The Greatness of Edgar Allan Poe
Easton Key
Dr. Bradley
Research Paper
April 11 2010
The Greatness of Edgar Allan Poe Some people think Edgar Allan Poe is one of the greatest writers in history. Poe mostly wrote in a Gothic theme, which makes the story creepy and mysterious. The death of his family members played a big part in the type of writing he did. He became a drinker and gambler, which led him down the path of the crazed thoughts that come out in his stories. Edgar Allan Poe has a claim to literary greatness because of his mysterious, Gothic writing that has many deeper meanings than the reader notices. In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”, the narrator is obsessed with his friend’s glass eye. The narrator keeps trying to persuade the audience that he is not mad, but he kills the man and takes his eye so that the man would be free from the evil it had. Critics have thought that this relates to biblical sayings such as, “Why do you observe the splinter in your other’s eye and never notice the plank in your own?” One critic views this story to have a link with Ego-Evil. This is “about the self’s over identification with its views and interests, which easily leads to a narcissistic denigration of the other and a violation of universal laws” (Wing-chi Ki 25). The narrator is so focused on this man’s problem that he never notices his own. This leads to murder, which is against the law everywhere. The link to the bible and the term Ego-Evil shows that there could be several meanings to what Poe writes in “The Tell-Tale Heart”. One of Edgar Allen Poe’s most famous works is “The Raven”. The narrator is very emotional because of the loss of his lover. He is living in a very large house all by himself, which sets a mysterious mood. The house is in the middle of no-where, and it is raining to add to the mood. He lets in a raven that perches on the window because he is lonely. The raven begins to vocalize by saying “Nevermore”. The narrator begins to talk to the raven and ask if
Dr. Bradley
Research Paper
April 11 2010
The Greatness of Edgar Allan Poe Some people think Edgar Allan Poe is one of the greatest writers in history. Poe mostly wrote in a Gothic theme, which makes the story creepy and mysterious. The death of his family members played a big part in the type of writing he did. He became a drinker and gambler, which led him down the path of the crazed thoughts that come out in his stories. Edgar Allan Poe has a claim to literary greatness because of his mysterious, Gothic writing that has many deeper meanings than the reader notices. In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”, the narrator is obsessed with his friend’s glass eye. The narrator keeps trying to persuade the audience that he is not mad, but he kills the man and takes his eye so that the man would be free from the evil it had. Critics have thought that this relates to biblical sayings such as, “Why do you observe the splinter in your other’s eye and never notice the plank in your own?” One critic views this story to have a link with Ego-Evil. This is “about the self’s over identification with its views and interests, which easily leads to a narcissistic denigration of the other and a violation of universal laws” (Wing-chi Ki 25). The narrator is so focused on this man’s problem that he never notices his own. This leads to murder, which is against the law everywhere. The link to the bible and the term Ego-Evil shows that there could be several meanings to what Poe writes in “The Tell-Tale Heart”. One of Edgar Allen Poe’s most famous works is “The Raven”. The narrator is very emotional because of the loss of his lover. He is living in a very large house all by himself, which sets a mysterious mood. The house is in the middle of no-where, and it is raining to add to the mood. He lets in a raven that perches on the window because he is lonely. The raven begins to vocalize by saying “Nevermore”. The narrator begins to talk to the raven and ask if
Cited: 1. Bloom, Harold. "Thematic Analysis of "Annabel Lee." Bloom 's Major Poets: Edgar Allan Poe (1999): 73-76. Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. 2. Dhahir, Sanna. "Literary Contexts in Poetry: Edgar Allan Poe 's "The Raven." Literary Contexts in Poetry: Edgar Allan Poe 's 'The Raven ' (2007): 1. Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 13 Apr. 2011. 3. Graham, Kevin. "Poe 's THE BELLS." Explicator 62.1 (2003): 9-11. Literary Reference Ce 4. Kennedy, X. J., and Dana Gioia. "Edgar Allan Poe: The Tell-Tale Heart." Literature. New York: Pearson-Longman, 2010. Print.nter. EBSCO. Web. 14 Apr. 2011. 5. Quinn, Patrick F., and Harold Bloom. "PATRICK F. QUINN ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN READER, NARRATOR, AND RODERICK USHER." Bloom 's Major Short Story Writers: Edgar A. Poe (1999): 38-39. Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 13 Apr. 2011. 6. Wing-chi Ki, Magdalen. "EGO-EVIL AND "THE TELL-TALE HEART.." Renascence. 25-38. Marquette University, 2008. Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Web. 13 Apr. 2011. [Type text] [Type text] [Type text]