The aim of the present study is to analyse Edgar Allan Poe’s selected short stories paying special attention to the author’s fascination with human mind and its morbid states.
The introduction presents the contrast between the American author and his contemporary writers. The differences between Poe and other representatives of Romanticism are discussed. The reader is acquainted with various opinions about Edgar Allan Poe and his literary output. The author of the study discusses Poe’s personality, his lifestyle as well as his literary works, and provides the explanation why the figure of the writer aroused so much controversy among his contemporaries.
The first charter describes the impact of Poe’s life experiences and his personal interests on his literature. The aim of the second chapter is to portray the American author’s fascination with human personality, mental disorders and analytical power of human mind. The last chapter investigates the two outstanding short stories by E. A. Poe – “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Black Cat.” The author of the study concentrates on the motifs of madness, death wish and the disintegration of human personality in the stories in question.
The last part of the study discusses Poe’s role in literature as well as the author’s contribution to creating the dark tradition in America.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Chapter 1
2. 1 Autobiographical Elements in Poe’s Works
3 Chapter 2
3. 1 Poe’s Interest in Human Personality In his Writings
3. 2 Rational Poe
4 Chapter 3
4. 1 ‘‘The Black Cat” and ‘‘The Tell-Tale Heart”
5 Conclusions
6 Summary
7 Bibliography
Research Objectives and Core Themes
This work explores the profound fascination Edgar Allan Poe held for the human mind, particularly its morbid states, inner conflicts, and psychological disintegration. It examines the correlation between Poe's turbulent life experiences, his artistic output, and his portrayal of mental aberrations in his most famous short stories.
- Autobiographical parallels in Poe's life and works
- The psychological exploration of human personality
- Rationalization and the birth of the detective genre
- Pathological behaviors and the theme of perversity
- Depiction of mental instability and hallucinations
Excerpt from the Book
3. 1 Poe’s Interest in Human Personality in his writings
It seems plausible that there is a direct connection between Poe’s role as a writer of psychological insight and the author’s fascination with psychology, according to which the man is made of three separate and at the same time interacting elements - body, mind and spirit. In a normal, healthy human being these three elements are in balance. Yet, in case of any mental disorder, a disintegration of body, mind and soul takes place. E.A. Poe’s aim was to illustrate the separation of these three aspects on the example of his characters’ mental aberrations.
As for the American writer’s interest in the mental sphere of human experiences, Lyra claims that Edgar A. Poe was not familiar with such concepts as “masochism”, “sadism” or “death instinct” as they were not yet defined at that time. However, he perceived and understood these phenomena. Since Poe was the genuine artist, he was more absorbed in weird and extraordinary matters than in commonly known ones. Hence, most of his protagonists have pathological behaviour.
As Lyra writes, according to Poe’s narrators’ theory, madness sharpens the senses. What is more, the reader doubts whether the experiences of the insane character are genuine. In like manner, E.A. Poe fulfilled one of his chief poetic postulates - he introduced mystery into literature.
With reference to the above-mentioned psychology of the tripartite organization and functioning of the man, Fletcher quotes Davidson who states that: “[Poe’s protagonist] is compulsively driven toward death because, if life is the condition of fatal separation of the human body, mind, and spirit, death or whatever afterlife there may be, is the unification of these faculties.” [Davidson in Fletcher 1973:161]
Chapter Summaries
1 Introduction: This chapter contextualizes Poe's position in literature, highlighting the divide between his French reception and American criticism while establishing his preoccupation with the human mind.
2 Chapter 1: This section investigates the presence of autobiographical elements in Poe's work, examining how his life, personal tragedies, and relationships with women shaped his creative output.
3 Chapter 2: This chapter analyzes Poe’s portrayal of human personality, focusing on the disintegration of body and mind in his characters and the rise of his "tales of rationalization."
4 Chapter 3: The final chapter provides a deep-dive analysis of "The Black Cat" and "The Tell-Tale Heart," focusing on psychological mechanisms like perversity, alcoholism, and guilt.
5 Conclusions: The concluding section summarizes Poe’s role as a pioneer of psychological fiction and his enduring legacy in establishing a "dark tradition" in American literature.
6 Summary: This section offers a retrospective overview of the study's aims and thematic investigations.
7 Bibliography: This chapter lists the primary literary sources and secondary academic references used throughout the study.
Keywords
Edgar Allan Poe, Human Mind, Psychological Insight, Perversity, Mental Disorders, Autobiographical Elements, Gothic Literature, Rationalization, Split Personality, The Black Cat, The Tell-Tale Heart, Literary Criticism, Sadism, Hallucination, Dark Tradition.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this research paper?
This study focuses on Edgar Allan Poe’s recurring obsession with the human mind and its morbid states as reflected in his literature.
What are the primary themes analyzed?
The work examines the interplay between Poe’s life experiences, his interest in human personality, the pathology of alcoholism, and the manifestation of irrational impulses in his characters.
What is the main research question of the work?
The study seeks to analyze how Edgar Allan Poe utilized elements of human psyche and mental aberration to pioneer psychological fiction within American literature.
Which scientific methodology is utilized?
The author employs a literary-analytical approach, contrasting Poe’s work with contemporary perspectives and utilizing psycho-analytical interpretations to dissect the narrators' behaviors.
What is covered in the main body of the paper?
The main body covers the autobiographical roots of Poe’s fiction, his interest in the tripartite structure of the human psyche (body, mind, spirit), his rationalization tales, and specific crime stories.
Which keywords best characterize this publication?
Keywords include Edgar Allan Poe, psychological insight, mental disorders, perversity, dark tradition, and the analysis of the subconscious mind.
How does the author interpret the eye motif in "The Tell-Tale Heart"?
The paper interprets the "vulture eye" as an object of obsession for the narrator, representing a perceived evil or an intellect superior to his own, rather than a physical threat.
What role does the "spirit of perverseness" play in Poe's stories?
It is analyzed as an uncontrollable, primitive human impulse that drives characters to commit heinous acts against their own better judgment, leading to their inevitable downfall.
How does the author view the connection between Poe's life and his characters?
The work balances the notion that Poe's personal suffering and alcoholism informed his writing, while cautioning against reducing his complex, artistic characters to mere mirrors of his personal habits.
- Citation du texte
- Anna Broda (Auteur), 2006, Edgar Allan Poe's obsession with human mind, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/86092
