The brothers of the Duchess were nothing but hypocrites. They forbid their sister to marry, but they were also not married at all. Normally one would secure their legacy by marrying and having children. However that will not happen for the two males of the royal family. They, unlike their sister, only cared for themselves, and that would prove their downfall in the end. Selfish people would get their judgment in due time, but the good would need to suffer first.
In the case of Ferdinland, why does he hate his sister so much, especially if they were twins? He was a terrible and wicked brother who seemed to be too obsessed with his sister and wants her for herself. When the Duchess lives, Ferdinand wants her to be single so he could inherit all of her money. However, he got his wish, but his sanity was gone, and his other half (the Duchess) was torn away from him. He became a like a werewolf and died a horrible death. A hypocrite to the end, his fate was well deserved, since he caused Bosola to murder his sister, her children, the maid Cariola, and others.
However, the Cardinal is even worse. He values reputation, but his sister has the reputation he needed. There was no love, mercy, or any type of selfless aspect from the Cardinal. He only cares for himself and would abandon his own brother, the one who plotted with him in the end. However, the Cardinal deserved a far worse death than the attack from Bosola because of his wicked plans, wicked deeds, and a stable mind. He was the real mastermind and deserved to be tortured like his sister before he dies. However, that was not to happen, and in the end, all the reputation the Cardinal wanted was gone and he wished himself to be forgotten, since his family name became tarnished.
Hypocrisy is in a way too simple an explanation of Ferdinand’s psychological contortions, since we usually think that hypocrites are self-aware when they make their false protestations. I’m not sure that Ferdinand understands his own motives. The Cardinal, on the other hand, fits the type. You can certainly add, Daisy, to your list of the Cardinal’s sins that he is a man of the church who takes vows of celibacy, but keeps a mistress whom he then murders with the aid of a poisoned Bible.
In one of Sigmund Freud’s theories, he states that there will always be a rivalry among twins. Along with many other things, Ferdinand was the Duchess’ biggest rivalry. He didn’t want her offspring to inherit, yet like you stated, didn’t provide an heir he approved of. I agree that Ferdinand was selfish, but as we talked about in class, he could have gone so far as to kill the Duchess in order for her not to be with another man, which raises the question of incest.