Dana Kornmeier
Mr. Provenzano
Honors American Lit – 1st Hour
16 March 2012
Poe’s Love for Death
Edgar Allan Poe, without a doubt, shocked the world with his highly-acclaimed collection of short stories. Throughout the mid-1800s, he stunned readers with his vivid works and took literature to a whole new medium. Although the stories were released at different times and were of different subjects, he was known for his reoccurring use of dark and frightening themes. Whether based on revenge, murder, burial, or torture, they all seem to revolve around one simple concept—death. Hinting subtly or having the entire story be based upon it, Poe always found a way to incorporate it into his works. Poe was notably criticized for his use of this theme, mainly because it had never been a major concept before. Making the concept a subject of interest, he made people realize the ambiguity of death and whether peaceful or painful, everyone on this planet experiences it. Edgar Allan Poe, as one of the most prominent figures of literature in the 19th century, made death the center of his works in a way that had people captivated yet perplexed.
Regarded as one of his earlier stories, “The Fall of the House of Usher” is one of Poe’s most well-known yet frightful works. This work clearly displays itself as a gothic story; the gloomy weather, the deteriorating mansion, the last man of the house/family, Rodrick Usher, going crazy, the death of the family members and the fall of the house at the end. In this case, what takes the story to a whole new level of terror is the obscurity at certain points. Nobody knows who the narrator is, what caused the fall of the house, when death will reign supreme, and other similar details. Additionally, the creeping anticipation of death and madness makes the story one of Poe’s most acclaimed. “. . . then, with a low moaning cry, fell heavily inward upon the person of her brother, and in her violent and now final death-agonies, bore him to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had anticipated” (Poe, “The Fall of the House of Usher”). Throughout the story, Rodrick Usher knows that his death is coming; what makes him go crazy is not knowing when or where it is going to happen. Although not all of the events in the story pertain to death, it is always the underlying subject. Actions taken, words spoken; this story revolves itself around the death of both the family and the house. “The Fall of the House of Usher” symbolizes both the fall of the family name and the physical mansion they all lived in. Within the story, Poe exposes the anxiety and madness over the subject of death, and how biologically, one can never avoid it.
About ten years later, Poe published “The Premature Burial,” another one of his grotesque and madness-filled stories. This short story revolves around the concept of being buried alive, and how eventually, one must suffer death as a result. Different from most of his stories, in this case, the main character/narrator does not experience this brutal event; it is the psychological effects on the person that make him go crazy. “The true wretchedness, indeed – the ultimate woe – is particular, not diffuse. That the ghastly extremes of agony are endured by man the unit, and never by man the mass – for let us thank a merciful God” (Poe, “The Premature Burial”)! Poe sets this story up as the narrator providing examples of those who have been buried alive, having the reader think that these events will eventually consume the narrator. The narrator eventually drives himself to a state of overwrought emotion, believing that one day he himself will experience this; making the reader even more assured that this will happen to him. The reader eventually realizes that by the end, the narrator was never put in this position and he only imagined it. The sense of relief brought by the end shows how certain stories do not have to end in death to be about death. The constant depression the narrator was put into and his fear for death shows how certain people handle certain situations, and how the perception of death varies on several levels.
Published the same year as “The Premature Burial,” “The Pit and the Pendulum” is another story where the narrator fortunately escapes death. A victim of the Spanish Inquisition, the narrator clearly explains the setting of his “arranged death” and how he waits in agony for it to happen. “That the result would be death, and a death of more than customary bitterness, I knew too well the character of my judges to doubt. The mode and the hour were all that occupied or distracted me” (Poe, “The Pit and the Pendulum”). Like many of his other stories, Poe represented the different perceptions of death and what certain people make of it. In this case, the narrator waits so long for his death; he mentions he would rather get it over with than deal with the agony of anticipation. “The Pit and the Pendulum” is a short story again that revolves around the concept of death and its anticipation, while by the end no characters have experienced it. Much like Rodrick Usher in “The Fall of the House of Usher,” it is driving him mad having to constantly think of his fate; yet at the same time, he brings a sense of hope to the story and is more characterized. Similar to a human being, Poe’s stories can relate in certain cases, but additionally be completely unique.
