What is a dramatic monologue in Victorian poetry?

A dramatic monologue is a poem written as the speech of an individual character who is not the poet. This form compresses a narrative sense of the speaker's history and psychological state into a single, vivid scene.12

In Victorian poetry, the dramatic monologue became a primary mode of expression, developed independently by Alfred, Lord Tennyson and Robert Browning during the 1830s. While the technique has roots in ancient literature, it reached a high level of sophistication during the Victorian era.21

Key characteristics include:
* Character Revelation: The subject discussed is often less significant than what the speaker inadvertently reveals about their own personality, intelligence, or moral character.13
* Reader Engagement: The reader must actively piece together the dramatic situation and assess the reliability of the narrator through their casual remarks or digressions.13
* Psychological Depth: It allows for the exploration of complex, criminal, or unconventional minds, forcing the reader to engage in moral judgment.43

Browning, in particular, used the form to create a vast gallery of imagined characters, while Tennyson utilized it to explore psychological states, such as in his poem Maud.32