Progression Of Human Existence In The Bells By Edgar Allan Poe

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Recommended: Themes in Edgar Allan Poe's work

The theme of the poem “The Bells”, by Edgar Allan Poe, is the lifespan and progression of human existence. The mood is split into four different parts because the poem shows the different stages of life and emotion. First, the mood starts off as excitement and joy. This stage represents childhood and youth. Then, the mood changes into celebration and hope. This section is an illustration of the new changes that come with growing up and adulthood. In the third stanza, the mood shifts to horror and fear. This portion could symbolize the tragedies and the sadness that comes with growing up. Finally, in the last stanza, the mood switches to the presence and coming of death. This refers to the time when one is old and is awaiting death, or the …show more content…

It also can resemble the stage where the mood is excitement and joy because the bells are ringing merrily to the world. Second of all, the text states, “What a world of happiness their harmony foretells!” (Poe 17). This gets across how the theme is the lifespan and progression of human existence because in the second stage of one’s life there is a sense of celebration at the progression from childhood to adulthood. It also can explain how the second section of the mood is celebration and hope because it shows that in the second stage of someone’s life, they may feel celebration and hope for the new experiences to occur in the future and adulthood. Thirdly, the text cites, “What a tale of terror, now, their turbulency tells!” (Poe 38). This clears up how the theme of this poem is the lifespan and progression of human existence because it states that as the human is progressing through existence, they may experience terror and horror. It also reveals how the third portion of the mood switches to fear and horror because the bells are ringing of terror and representing how the human will go through a stage of fear as

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