Questions and Answers for Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe
How does Edgar Allan Poe use imagery and figurative language to build suspense in his poem "The Raven"?
In the poem “The Raven,” Poe uses imagery through the image of the black bird, the raven. The bird’s presence and one word, which Poe references throughout the poem, symbolize death not only...
Edgar Allan Poe
What are five literary devices in "The Masque of the Red Death" and "The Raven" by Edgar Allen Poe?
Edgar Allan Poe is famous for his Gothic works containing tales of horror, the macabre, and death. One of his most famous poems is "The Raven" which was published in 1845. "The Masque of the Red...
Edgar Allan Poe
How Did Edgar Allan Poe Influence Literature
Poe had a very strong influence on Charles Baudelaire, who translated much of Poe's work into English. Baudelaire, whose best-known work is the collection of poems titled Les Fleurs du Mal (Flowers...
Edgar Allan Poe
How did Edgar Allen Poe's wife Lenore die?
Edgar Allan Poe never married a woman named Lenore. His only marriage was a secret one, in 1834, to his 13-year-old cousin Virginia Clemm (they later married publicly).Poe seems to have liked the...
Edgar Allan Poe
What inspired Edgar Allan Poe to write?
Poe wrote to earn a living, although it might have been a meager living at times, and because he had a passion for writing. As a young child, he lost his mother and his father abandoned the family....
Edgar Allan Poe
I need an interpretation/analysis of "Silence-A Fable" by Poe.
"Silence - A Fable" is one of Edgar Allan Poe's most brief, and yet most confusing, short stories. The story is told by a Demon, who sits and observes the actions of a solitary man in a desolate,...
Edgar Allan Poe
What does the 11th stanza of The Raven actually mean?
The key part of stanza 11 is the following: what it utters is its only stock and store,Caught from some unhappy master In other words, the speaker, troubled by the appearance of the raven and its...
Edgar Allan Poe
What Impact Did Edgar Allan Poe Have On American Literature
Edgar Allan Poe has been hugely influential in the literary world since he began publishing in the mid-1800s. His texts have served as exemplars of how to use sensory detail and how to establish...
Edgar Allan Poe
What similarities can be found in Edgar Allan Poe's stories?
In his essay "The Importance of a Single Effect in a Prose Tale," Poe writes that he unifies a piece of writing around mood. He writes not primarily to develop a plot or a character but to convey a...
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...
Edgar Allan Poe
In Poe's "The Raven," what is the narrator doing at the beginning of the poem? What actions disturb him in the first...
At the beginning of this poem, the narrator is sort of dozing, or "nearly napping," he says, in his room—perhaps a library or study of some kind (as it contains books and a bust of Athena)—and...
Edgar Allan Poe
What is the setting of the poem "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe?
The setting of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" is revealed primarily by the first two stanzas of the poem. Within the first two lines of the poem, Poe gives the reader a great deal of information....
Edgar Allan Poe
What are the characteristics of Edgar Allan Poe's works?
Poe is heavy on the symbolism, and he often repeats symbol use from one story to the next. For example, in "The Masque of the Red Death," when an ebony clock housed in a black and blood-red room...
Edgar Allan Poe
What is the one similarity between "The Black Cat" and the "Tell Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe?
There are several similarities between “The Black Cat” and “The Tell Tale Heart” by Poe. A couple of the main similarities are: Both stories are narrated by an insane character. There is...
Edgar Allan Poe
What type/s of writing did Edgar Allan Poe develop, improve and/or perfect?
Although Poe may have been influenced by earlier works, he is credited by many with the development of the style and format of detective stories that we know of today. The influence of Poe's...
Edgar Allan Poe
How much money did Edgar Allan Poe make in his 18 years of writing?
Edgar Allan Poe suffered from financial problems for most of his life. He left the University of Virginia for lack of money (he had a $2000 gambling debt), and He was the first well-known American...
