Edgar Allan Poe Questions and Answers

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What is the allure of fear?
  It is generally taken for granted that readers will enjoy comic and sentimental writing, since these types of literature evoke feelings which people enjoy in real life. Fear, by contrast, is...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Please help me to write an interpretation of "The Oval Portrait" by Edgar Allan Poe.
  In order to truly benefit from the assignment (and to get a more helpful response on this site), it would probably be a better idea to begin the interpretation yourself and then ask more specific...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What did Edgar Allan Poe mean by “even though nature is sacred, it is also dark and mysterious, and holds the answers to both the meaning of life and death”?
  When Poe discusses the idea of nature, he holds it in high reverence but also acknowledges its mysterious and frightening qualities. Poe was fascinated with the macabre, so clearly the terrifying...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Which human qualities are attributed to the evening star?
  We might assume that both the evening star and the moon in Poe's 1827 romantic and somewhat Gothic poem "Evening Star" are actually symbols of the women in his life. Poe describes the moon and the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What is the dominant image of the poem “The Raven”? How do the connotative associations with this image and other diction choices fit with the dark and eerie tone Poe is trying to create?
  The primary image in "The Raven" is the picture of the raven sitting above the bust of Pallas above the speaker's "chamber door." Through this image and other diction choices associated with it,...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What is the humor in "The Cask of Amontillado"?
  The humorous elements in "The Cask of Amontillado" are extremely dark and ironic, in keeping with the general tone of the story. One particularly chilling example occurs when the hapless Fortunato...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What words does he use to create a sense of sight?
  Poe often uses visual imagery—a vivid description of things that we might then see in our mind's eye—to create scenes that we can visualize in our own heads. For example, at the beginning of "The...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How does Poe's style of writing reveal his worldview, and how does that compare to the Dark Romanticism literary movement of his time?  
  Poe's work, like that of any great author, is not monolithic in theme or style. One could arguably make the case that within his oeuvre, contradictory worldviews are expressed—or perhaps it's more...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  In Edgar Allan Poe’s poem "Alone," what is the refrain, the alliteration, and assonance/consonance? How do they convey the meaning of the poem and what feelings do they evoke?
  A refrain is a line or set of lines that repeats at regular intervals in a poem. With that in mind, "Alone" by Edgar Allan Poe does not have a refrain, but it does have other elements of sound to...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  In the story "The Angel of the Odd," what is the falling action? Do you believe that the narrator really saw an "angel"? What does the accent the Angel's voice is written in do for the dialogue? What embarrassments or accidents in the story does...
  "The Angel of the Odd" is a humorous story by Edgar Allan Poe that places a skeptical narrator into a series of absurd situations. Through these actions, the Angel tests the narrator's belief in...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How popular (or unpopular) was Poe during his life compared to the years immediately following his death and compared to modern times?
  Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer who lived from January 19, 1809 to October 7, 1849. During his life, he did not see much financial success as a writer. In 1827, he enlisted in the Army under...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What are some examples of diction, syntax, and connotation in "Dream-Land" by Edgar Allan Poe?
  Diction refers to word choice and is related to the tone and mood of a literary work. Syntax is the arrangement of words within a sentence. Connotation relates to the implied and contextual...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Why might the writer have chosen to include this image? What sensory details describe the pendulum?
  The narrator of the story, a man imprisoned by the Spanish Inquisition, describes the mode of torture inflicted upon him after he discovers the pit inside his cell. Once he can avoid it, his...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Explain how the narrator's point of view shapes the action and pacing of "The Cask of Amontillado."
  The narration in "The Cask of Amontillado" is provided by a first-person point of view from an arguably unreliable and manipulative narrator, Montresor. The narrator opens the story with vague and...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How do darker writers like Edgar Allan Poe represent American culture?
  Edgar Allan Poe’s works may be considered representative of American culture in the way they question the norms that supposedly characterize the American way of life. While many of his stories are...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What is the definition of the term "dark Romanticism" as it appears in American literature? Explain why Poe’s short story "The Oblong Box" and Hawthorne’s story "The Birthmark" are thought to be in this category of American literature.
  Dark Romanticism refers to a subgenre within the romantic movement that dominated literature and the arts between the late eighteenth century and first half of the twentieth in both Europe and the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What is the meaning of the poem  "Alone" by Edgar Allan Poe and how does it relate specifically to Poe?
