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Egar allan poe and gothic horror essays
Egar allan poe and gothic horror essays
Edgar Allan Poe contributions to literature
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During the whole of our past mankind has developed art, music and literature as part of our culture. Therefore literature has always been and will always be part of the human culture. As such it developed many genres with many subgenres in which specific authors could, and still can, thrive. One of the oldest genres in literature is the genre of horror literature, more specific weird literature, in which authors like Horace Walpole, Edgar Allan Poe and many others are considered to be influential to its core. Arguably, one of those is H.P. Lovecraft who not only influenced the literary genre of horror, but also parts of modern pop culture with his creations like “Cthulhu” or the “Necronomicon”. This essay is going to be about H.P. Lovecraft
Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, a very gory story, can also be seen a romantic piece within having characteristics, such as celebration of the individual, importance of imagination, strong emotions, and an awe of nature. Within the piece there is many references to how one comments on the accomplishments and achievements of another or themselves, also known as the celebration of an individual. An example of how Frankenstein uses the celebrations of individual is when Frankenstein, himself, talks about his achievements of how fast his experiments turned out. He talks about his success, by staying, “ As I applied so closely, it may be easily conceived that my progress was rapid ” (chapter four). By saying, “applied” it shows that he is saying
Gothic literature, such as The Night Circus, “The Devil and Tom Walker”, “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment”, and “Masque of the Red Death”, are known for incorporating gothic elements such as the supernatural, death, and fascination with the past.
Hollywood has played a big part is our lives. Growing up we’ve seen numerous movies, some that scared us others that touch us, and those images stayed with us forever. So what happens when Hollywood takes a classic piece of literature such as Frankenstein and turns into a monster movie. It transforms the story so much that now some 50 years later, people think of Frankenstein as the monster instead of the monster’s creator. It became a classic monster movie and all the high values of the original were forever lost.
Many timeless novels have impacts on our everyday culture, not only as a book, but also through music or movies. Many popular novels have multiple adaptations, which shape how we approach their interpretation, in ways we may never even notice. In some films, humans are depicted as monsters, whether through their actions, or through the thoughts of other beings. In these films we find issues with our own society, and in turn see ourselves as monsters, and look for ways we can change, for the better. One particular novel that influences this side of Hollywood is Mary Shelley's “Frankenstein”. The ways Frankenstein influences pop culture can be seen in science fiction films in which humans are depicted as monster, and “monsters” are seen as more humane beings, such as I, Robot, and Ender’s Game.
One of H.P. Lovecraft’s many short stories, “The Outsider” has been praised since its publication as his most profound and meaningful. This story has been interpreted many different ways, varying from an autobiography of Lovecraft himself to several different philosophical analyses. One such interpretation, by Dirk Mosig compares the plot and settings of “The Outsider” to Lovecraft’s own doubtful views of religion and an afterlife. Mosig supports his interpretation with many facts from the story, I believe he pinpoints one very possible meaning of the story. His argument successfully uses the plot and details to convince the reader that his hypothesis is correct.
Word by word, gothic literature is bound to be an immaculate read. Examining this genre for what it is could be essential to understanding it. “Gothic” is relating to the extinct East Germanic language, people of which known as the Goths. “Literature” is defined as a written work, usually with lasting “artistic merit.” Together, gothic literature combines the use of horror, death, and sometimes romance. Edgar Allan Poe, often honored with being called the king of horror and gothic poetry, published “The Fall of House Usher” in September of 1839. This story, along with many other works produced by Poe, is a classic in gothic literature. In paragraph nine in this story, one of our main characters by the name of Roderick Usher,
Edgar Allan Poe is one of America’s most celebrated classical authors, known for his unique dealings within the horror genre. Poe was a master at utilizing literary devices such as point of view and setting to enhance the mood and plot of his stories leading to his widespread appeal that remains intact to this day. His mastery of aforementioned devices is evident in two of his shorter works “The Black Cat” and “The Cask of Amontillado”.
