Thursday, April 25, 2013

Analytical Piece



                                                Edgar Allan Poe
The notorious dark romantic author Edgar Allan Poe has depicted himself as an unusual, yet pleasing writer that incorporates petrifying elements to add zest into his stories. Critics have asserted the idea that his disturbed attitude, depicted in his writings, are due to unfortunate events which stretch out throughout his life influencing his writings. Such an event took place around the time of his infancy where his family was torn apart due to the unfortunate death of his parents (Charles, N.P.). These conflicts greatly impacted Poe’s writing by forcing him to write using negative connotations and by perceiving the world as an atrocious environment for human development. This is illustrated amongst the several works he has contributed for society. Amid these works are the components of his style of writing and symbolism. Poe portrays the characters in his story as morally corrupt and he clearly expresses his general perception on the conflicts that overtake us in the world, thus illustrating that humans are insane and have a cynical behavior which leads to a demoralized society.
                Edgar Allan Poe demonstrates many essential styles of writing as he descriptively represents the characters by supporting the argument that humans are morally corrupt. For instance, in The Black Cat, Poe vividly enhances a new meaning behind the man by painting an illusion of how the man is kindhearted and compassionate by showing at first that he “ was especially fond of animals, and was indulged by [his] parents with a great variety of pets” (Poe, 59). This exposes the better side of the man by cleverly, at first showing that he is a good and normal man who adores animals and pleasures their accompaniment. As the story progresses, Poe surreptitiously gives indications that the man is losing all sense of consciousness and is forming into a new ghastly and malicious person. This is shown when we see that the man has taken up a new hobby of drinking alcohol which makes his attitude “more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others.”… “But my disease grew upon me –for what disease is like Alcohol!...” (Poe, 60). It is evident that Poe cleverly describes the transition from a gentle, animal-loving man into a new form of a monster that is engulfed in the intoxication of alcohol. This evolution of the man shows how people are susceptible to making wrong decisions that in the end cause them much suffering, consequently resulting in a more corrupt society. Through this style of writing, Poe uses his characters to illustrate how the attitude of contemptuous humans causes the destruction of humanity.
Also, Poe vividly exposes the intensity of the certain conditions in which the man was compelled to brutally murder his cat. He describes the owner’s emotions when he expresses that he “…hung it because [he] knew that in doing so [he] was committing a sin-a deadly sin that would be so jeopardize [his] immortal soul as to place it- if such a thing were possible-even beyond the reach of the infinite mercy of the Most Merciful and Most Terrible God,” (Poe, 61). It is evident how the man has clearly admitted to obligating to a sin and soon after feels no remorse for his actions. The author emphatically describes the emotions running through the man’s mind as he is committing the horrible sin which represents how his insanity takes the better of him and his love and devotion he once had for the feline has vanished.
                In addition to demonstrating multiple writing techniques, Poe efficiently expresses various examples of symbolism throughout his works. For example, in the story “The Tell Tale Heart”, the heart takes the role of symbolizing the ignorance of the man by disregarding his fear of guilt for slaughtering the old man. As the heart continues to beat through the floor boards of the house, the man grows more anxious and anxiety-filled as he tries to advance with a normal life. “No doubt I now grew very pale; --but I talked more fluently, and with a heightened voice,” ( ). The man grows more impatient and this reveals how people, under guilt and pressure are definitely going to react in a more nerve-wrecking way compared to a state of tranquility. Yet, each beat of the heart reminds him of each moment contributed into killing the innocent old man and therefore, creates the build-up of guilt within his own heart. He “paced the floor to and fro with heavy stride, as if excited to fury by the observations of the men—but the noise steadily increased.” (Poe, N.P) In a continued manner, the man “foamed—[he] raved—[he] swore! [He] swung the chair upon which [he] had been sitting, and grated it upon the boards, but the noise arose over all and continually increased. It grew louder—louder—louder! And still the men chatted pleasantly, and smiled. Was it possible they heard not?”(Poe, N.P.). Along with the heart, the black cat also is significant in showing symbolism in the story The Black Cat. For instance, the black feline is portrayed as “a remarkably large and beautiful animal, entirely black, and sagacious to an astonishing degree,” (Poe, 60). This alludes to the fact that Poe greatly emphasized on the beauty yet devilish appearance of the cat which represented its character of a friendly presence and also the cause of a great misfortune. Critics have argued that in this story, “Despite the narrator’s explicit claim of sanity in the story’s first paragraph, he immediately shows himself self-deceived by terming his story ‘a series of mere household events.’” (Prinsky, N.P.) This evidently expresses the man’s true insanity in believing that the dreadful that has been committed by his own hands is only a “series of mere household events” (Prinsky, N.P.) which means that he believes that this would happen in anyone’s home and it is a normal thing. We can see here how the man has no morals and completely proves himself to be crazy in having such a belief.  It is seen in society how the black cat is visualized as bad luck. It is clearly portrayed in this story as it seen that the man transforms into a horrible who murders the cat.
                Therefore, although Poe has faced many obstacles in his life which forced him to become such a dark romantic author, his works that have been displayed in society has brought much pleasure to the public. With his elements of writing techniques and the way he includes meaningful symbolism shows how Poe, in most of his works, represents the human as a person that has contributed to disheartening the society around them due to their disparaging behavior and their own ethical corruption.

                                                                                                Works Cited
·         Prinsky, Norman. "The Black Cat." Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition (2004): 1-3. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Web. 26 Apr. 2013.

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