What are the tortures inflicted upon the Duchess during imprisonment?

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What are the tortures inflicted upon the Duchess during imprisonment In John Webster s - The Duchess of Malfi the Duchess suffers a lot She faces injustice and inhuman torture at the hands of her selfish brothers Ferdinand and the Cardinal During her time in prison they also torment her emotionally to break her spirit When the Duchess s brothers learn that she has married Antonio and has children they become furious They want to punish her So Ferdinand orders Bosola to imprison her in a dark cell They torture her both physically and emotionally Fake Hand and Wax Figures Ferdinand meets the Duchess in the dark cell He gives her a hand to hold and lies that it is her dead husband Antonio s hand He wants her to think Antonio is dead After this Bosola brings lights and shows her wax figures that look like Antonio and her

children These fake bodies make her believe that her whole family is dead This is emotional torture to break her spirit The Duchess feels so broken and wants to die Madmen and Executioners Moreover Ferdinand brings madmen from the local asylum to torment her mind These madmen shout and act wildly He hopes this will make her go mad but she stays calm and strong Then Bosola meets the Duchess disguised as a tomb-maker and says she will be killed He says I am a tomb-maker However the Duchess remains brave She declares I am Duchess of Malfi still This shows her courage and dignity Eventually Ferdinand orders Bosola to bring some executioners The executioners strangle the Duchess and her two children In short the Duchess suffers emotional pain fear and loss during her imprisonment Her brothers want to destroy her mind before killing her body But the Duchess stays brave and noble until the end Her courage makes her a truly tragic and strong heroine

The Duchess of Malfi

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What are the tortures inflicted upon the Duchess during imprisonment?

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John Webster

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