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe Writing Style
Stylistically, Edgar Allan Poe's stories and poems are characterized by elements we might now associate with the horror and gothic genres. There is usually suspense, created in part by an...
Edgar Allan Poe
What kind of irony is used in Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven?"
There mere repetition of the word "Nevermore" by the raven can be considered ironic in literary terms, which allows for more expansive use of the phrase than the regular definition of "irony" might...
Edgar Allan Poe
Was Edgar Allan Poe a Christian? If you read "The Raven," it seems like he might be. Also, when it says the nights...
It is a rather natural assumption after reading his stories and poems that Edgar Allan Poe must have been an atheist. This idea is not necessarily true. Poe's adopted father, John Allan, had young...
Edgar Allan Poe
Was Edgar Allan Poe insane?
If you read his rather autobiographical poem "Alone," you'll read that he always saw things differently than others did. He was not moved by the same passions as others, nor did he react as others...
Edgar Allan Poe
In Poe's literary works, how does he generally create mood?
The mood in a story is the atmosphere that pervades the work with the intention of evoking a certain emotion or feeling from the reader. Edgar Allan Poe evokes specific moods in his short stories...
Edgar Allan Poe
What are the metaphors and similes in Edgar Allen Poe's "A Dream"?
This poem contains one main simile and one main metaphor. Firstly, the third stanza compares the "holy dream" that Poe experiences to something that cheers him up as if it were "a lonely spirit...
Edgar Allan Poe
Why did Edgar Allan Poe write his stories in a horrible, cruel and cold-blooded way? Did his biographical background...
Having written and produced a play (Death by the Visitation of God) about Poe's life, and having researched extensively his life through his own words as well as through the letters and journals of...
Edgar Allan Poe
What sensory language can be found in any of Edgar Allan Poe's stories?
Sensory language is a strategy that writers utilize in order to immerse the reader in a story by engaging one or more of their senses. Imagery is created through the use of sensory language. Edgar...
Edgar Allan Poe
What type of poetry did Edgar Allan Poe write (haikus, free verses, limericks)?
Edgar Allan Poe primarily wrote narrative poems, poems which tell stories in metered verse. While Poe's work wasn't explicitly meant to be recited or sung, he referred to many of his narrative...
Edgar Allan Poe
What are the poetic devices used in "A Dream within a Dream" and "A Paean" by Edgar Allan Poe?
Both poems use end rhymes to develop a sense of rhythm or cadence. In "A Dream Within A Dream," Poe uses such rhyming words at the end of lines as "brow" and "now," "deem" and "dream." In "A...
Edgar Allan Poe
What would be some common symbols you would find in Edgar Allan Poe's stories.
Both "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Masque of the Red Death" employ timepieces (watches or clocks) as symbols. In "The Tell-Tale Heart," the narrator believes that he hears an old man's heart...
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...
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...
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...
Edgar Allan Poe
How did Poe affect the Romantic Period?
Edgar Allen Poe was one of the most influential and prolific writers of the Romantic Period. The Romantics were reacting against the Enlightenment, which was a literary (among other things)...
Edgar Allan Poe
What are the similarities and differences between Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne?
Some major similarities between Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne are the time period in which they lived and wrote. Both men were prominent writers of the mid-1800s. Both were born at the...
Edgar Allan Poe
Why are Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne considered romantic writers?
Both thinkers can be seen as Romantic for a couple of reasons. Both writers feature a very non- conformist view of the social setting. In fact, both writers spend much of their thematic...
Edgar Allan Poe
3 elements creating suspense or horror in the cask of amontillado
The foreshadowing in the first two paragraphs helps to create suspense. Montresor says that he "vowed revenge" on Fortunato, and he explains his criteria for how this must be achieved. He says, "I...
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...
Edgar Allan Poe
What are some examples of how the single effect is used in newer movies? I'm writing a paper on the single effect...