Lovecraft, H.P.. “The Beast in the Cave.” The Transition of H.P. Lovecraft: The Road to
Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein (1818) and the famous character Frankenstein monsters have drastically changed in pop culture over time. Mary Shelley’s original Frankenstein monster is torrid considering that everyone around feared and rejected him.While in modern day adaptations such as Frankenstein the movie filmed in 1931 directed by James Whale the monster seemed mute, not really interested in seeking vengeance on his creator, and almost remote. The monster showing itself in a soulful way is a key part of it’s character. Which is something most modern day adaptations of this novel seem to have forgotten.
Edgar Allan Poe was an excellent horror, suspense, and mystery writer of the eighteenth century. His use of literary devices and different literary techniques makes this writer important to American literature. This paper will show how Edgar Allan Poe has made an impact on Society and American literature as well as how Edgar Allan Poe developed the short story. I will also discuss and analyze some of his works and techniques he uses in his short stories and poems.
The word Occult comes from the Latin word occultus, which means secret or hidden. Most of the times, occult is about all kinds of practices and beliefs that have links with mysticism, paganism and esoterism. So deep is that link, that occultism is today synonymous with these three. The occult is also about the unorthodox beliefs in various religious traditions, and the scope of the meaning of the word is so spread that it can mean any unfamiliar religious or spiritual practice that is not agreeable to us. For example, critics of the church have termed practices like infant baptism, use of the bell, book and candle to perform exorcisms, transubstantiation, etc. as occult practices. The primary reason behind the mystery of the occult is that
Confusion, fear, wonderment, shock and horror—just a few words of many to describe the emotions Edgar Allen Poe’s tales are known to elicit. Critics say that Poe was well ahead of his time in his ability to examine the human psyche and create characters that really make the reader think, if not recoil in horror. One particular theme Poe quite often repeats is that of madness and insanity. He is known for his wonderfully twisted tales involving such characters as an unstable brother with a mysterious ailment (The Fall of the House of Usher,) a methodical murderer (The Tell-Tale Heart,) and an enraged, revenge seeking, homicidal maniac (The Cask of Amontillado.) Through analysis and citations of the tales listed above, in conjunction with the opinions of literary critics, the reader will clearly see the oft repeated theme of madness and insanity hard at work.
His characters have a goal, but experience turmoil prohibiting them from reaching this goal, and ultimately realize their existence is meaningless. Lovecraft’s characters cannot find solace in these thoughts, since the horror they face is an index of meaninglessness of the human condition. (Ralickas) Another example of meaningless characters are the cultists who so desperately try to awaken Cthulhu, but instead was liberated by curious sailors who didn’t have anything to do with the cult. This also affirms the author’s beliefs as the cultist didn’t contribute to their ultimate goal and all their efforts were futile. At the short stories end the main character comes to realize to late that he is a target for death and nothing he can can stop this. The main character, however realizes his existence is unimportant and would rather face death than face the vile creature Cthulhu is. The horror felt by the protagonist arises out of the fear of knowing the unsuspected truth hiding just beneath the surface of things knowing there will only be a bitter end.
H.P Lovecraft writing embodies the appalling aspects of society during his time. For him the real monsters and true horror lies with the decline of the white race and an increase in people of color. His beliefs are in line with the eugenics movement, which is the scientific belief that it is possible to control the breeding of the human population so you can weed out the undesirable traits, basically to make a superior race.
Gothic short stories contain elements which allow the audience to experience fear. Fear in literature allows writers to convey a certain theme/message for readers to interpret and forge tension. Alexander Pushkin and Edgar Allen Poe created great examples of terror-related work. Poe’s story, The Oval-Portrait, discusses fear which can apply to real-life circumstances, but in a more delusional way. The short story talks about a man who encounters a journal which explains the story of the strange painting in his room. Whereas, Pushkin’s story, The Coffin Maker, establishes fear by placing dream-based terror. The tale discusses the issues a coffin maker has with people who insult his profession and decides to invite “dead folks” into his home;