and what...
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