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2) Works
a) Tales of the Grotesque and the Arabesque 《瓶子里发 b) “MS. Found in a Bottle” 现的手稿》
C) “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” 《毛格街杀人案 》
《奇异怪 诞故事集 》
《厄舍古屋的 倒塌》
Poe‟s theories on Fiction
• A good fiction should only tells one event, which can be finished once. • Fiction should stimulate readers and impress them deeply. It should have a consistent effect throughout the whole text. • He showed in his fiction the impulse to selfdestruction, the fascination with horrible catastrophe, whimsical and abnormal psychology. • He depicted the inner world or psychology of his characters.
4) Evaluation
• Poe remained the most controversial and most misunderstood literary figure in the history of American literature. • Emerson dismissed him in three words “the jingle man” (打油诗人) ，Mark Twain declared his prose to be unreadable. And Whitman was the only famous literary figure present at the Poe Memorial Ceremony in 1875.
d) “The Fall of the House of Usher” e) “The Masque of the Red Death” f) “The Cask of Amontillado”
《一桶酒的 故事》 《红色死亡的 化妆舞会》
《乌鸦》
g) h) i) j)
The Raven Israfel Annabel Lee To Helen
Poe‟s theories on Poetry
• His poetry express the same deep hopelessness and rejection of the world as his prose, but in a different way. • He avoids the intrusion of ugliness and tries to create a vision of beauty and a melodious sound. The basic tone is melancholy. • The function of poetry is not to summarize and interpret earthly experience, but to create a mood in which the soul soars toward supernal beauty. “the death of a beautiful woman is, unquestionably, the most poetical topic in the world” • The creation of work of art requires the utmost concentration and unity, as well as the most scrupulous use of words.
“The Cask of Amontillado”
Topics for Critical Thinking
1. Who is the narrator? What wrong does he want to redress? 2. What is the pretext he uses to lure/entice Fortunato to his wine cellar? 3. What happens to Fortunato in the end? 4. Can you describe the characters of Fortunato and Montresor? What did Montresor do beforehand to ensure the success of his scheme (at least 4 things)?
• Ironically, it was in Europe that Poe enjoyed respect and welcome. • Bernard Shaw said: “Poe was „the greatest journalistic critic of his time; his poetry is exquisitely refined; and his tales are “complete works of art”. • As for Poe‟s contribution to the detective genre, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle said, "Each [of Poe's detective stories] is a root from which a whole literature has developed.... Where was the detective story until Poe breathed the breath of life into it?“ The Mystery Writers of America have named their awards for excellence in the genre the "Edgars“.
• Poe‟s reputation was first made in France. Charles Baudelaire said that “Edgar Poe, who isn‟t much in America, must become a great man in France.”
• Today, Poe‟s particular power has ensured his position among the greatest writers of the world. The majority of critics today, in America as well as in the world, have recognized the real, unique importance of Poe as a great writer of fiction, a poet of the first rank, and a critic of acumen and insight. His works are read the world over. His influence is world-wide in modern literature.
《伊斯拉菲尔》
《致海伦 》 《安娜贝尔• 李》
《诗歌原理》
k) The Poetic Principle l) The Philosophy of Composition
《创作 哲学》
3) Poe‟s Artistic theories
• Poe argued for the creation of beauty and intensity of emotion, against the didactic motive for literature. • Poe felt that literature should have no social function or responsibility but should be an expression of the isolated artist. • Poe thought that the artist should be concerned solely with beauty, of imagination. The real world is cruel, ugly and fast into decaying. The artist‟s life is lonely, painful and hopeless. The only happiness arose out of the creation and contemplation of beauty. • The short story must be of such length as to be read at one sitting (brevity), so as to ensure the totality of impression. The very first sentence ought to help to bring out the “single effect” of the story. No word should be used which does not contribute to the “pre-established” design of the work (compression).
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)
father of modern short story father of detective story father of psychoanalytic criticism
Contents
Life Works Poe‟s Artistic theories Evaluation Appreciation of “The Cask of Amontillado”
wk.baidu.com
5. At the end of the story we learn that the murder occurred 50 years ago. Would the story be equally effective if Poe had had Montresor reveal that fact at the outset? Why, or why not? 6. Is Montresor a reliable narrator? Why? 7. Can you find the symbolism/irony in this text?
1) Life
• • • • • • Became an orphan in an early age; Adopted by John Allan; Entered the University of Virginia at 17 but did not finish; Went to West Point as a cadet but was dismissed because of misbehavior; Married his thirteen-year-old cousin, whose death in 1847 left him inconsolable and bitterer with life than ever; Died in mysterious circumstances, in October, 1849.
