In many of his short stories Graham Greene writes about the theme of death. Here death always stands in close relation to fear, though there are only two of his short stories namely A Little Place off Edgeware Road and Proof Positive, which by their settings and characters create a certain kind of horror and revulsion. The latter, M. G. Brennan wrote, is “[…] dealing with the polarities of life and death […]” (28) and has a rather ironical and mystic notion towards the theme. Brian Diemert claims in his article Recomposing “Valdemar” that Edgar Allan Poe’s short story The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar “[…] is both the model for and the precursor of Greene's story, […]” (1). The writer got inspired by Poe’s combination of horror and suspense as well as the resolute and appalling way he used to end his tale.
Inhaltsverzeichnis (Table of Contents)
- Introduction
- Death and Its Representation
- The Role of the Narrator
- The Suspense of the Narrative
- The Subjects of the Narratives
- The Significance of Voice
- Themes of Horror and Disgust
- Conclusion
Zielsetzung und Themenschwerpunkte (Objectives and Key Themes)
This essay aims to analyze the short story Proof Positive by Graham Greene, focusing on the themes of death and horror. It compares the narrative with Edgar Allan Poe's The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, highlighting both similarities and differences between the two texts.
- The portrayal of death as a horrifying and mysterious phenomenon
- The exploration of the relationship between the body and the soul
- The use of narrative techniques to create suspense and disgust
- The comparison of the narrators and their roles in shaping the reader's perception
- The analysis of the significance of voices in conveying the presence of the soul
Zusammenfassung der Kapitel (Chapter Summaries)
The essay begins with a brief introduction to Graham Greene's Proof Positive and its thematic focus on death, specifically in relation to fear and horror. It then compares this short story with Edgar Allan Poe's The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, highlighting their thematic and narrative similarities. The essay goes on to analyze the different narrative voices in both stories, emphasizing the impact of the third-person narrator in Proof Positive and the first-person narrator in The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar. The analysis also explores the themes of suspense and postponement of death in both narratives, examining how the characters' actions and experiences create a sense of horror and disgust. The essay concludes by analyzing the characters' voices and their significance in conveying the presence of the soul, further exploring the theme of the body versus the soul, or mortality versus immortality.
Schlüsselwörter (Keywords)
Key themes and concepts explored in this essay include: death, horror, suspense, narrative voice, body, soul, mortality, immortality, Graham Greene, Edgar Allan Poe, Proof Positive, The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar.
- Citation du texte
- Alexandra Baum (Auteur), 2011, Essay on Graham Greene's "Proof Positive", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/193587
