The Gothic Theme of Edgar Allen Poes Work - 1357 Words

Edgar Allen Poe was an English short-story writer whose work reflects the traditional Gothic conventions of the time that subverted the ambivalence of the grotesque and arabesque. Through thematic conventions of the Gothic genre, literary devices and his own auteur, Edgar Allan Poe’s texts are considered sublime examples of Gothic fiction. The Gothic genre within Poe’s work such as The Tell-Tale Heart, The Black Cat, and The Raven, arouse the pervasive nature of the dark side of individualism and the resulting encroachment of insanity. Gothic tales are dominated by fear and terror and explore the themes of death and decay. The Gothic crosses boundaries into the realm of the unknown, arousing extremes of emotion through the catalyst of†¦show more content†¦In turn, this sparks a notion of pathos within the responder. The Black Cat and The Tell-Tale Heart exemplify an inclination of hubris, providing an atmosphere of poetic justice that resonates in the responder and creates a connection of emotion with the narrator. The narrator within The Black Cat demonstrates an overestimation of their own competence, accomplishments or capabilities through anacoluthic dialogue, â€Å"‘I may say an excellently well constructed house. These walls – are you going, gentlemen? – these walls are solidly put together’â€Å". The sound device of the beating heart in The Tell-Tale Heart provides a similar inclination, symbolising the narrators awakening sympathy for the old man and his awakening to human feeling. This causes the responder to feel looming suspense, constructing a heightened sense of emotion. Setting and atmosphere within Gothic fiction attributes literary terror to the collapsing of the psychic boundaries of self and other. Dark ambience is achieved through the literal surroundings of the narrator in conjunction with symbolic reference to supernatural themes and motifs, and is a representation of the dark side of individualism within Gothic literature. Edgar Allan Poe uses these supernatural devices within his texts such as The Black Cat and The Tell-Tale Heart to exemplify the internal characteristics of the narrator through tangible representation. Within The BlackShow MoreRelatedRepresentation of Death through Texts1149 Words   |  5 Pagesare. However, whilst being an obsession, it is also simultaneously something that culture dictates as a forbidden subject. This conflict society creates about our feelings towards death is largely responsible for the popularity of gothic fiction. After all, life in gothic fiction never frees itself from the presence or threat of death. It allows us to explore something that is a familiar concept to us all, but in the safety of fiction. Whilst being something we are all humanly aware of, death is alsoRead MoreThe Fall Of The House Of Usher1651 Words   |  7 PagesRomanticism/Transcendentalism Essay Edgar Allen Poe’s â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher,† Nathaniel Hawthorne’s â€Å"The Minister’s Black Veil,† and William Cullen Bryant’s â€Å"Thanatopsis† illustrate several Romantic and Transcendentalist (and anti-Transcendentalist) traits. All of these authors are regarded as very important and influential Romantic writers. Their works are renowned all across the entire world. â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher† is a Gothic short story written by Edgar Allen Poe, which focuses on exploringRead MoreThe Oval Portrait By Edgar Allan Poe930 Words   |  4 PagesYou may speculate how Edgar Allen Poe was inspired to write his short stories, or how they related to his life. Well firstly, his father abandoned his family, then his mother died when he was very young. 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In this paper we will discuss the Gothic in light of two of Poe’s stories, â€Å"Ligeia†, and â€Å"The Fall of the House of Usher,† and contrast Poe’s story with a somewhat dark tale of Nathaniel Hawthorne’sRead MoreGothic Literature : `` Tell Tale Heart `` And `` The Raven ``1698 Words   |  7 Pages2/21/17 Gothic Literature Gothic Literature has been around since the late 17th century, slowly progressing in popularity until the mid 19th century where it had much success demonstrated through Edgar allan Poe. Edgar Allan has a number of common Themes, motifs and structures that make his work easily recognizable and more importantly, fits his stories into the classification of the gothic. Among these elements, they include the theme of death and decay, which is almost always in Gothic fictionRead More Edgar Allen Poes The Fall of the House of Usher Essay1678 Words   |  7 PagesEdgar Allen Poes The Fall of the House of Usher Death is defined as, The termination or extinction of something (American Heritage Dictionary). Edgar Allen Poe uses this description in The Fall of the House of Usher in different ways. Poes intention when writing The Fall of the House of Usher was not to present a moral, lesson, or truth to the reader; he was simply trying to bring forth a sense of terror to the reader. Poes mind works this way, and critics believe this statementRead More The Ghastly Writings of Poe Essay1466 Words   |  6 Pages Edgar Allen Poe makes tales of imagination and fantasies the irrefutable realms of fear. His tales and poems â€Å"have influenced the literary schools of symbolism†¦as well as the popular genres of detective and horror fiction (Stern xxxviii). However, as many of Poe’s tales and poems conjure terror and trepidation, they also penetrate the imagination with fantasy. Poe repeatedly attempts and succeeds at making his readers endure analogous feelings as those characters in his works. The mostRead MoreGothic Literature and the Writings of Edgar Allan Poe Essays850 Words   |  4 Pagescalled Gothic Literature. It is not only considered to involve the horror or gothic element but is combined with romance, superstition, women in distress, omens, portents, vision and supernatural events to name a few (Beesly). The history and beginning of this era is not well known. From a few writers came this writing style that has impacted the world. A famous artists known for thi s type of writing is a man named Edgar Allan Poe. He wrote many short stories and poems that include horror, gothic, andRead MoreEdgar Allan Poe Influences709 Words   |  3 Pagesinfluential American writers ever. He is Edgar Allen Poe. Poe was an expert writer in the dark Gothic style. He once said, â€Å"Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality. Edgar Allan Poe’s Life influenced his life because of people claiming he was insane, due to many of his dark and scary stories, loss of his wife, foster mother, and mother, and also his strong addiction to alcohol. Insanity is a common theme in Poe’s work, this includes, Fall of the House of UsherRead MoreAnalysis Of House Of The Seven Gables Essay1617 Words   |  7 PagesEvil within the Portraits The traditional Gothic taste for â€Å"portraits† is frequent in many novels and short stories that follow the conventions of literary mode making it present in these both texts; House of the Seven Gables by Hawthorne and Edgar Allen Poe’s The Oval Portrait. Often the characters in such Gothic romances are haunted by the tyranny of the past, which make it inescapable. It often leads to the destruction of their loved ones. Others motive of escape is often pulled back by a curse