What philosophy of life do you find in Andrea del Sarto?
“Andrea del Sarto” is a famous dramatic monologue in which Robert Browning (1812 – 1889) portrays Andrea’s failure as a painter. From the twilight of both his painting career and marriage, Andrea del Sarto speaks about what has gone wrong.
Andrea’s situation points to the deep philosophy of success and failure in one’s life. Once Andrea was flourishing as a painter, working for King Francis at the court of France. However, under the nagging influence of his wife Lucrezia, he cheated the king and left France with money. He spent all the money on a house for himself and his wife in Italy.
Sitting in the house, Andrea thinks back on his career and laments that his worldly concerns have kept him from fulfilling his promise as an artist. As he paints for providing his wife with financial support, his paintings lack spirituality.
Andrea knows that “Michel Angolo” and “Raphael” lacked a wife like Lucrezia, thus they triumph as artists.
Browning’s “Andrea del Sarto” shows that one must be devoted completely to his or her work, and only then may success come. Moreover, a friendly and supportive life partner is what you need. One must stay on the simple path, and not climb the ladder of success by dishonest means.
