Paper # 3 insights into poe’s writings
- 1. Cash 1 Box # 108 Sandra Cash Professor Bouchard ENG 132 Paper # 3 Insights into Poe’s Writings February 1, 2012 Insights into Poe’s Writings Poe’s stories are well written, even though they are morbid. Poe is great at setting the mood of his stories. He makes the mood gloomy, depressing, no hope, and dark. This helps in foreshadowing what is to come next in the story. In the perspective of new historicism, Poe has a common theme in his stories about people being buried alive. In Poe’s day, it was so common that people were being buried alive that people made a “Society for the Prevention of People Being Buried Alive” ("Premature Burial In The Nineteenth Century"). Also, when Poe has women in his stories he does not give them any characteristics, they are rather plain and boring. This is also seen in the perspective of feminist, but in a negative way. Poe has this great talent at setting the mood for his stories. For example in “The Fall of the House of Usher,” he writes this: “… upon the mere house, and the simple landscape features of the domain – upon the bleak walls – upon the vacant eye – like windows – upon a few ranks sedges – and upon a few white trunks of decayed trees – with an utter depression of soul which I can compare to no earthly sensation more properly than to the after-dream of the reveler upon opium – the bitter lapse into everyday life – the hideous dropping off of the view. There
- 2. Cash 2 was a sinking, a sickening of the heart – an unredeemed dreariness…” (Lawrense, p. 149) This just gives you a feeling of hopelessness, depressing, and sad place. He also uses this for foreshadowing. A good example of this is in “A Cask of Amontillado,” he again sets the mood by this, “Its walls had been lined with human remains, piled to the vault over head, in the fashion of the great catacombs of Paris.” (Lawrense, p. 146) This foresahoweds what is going to happen to Fortunato. Poe also has a common theme that the characters are buried alive. From the perspective of new historicism, this is probably because in Poe’s day this was a common. Doctors back then did not know a very accurate way to tell if a person was actually dead or if a person was in a coma. Due to this, doctors accidentally pronounced a person dead when they were not dead. This became so common that people founded a “Society for the Prevention of People Being Buried Alive” ("Premature Burial In The Nineteenth Century"). I think Poe just played up on this fear, when writing “Cask of Amontillado,” and “The Fall of the House of Usher.” When Poe has women characters, he makes them very plain, flat, with no personality. This can be seen through two perspectives, first the new historicism perspective and then the feminist. Through the historicism perspective, this is still the time where women are supposed to be good wives, take care of the kids, and stay in the house. This is probably why Poe does not give his women characters any personality, and makes the flat. In “The Fall of the House of Usher,” the sister of Roderick seems to be more of an after thought. She is only mentioned a few times throughout the story. When Roderick says that she was buried alive, trying to get out, he mentions her in almost as an afterthought. Another good example is in “The Black Cat.” The narrator’s wife is only mentioned again only a few times. The narrator says he has a wife while he
- 3. Cash 3 talks about how his life used to be, how good of a wife she was to him even when it must have been hard, and lastly when he kills her. A feminist would be greatly upset with Poe; he does not give his women characters any personality, he makes them keeps them in their stereotypical places, and they are weak. The relationship between men and women in “The Fall of the House of Usher,” is a brother and sister that live together since the sister never got married. Once again, this implies that women are not allowed to live on their own and they have to have a husband. Another example of relationship between men and women is in “The Black Cat,” the relationship is between a husband and wife, in which the wife is a good wife that stays at home. Another issue for feminist would be that the main characters in Poe’s stories is always the men, the women are more of a side thought. Poe is very talented writer, his stories are very well written, even though they can be a bit gruesome. He has a special talent for setting the mood of his stories. He makes the mood depressing, filled with no hope, and dark. He also uses this to foreshadow what is to come next in the story. Poe has a common theme in his stories about people being buried alive. The perspective of new historicism could explain this, since it was something that did happen in Poe’s day. Another thing that is could be explain by the culture of his day is the fact that he does not give his women character’s any depth or personality. This would and does offend a person who has a perspective of feminist. It makes women look weak, and that their place is in the house.
- 4. Cash 4 Works Cited Poe, A. Edger "Cask of Amontillado" DiYanni, Robert. Literature: Approaches to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Madison: McGraw Hill, 2008.144-148. Poe, A. Edger "The Fall of the House of Usher" DiYanni, Robert. Literature: Approaches to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Madison: McGraw Hill, 2008.149-161. Poe, A. Edger "The Black Cat" DiYanni, Robert. Literature: Approaches to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Madison: McGraw Hill, 2008.137-143. "Premature Burial In The Nineteenth Century." Web. 1 Feb 2012. <http://www.members.tripod.com/DespiteThis/death/prebur.htm>.