Another one of Poe’s most gruesome short stories is “The Black Cat,” in which many people and things are lost in spite of the narrator. This story evidently shows how events and things can manipulate someone into a completely different person; in this case, extremely for the worse. The narrator ends up brutally killing all of his household pets, and most importantly his wife and most beloved cat. “Who has not, a hundred times, found himself committing a vile or a silly action, for no other reason than because he knows he should not? Have we not a perpetual inclination, in the teeth of our best judgment, to violate that which is Law, merely because we understand it to be such” (Poe, “The Black Cat”) ? Within the story, the reader finds out the narrator committed these unlawful actions due to alcoholism of some sort, and it took a toll of his entire life. Additionally, it seems to be more personal and related to Poe; taking into account he suffered alcohol problems himself. This story is different from the others in that the narrator is the actual murderer, not the sufferer. The narrator experiences a process of death; committing the crime, feeling the guilt, it making him go mad, having the urges again, and once again being aware of what he has done. Changing the point of view with this work, Poe was able to establish once again a sense of uniqueness to the concept of death, yet showing how it all ties back together when it comes to its dictionary-definition.
“The Masque of the Red Death” is one of Poe’s most evident works revolving around the concept of death. Dealing with the plague spreading throughout the country, the Prince Prospero, in an attempt to save his acquaintances, has everyone spend time at his castle. Inevitably, the plague reaches the castle, and everyone ends up passing from it. “And now was acknowledged the presence of the Red Death. He had come like a thief in the night. And one by one dropped the revelers . . . died each in the despairing posture of his fall . . . And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all” (Poe, “The Masque of the Red Death”). This short story can most easily be described as an allegory, yet both literally and symbolically these two levels pertain to death. The irony of this story is that the prince, hoping to save his friends, seals their fate by having them all gather together at once. Poe seems to have shown the power of death throughout this piece, and how death and time can be very much relatable. The clock that chimes every hour within the castle was placed in the story to represent how death inevitably answers to time; how one cannot escape it. This seems to be Poe’s main focal point throughout all his pieces; how death in all honesty is unavoidable, how many people perceive it in many different ways, and how all in all, time wins over death.
Edgar Allan Poe, considered one of the most daring and creepy figures in literature, brought up the concept of death; something usually not taken in-depth before. Death, one of the most natural and common events to be a part of society, seems like it always has to be overwrought and intense in literature, especially when it comes to the gothic subject matter. Despite the gothic elements, and despite the course of events his stories took, they all connected and bonded with the subject matter of death. Underlying in all of these stories are main points of death; how tragic it may be, it is unavoidable at all costs. Additionally, it does not matter how or why a person dies, everyone ends up the same situation. Poe’s short stories go past the plot lines to show elemental concepts, and they have lasted centuries past to show how impacting a subject can be.
Bibliography
Lombardi, Esther. "Edgar Allan Poe: A Philosophy of Death." About.com Classic Literature. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://classiclit.about.com/od/poeedgarallan/a/aa_eap_philos.htm>.
Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Black Cat." Poestories.com. Web. 12 Mar. 2012. <http://poestories.com/read/blackcat>.
Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Fall of the House of Usher." Poestories.com. Web. 10 Mar. 2012. <http://poestories.com/read/houseofusher>.
Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Masque of the Red Death." Poestories.com. Web. 10 Mar. 2012. <http://poestories.com/read/masque>.
Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Pit and the Pendulum." Poestories.com. Web. 12 Mar. 2012. <http://poestories.com/read/pit>.
Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Premature Burial." Poestories.com. Web. 12 Mar. 2012. <http://poestories.com/read/premature>.
"Poe’s Short Stories." SparkNotes. SparkNotes. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/poestories/context.html>.
"Poe's Short Stories Summary and Analysis." GradeSaver. GradeSaver LLC. Web. 14 Mar. 2012. <http://www.gradesaver.com/poes-short-stories/study-guide/section13/>.
No comments:
Post a Comment