  The poem “Alone” by Edgar Allan Poe was not published during his lifetime. It was not until 1875 that the poem was verified as being an authentic Poe poem written in 1830 when Poe was only...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What inspired Edgar Allan Poe to write?  
  Poe probably considered himself primarily a poet, and he wrote poetry to express his feelings. There never has been much money in poetry, and Poe was always in financial difficulties after his...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Edgar Allan Poe Writing Style
  Edgar Allan Poe uses many different elements of style in his writing. Most commonly, he uses first person narration. You can find first person narration in many of his works, including "The Raven",...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What similarities can be found in Edgar Allan Poe's stories?
  Edgar Allan Poe is recognized as the father of the mystery story and also the horror story in American Literature. Poe's life held so much unhappiness that is it not surprising that he chose to...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How could you write an epilogue to The Cask of Amontillado in which a case against Montresor comes to trial, including the prosecuting attorney’s closing argument reminding the jury of any evidence that proves Montresor’s guilt, the defense...
  There are two kinds of evidence that could be used to prosecute the narrator. One is his confession, which he has provided. The other is the body of Fortunato, which remains walled up in the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Hop Frog Summary
  The short story by Poe is about a king and his 7 advisers who enjoy practical jokes. They have enslaved two dwarfs. One is a male whom they call Hop-Frog and the other is a female who they have...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  I need help with an analysis on "Spirits of the Dead" by Edgar Allen Poe? And what would a good thesis statement be?
  When analyzing a poem, it is best to identify the controlling metaphor. Often the title is a clue, as it is with Poe's poem, "The Spirits of the Dead." For, these words seem to be the key to...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What type of music did Edgar Allen Poe like listening to?
  First, it would be helpful if you clarified this. Are you looking for a factual response or an interprative response. I presume that you are looking for what kind of music Poe listened based on the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What are the similarities between "The Cast Of the Amontillado", "The Tell-Tale Heart", "The Masque of the Red Death"?
  All three stories deal with untimely death, premature burial, and the grotesque. In Cask A man tricks a rival into a crypt and seals him alive within the walls. The Tell-Tale Heart shows a man...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  In "Berenice" by Edgar Allan Poe, is Berenice really dead, or is she alive? Is she in a state like a zombie?
  The narrator describes a "disease" which fell upon Berenice. He says that the disease caused "a spirit of change" to sweep over her, and that this "spirit" pervaded "her mind, her habits, and her...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What sensory language can be found in any of Edgar Allan Poe's stories?  
  Sensory language is referred to as imagery in literature. Imagery is defined as the forming of mental images, figures, or likenesses of things. Therefore, in order to form the most realistic...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What effect did Edgar Allan Poe have on literature?
  America's own Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) is one the nation's greatest writers. He is considered the father of the modern horror story as well as the father of modern detective fiction. He was one...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Please provide some notes on "Fairy-Land" by Edgar Allan Poe.
  "Fairy-Land" is a poem by Poe where he creates a fantastical landscape which is inhabited by fairies, who fly around and are shown to inhabit this curious universe. The opening first few lines...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How does Poe utilize the nature of death in "Masque of the Red Death" and "The Fall of the House of Usher" as part of achieving each story's dominant artistic effect?
  In both tales, the dominant effect of horror is achieved in part because the form of death comes through a particularly horrible disease that the story's characters dread. In "The Masque of the Red...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What technique does Poe use in the second paragraph of The Premature Burial to build suspense?
  Poe is using a characteristic (for him) rhetorical move in which he says how bad it would be to do a certain thing then goes on to do exactly that thing. In this story, he talks about horrible...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What effect does the fear of death have on Poe's characters in “The Premature Burial” and “The Masque of the Red Death?"
  The fear of death has a profound impact on the characters in "The Premature Burial" and "The Masque of the Red Death." In both works, death occupies central importance in the characterizations. In...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How can I locate the similes in Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart"?
  A high school assignment asking you to find and critically analyze similes in a story is intended to help you learn to read stories closely, to appreciate how stylistic devices enhance the effects...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Does Hop Frog create the "perfect revenge" against the king in Edgar Allan Poe's story "Hop-Frog"?
  Absolutely. Hop Frog not only gets to humiliate the councilmen of the King, and the King himself, but he also gets to insult them to their faces, scare them, disarm them, and put them in an...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Discuss why Edgar Allan Poe's narrators are so keen to convince us they are rational. Choose 3 stories from the following list: "Lenore," "The Raven,""The Premature Burial," "The Black Cat," "Cask of Amontillado,' "The Tell-Tale Heart," and "The...
