Inner Evil
Everybody has evil and even the most amiable people have the ability to become criminals. A writer known for his dark style of writing and mysterious tales believes that all humans have the potential to do this, but the majority of them control the urge. This writer is Edgar Allan Poe, who shares his opinion of the human race through his short stories such as “The Tell-Tale Heart,” “The Cask of Amontillado,” and “The Black Cat”. In these stories he shows how humans misuse alcohol, become perverse, and eventually summon their inner evil. Poe implies that all humans possess this evil and when summoned it will torture and soon destroy everything they have.
Alcohol is a commonly used symbol in Poe’s literature and it has a very unfortunate effect on his characters. When Montresor leads Fortunato to the river’s bed, he decides to further inebriate Fortunato. Before continuing he “broke and reached him a flagon of De Grâve. [Fortunato] emptied it at a breath. His eyes flashed with a fierce light.” This exemplifies how alcohol can be misused because Montresor takes advantage ...
With a premeditated motive to commit such an act, the culprit, Montressor, thinks, constructs and orchestrates a presumed murder against his insulter, Fortunado. “Poe begins by describing, in characteristically precise and logical detail, Montresor’s (and Poe’s) idea of perfect revenge. At the same time, he needed to end his story by telling how his revenge had affected him. When Fortunatosays, “For the love of god, Montresor!” and Montresor repeats, “Yes, for the love of God,” Poe is indicating that Montresor is already experiencing the closure he sought”(Delaney 39) Unbeknownst why he wants retribution, or what it is that his victim has done to compel Montressor to kill him. What is given is a recount of the night under discussion.
...Cat", the main character is an alcoholic who exclaims "for what disease is like Alcohol" (Poe 224). In a drunken stupor, the man gouges out the cat's eye because he thought it was avoiding him. In "The Cask of Amontillado", Fortunato is lured to his death by the drug. Poe rarely uses alcohol in anything positive. The drug is usually used in association to destruction and anger. He retaliates against the drug and attacks it in his writings. His characters show his inability to enjoy the drug and his seeing it as an instrument of destruction.
Throughout time, Edgar Allan Poe has been recognized as a famous writer that wrote about his tragedy of a life. Just thinking of his name, Poe, makes one think about his dark felt Poems. Most people believe that Poe had to be depressed or even evil to write his historic writings. He had to deal with a numerous amount of death of love ones throughout his lifetime. Though he had to deal with death and depression he became one of the United States famous authors of all times.
Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to parents who were traveling actors. His father David Poe Jr. died probably in 1810. Elizabeth Hopkins Poe died in 1811, leaving three children. Edgar was taken into the home of a merchant from Richmond named John Allan. The remaining children were cared for by others. Poe's brother William died young and sister Rosalie later became insane. At the age of five Poe could recite passages of English poetry. Later one of his teachers in Richmond said: "While the other boys wrote mere mechanical verses, Poe wrote genuine poetry; the boy was a born poet." Poe was brought up partly in England (1815-20), where he attended Manor School at Stoke Newington. Later it became the setting for his story 'William Wilson'. Since Poe was never legally adopted, he took Allan's name for his middle name. Poe attended the University of Virginia (1826-27), but was expelled for not paying his gambling debts. His expulsion led to a quarrel with Allan, who refused to pay the debts. Allan later disowned him. In 1826 Poe became engaged to Elmira Royster, but her parents broke off the engagement. During his stay at the university, Poe wrote some stories, but not much is known of his beginning works.
“All we ever see or seem is but a dream within a dream.” This was a quote by Edgar Allan Poe that was included in his poem A Dream Within A Dream. This quote basically means that life is nothing but a dream, a long one perhaps, but it is one that you only awaken from when you died, or about to die. I really like this poem because sometimes I often wonder, what if life was really just a dream, and death is when you awaken and cross into another world; one that is more perfect and jovial than the one that existed in “life.”? Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer in the Poe often wrote about death and fear, for these two things seem to be the main focus points of Poe literary works. Edgar Allan Poe’s writing are often serious, talking about dark things, and they usually seem to reflect his childhood,his love life, and his view of what life basically is.
Throughout the life of Edgar Allan Poe, he suffered many unfortunate events and endured several difficult situations. Some speculate that it was these experiences that helped to formulate the famous writing style of Edgar Allan Poe. His dark tales such as "The Masque of the Red Death" and "The Tell-Tale Heart" are horrific, and his poems such as "Alone" and "The Raven" show evidence that his life experiences influenced their dreariness. Poe's story plots and his own life are undeniably related and this relationship is intricately defined in many of his works.