Poe specified that a short story should achieve a single effect. This could be created by the overall tone and mood or by a surprise ending. He did not, of course, say anything about motion...
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...
Edgar Allan Poe
What is a summary of the poem "Eldorado" by Edgar Allan Poe?
The poem "Eldorado" by Edgar Allan Poe was published in 1849. This poem was one of his last publications. This short poem is just four stanzas long, each stanza just six lines. It is about a...
Edgar Allan Poe
Give an analysis aand summary of Edgar Allan Poe's poem "To Helen."
Edgar Allan Poe's poem, "To Helen," was inspired by the mother of one of his classmates. When Poe was fourteen, he visited his friend at home and met the mother. Mrs. Stanard urged Poe to write...
Edgar Allan Poe
Identify any symbols from Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Masque of the Red Death,” and explain them on an allegorical level.
In Poe's "The Masque of the Red Death," the first, most obvious symbol seems to be the clock made of ebony, which is a black wood. Ebony is described as... a hard, heavy, durable wood, most highly...
Edgar Allan Poe
who is the narrator of the cask of amontillado?
The narrator of "The Cask of Amontillado" is Montresor, who claims to have suffered many times, greatly but quietly, at the hands of Fortunato. Finally, he resolves to seek revenge on Fortunato...
Edgar Allan Poe
How could you write an epilogue to The Cask of Amontillado in which a case against Montresor comes to trial,...
For Montresor to be arrested and brought to trial for murdering Fortunato, there would have to be some evidence to link him to the crime. His confession would, therefore, have had to come to light,...
Edgar Allan Poe
What does Fortunato's cold/cough symbolize in "The Cask of Amontillado"?
Symbols are objects that have a deeper meaning than their literal meaning. In Fortunato's case, a cough is more than a cough. It symbolizes two aspects of his situation beyond merely his being a...
Edgar Allan Poe
What is the meaning of the poem "Alone" by Edgar Allan Poe and how does it relate specifically to Poe?
"Alone" was written when Poe wasn't yet the renowned author he came to be. He wrote this poem when he was only twenty, after a particularly tough year. He had faced quite a bit of literary...
Edgar Allan Poe
How does Poe create atmosphere and tension in "The Cask of Amontillado"?
The setting of the gloomy catacombs works effectively to create atmosphere in "The Cask of Amontillado," especially in contrast to the high spirits of carnival time. Poe develops...
Edgar Allan Poe
What is the setting of "The Oval Portrait"?
The setting for this short story is an abandoned chateau in a mountain range called the Appennines that runs the length of the center of Italy. Because the chateau is in a mountain setting, it is...
Edgar Allan Poe
What are some figures of speech that Poe uses in his poem "The Sleeper"? Ex: metaphors, similes, hyperbole, any...
Poe uses both simile and personification to create the strange atmosphere of this poem. The "wanton airs" are personified as "laughingly" dropping through the lattice. He metaphorically describes...
Edgar Allan Poe
Poe's use of first person narration provides credibility to his collection of short stories. Discuss.
The first person POV has always been an interesting device in literature. For one, you'd think it's extremely similar to an all-knowing third person narrator. They can just as easily say what the...
Edgar Allan Poe
Why is "The Fall of the House of Usher" a good story?
Determining what makes a work of literature "good" is tricky because it's very subjective. However, some of the reasons Poe's story "The Fall of the House of Usher" is considered an effective short...
Edgar Allan Poe
Are there any similes in "Annabel Lee"?
No. Edgar Allan Poe's poem "Annabel Lee" is full of figurative language, but it has no similes. Similes are figurative comparisons using the word "like" or "as." If Poe had written, for example,...
Edgar Allan Poe
What makes the Narrator in The Tell Tale Heart a sympathetic character?
It may seem strange to think of the narrator of "The Tell Tale Heart" -- a murderer -- in a sympathetic light, but to an extent Poe is able to make him so through strong characterization and point...
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