Darryl F. Gless describes Duke Vincentio as a godlike figure who, thanks to his use of disguise, appears omniscient to the other characters of the play and who closes the play by administering justice to all and awarding "troe praise where it is due." Carolyn E. Brown and Robin Grove see the Duke in a negative light. Brown, for instance, turns to the relationship between Vincentio and the dissipated but perceptive Lucio for evidence supporting Measure for Measure's designation as a "problem" play. Brown explains that although the Duke appears superficially to be virtuous, and although his manipulations of Isabella, Mariana, and Angelo end happily, nevertheless his conversations with and harsh sentencing of Lucio reveal a troubled and sublimated personality. Grove criticizes the Duke for the lack of self-perception he reveals in believing that he is.....
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