  One of the things Edgar Allan Poe is known for in his short stories is a unreliable narrator who wants us to believe that he is perfectly sane even as he reveals his most heinous acts with the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Compare and contrast "Alone" and "Spirits of the Dead" by Edgar Allan Poe.
  Both poems contain a somber tone and include supernatural elements. Edgar Allan Poe’s tragic backstory is woven into his poetry, and these two poems utilize a dark tone to express his complicated...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How do the literary devices used in "The Lake-To---" effect the reader?
  Poe uses a number of literary devices in "The Lake" (also called "The Lake-To--" in other texts). Poe uses metaphor in the very first line ("In the spring of my youth it was my lot"). Here, the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  In "The Raven," is it nothing "further then he uttered" or "nothing farther then he uttered?" Also, why is "Hopes" capitalized?
  Regarding the first question about the use of "farther" or "further" in line 57, it appears that Poe used "farther" in the poem. You will find texts of the poem online, and probably in print, that...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Poe is considered the "Father of the modern-day short story." Why do you think his works remain popular more than 150 years later?
  There are a number of reasons Poe's works remain popular today: First, Poe came up with compelling plots. He knew how to tell a frightening story and how to build suspense. In "A Cask of...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How does Edgar Allan Poe create and use internal and external conflicts? Please explain with details from "A Tell-Tale Heart," "The House of Usher," and "The Black Cat."
  Poe created a technique that he termed "Arabesque"; with this technique there is a playfulness, a twisting and returning to ideas, a balance and integration in which Poe "teases out the latent...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Who are the protagonist(s) and antagonist(s) in the story "Silence-a Fable?" Describe why the characters are protagonists or antagonists. Thank you!
  Edgar Allan Poe's story "Silence-A Fable" can be confusing given the story's form. The story is being told from the perspective of an unnamed listener. Essentially, it is a frame story--meaning...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What poetic devices are used in Edgar Allan Poe's poem "Dreamland"?
  Edgar Allan Poe uses a variety of poetic devices in his dark, haunting poem, "Dreamland." Here are some of them. 1) Rhyme: The poem consists of rhyming couplets, meaning that line a and b rhyme,...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What is the meaning of Edgar Allan Poe's To F--?
  Poe’s poem is thought to addressed to Frances Osgood, a prominent poet in New York with whom Poe famously flirted – probably platonically -- for several years. The gist of the poem is fairly clear:...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  What is the mood in Edgar Allan Poe's "The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion"?
  The mood of 'The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion" is an odd one to identify. It is an other worldly mood of safety following a mysterious suffering. Mood is the atmosphere of overall...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  In "The Black Cat" by Edgar Allan Poe, what does he do with his wife's body?
  You didn't specify what story you were referring to, so I am going to take a leap here and assume that your question comes from the story "The Black Cat" where the narrator kills his wife. In this...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How does Poe create atmosphere and tension in "The Pit and the Pendulum"?
  Poe was a master at creating spooky and suspenseful moods in stories. In "The Pit and The Pendulum," his narrator is subjected to gruesome torture during the Spanish Inquisition. Poe toys with the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How does Poe create atmosphere and tension in his short stories?
  In Poe’s Gothic short stories like “The Fall of the House of Usher” and his portraits of madmen and grotesques such as “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Cask of Amontillado,” he is a master at...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  How does Edgar Allan Poe convince readers that everyone has an interest in stories about death and dying? That is the prompt we have to write 800 words on that prompt and we have to join 4 stories of his : "The Black Cat," "The Masque of the Red...
  In his short stories, Edgar Allan Poe manages to convince the reading public that individual readers are interested in stories that have to do with death and dying largely because he develops and...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
  Death and dying are major components of gothic literature. "The Raven," "The Masque of the Red Death," and "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" all show the impact that death and mortality have on humanity.  Explain how the people in the stories and poem...
  Both Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne, the authors cited here, are well known for themes of death and mortality occurring in their works. Poe's approach tends to be one exploring the...

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• Edgar Allan Poe
   Can anyone explain to me why 'Berenice' is often referred to as a vampire story?   Poe seemed to have a preoccupation with teeth (shown also, for instance, in 'Metzengerstein' and 'Hop-Frog'), so I don't understand why the preoccupation with...
  Ah, well there are other things about vampires besides "teeth". For example, they are immortal: But it is mere idleness to say that I had not lived before - that the soul has no previous...

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