The life of Edgar Allan Poe, was stuffed with tragedies that all affected his art. From the very start of his writing career, he adored writing poems for the ladies in his life. When he reached adulthood and came to the realization of how harsh life could be, his writing grew to be darker and more disturbing, possibly as a result of his intense experimenting with opium and alcohol. His stories continue to be some of the most frightening stories ever composed, because of this, some have considered this to be the reason behind these themes. Many historians and literature enthusiasts have presumed his volatile love life as the source while others have credited it to his substance abuse. The influence of his one-of-a-kind writing is more than likely a combination of both theories; but the main factor is the death of many of his loved ones and the abuse which he endured. This, not surprisingly, darkened his perspective considerably.
Alcoholism is the addiction to the intake of alcoholic liquor or the psychological illness and neurotic behavior resulting from alcohol dependency. There is a time and place for alcohol consumption in every culture. It’s a growing problem in America’s society and culture today. Revenge and trust are an issue in this short story. In Edgar Allan Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado, Montresor symbolizes Poe’s alcoholism, whereas Fortunato represents himself, the man who is trying to reach satisfaction and eventually gets imprisoned by his minute habit. He is attempting to get revenge on someone else because of the insults he had been given. Revenge, trust, and alcohol are all apparent in today’s society, even though this was over 150 years ago, America’s population can still relate to it.
Edgar Poe is the second of the three children of David Poe and Elizabeth (Arnold) Poe, both of whom were professional actors and members of a touring theatrical company. Mr. Placide’s Theatre Company in Boston employed Poe’s natural parents, David and Elizabeth Arnold Poe. They had been married in Richmond while on tour in 1806. Edgar Allan Poe was born January 19, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts, but he considered Richmond his home, and called himself "a Virginian," where his mother had been employed as an actress. David Poe, unknown due to his more famous wife, his own promising career ruined by alcoholism, Edgar’s father, deserted the family when Edgar was still an infant; nothing conclusive is known of his life thereafter. While appearing professionally in Richmond, Virginia, Poe's mother became ill and died on December 8, 1811, in Richmond at the age of twenty-four.
Have you ever heard of Edgar Allan Poe, the poet of darkness and fright? Well what your about to read will send you back in time to the age of Edgar Allan Poe himself and how he came to be. This will tell you about who he was before he became known as the writer and poet. Although Poe is famous for his books, he was also the editor of many magazines before he began his writing career. It will tell you of his dark and mysterious past and some of the possible ways he died. So step in and lets go on a journey back in time.
Throughout the plot, the narrator develops into a murderer who feels absolutely no guilt for his actions and goes through with his messed up plan without hesitation. Furthermore, the readers are first introduced to the narrator's horrid actions and devious plan when he is encouraging Fortunato to continuously consume more and more wine for the main reason of getting him drunk to ultimately make his plan run smoother. The audience sees this in the story when the narrator simplys says to Fortunato, "Drink," I said, presenting him the wine (The Cask Of Amontillado line 93). Although, this quote is simple and to the point it still displays the narrator's crazed mind by forcing Fouranto to consume more and more alcohol to force him into a state of disarray. Also, Poe displays a mood of horror through Montresor’s uneasy words when he is talking about Fortunato struggling by saying, "The noise lasted for several minutes, during which, that I might hearken to it with the more satisfaction, I ceased my labors and sat down upon the bones"(The Cask Of Amontillado line 178). This quote shows how Montresor is truly taking pleasure in Foruantos discomfort and the uneasy moment when Montresor pauses to enjoy the sound of his victim struggling in his chains. This quote reveals the
As the reading above indicates, Poe grieved continuously throughout his life for his sainted “Lenore”. He wrote numerous poems before and after the death of Virginia Clemm to her. “Annabel Lee” was actually written before the death of Virginia as a token of his undying love for her.
In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado,” Montresor sets out on a vengeful mission that will end Fortunato’s life in an untimely fate. Montresor appeals to Fortunato’s love for wine to tempt the unsuspecting fellow to his impending doom. While Montresor tricks the foolish Fortunato frightfully, it is ultimately Fortunato’s pride that leads to his demise in the crypt. Poe uses several literary devices to foreshadow this murderous exploit of Montresor. Through the use of irony, symbolism, and imagery, the story entices readers to delve into the relationships and differences between Montresor and Fortunato.
Today I’m going to be telling you about Edgar Allan Poe such as his career beginnings, major works, and tragic death. But first, lets get to know where he comes from. Poe was born on January 19, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts. He never really knew his parents, both to whom were professional actors. His father left the family early and his mother died before he was three years old. He was a foster child who was raised by Frances and John Allan. John Allan being a famous tobacco importer sent Poe to many high-class schools. John sent Poe to the University of Virginia, where Poe did excessively well. Since Poe didn’t receive enough money from John Allan to pay for college, he moved to Boston and enlisted in the United States Army (The Biography.com).
Edgar Allan Poe is one American author whose name is known to almost everyone. Edgar is known for his elegant poems and for being a tough critic of refined tastes, but also for being the first master of the short story form, especially tales of mystery. He has a talent of having an extraordinary hold upon the readers imagination and not letting lose. Many advents of Edgar’s life has probably led to the strange, but successful and renowned pieces of American literature.