The Duchess of Malfi Chapter Summary & Analysis - Act 4, Scene 1 Summary

Act 4, Scene 1 Summary

Ferdinand and Bosola enter a room in the Duchess's palace at Malfi. Ferdinand is receiving Bosola's report on how nobly the Duchess is bearing her imprisonment. Ferdinand dismisses Bosola, and then exits. The Duchess enters, and Bosola tells her Ferdinand must speak to her in the dark so as not to break his vow never to see her again. Ferdinand reenters in the dark and professes an offering of peace. Ferdinand gives her a dead man's hand, which the Duchess understands to be his own; she comments on how cold his hand is. Then she demands lights and discovers he has given her a severed hand. Ferdinand exits. A curtain is drawn to reveal the waxen figures of Antonio and the children, as if they are dead. Bosola counsels her to stop grieving now that they are dead and irrecoverable. The Duchess declares that she wishes she were dead. Bosola...
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