Category: Short story

Edgar Allan Poe’s short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” is a masterpiece of Gothic literature, examining the fine line between life and death as a result of fear. Poe’s, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” possesses the conventional characteristics of Gothic literature and romanticism through the elements of loneliness, madness, and horror. Through Poe’s vivid personification, the physical state of the house reflects the mental condition of the Usher household, providing the reader with an insight into the enigmatic characterisation.

“The Fall of the House of Usher” exploits the Gothic tone throughout the five first paragraphs, as the short story centres on the shattered emotions of fear and alienation, that Poe manipulates to characterise the house. The Gothic scene is presented through, “Dull, dark, and soundless,” as the narrator demonstrates feelings of solitude, which are further explored through “alone,” “singularly,” and “found myself”. In fact, through people and the environment, the subconscious can become influenced leading to the mind’s perceptions of emotions. The personification, “upon the vacant eye-like windows,” indicates the presence of windows as eyes, reflecting the sense that the narrator is under continuous surveillance. Consequently, exhibiting a sense of fear and insecurity which continues the feelings of solitude. Additionally, Poe epitomises the House of Usher as depressing and sombre, hence the narrator cannot counteract these emotions. Poe exploits the short story to present death and life as frightening, by exposing the physical dimension of the House of Usher symbolising morality as a “hideous dropping off of the veil.” Thus, death becomes a reality that individuals dread at the end of their lives, suggesting that time is limited as death will happen at any moment.

Furthermore, fear interacts with the subconscious, “nor could I grapple with the shadowy fancies that crowded upon me as I pondered.” The narrator’s overthinking expresses his fears on the reality of his death occurring, due to the crowded thoughts in finding out precisely what is going on because of this house. Furthermore, the descriptions of the house rely on being ominous and terrifying, due to its state of deterioration and on the brink of collapse and death, “House of Usher” –an appellation which seemed to include, in the minds of the peasantry who used it, both the family and the family mansion.” Consequently, the family is connected to the house, as Poe links the qualities of the house through its isolation and mystery. Therefore, this contributes to the narrator feeling discouraged and depressed, in comparison with what Poe alludes to throughout “The Fall of the House of Usher”, so the narrator can comprehend that the house is dark and frightening.

Subsequently, the experiences of life and death present an initial feeling of sorrow apparent in Roderick Usher’s emotional condition, as his acts may be the product of poor judgement, “…oh, pity me, miserable wretch that I am! –I dared not –I dared not speak! We have put her living in the tomb!” The burial of Roderick’s sister is, therefore, associated with the ‘disease’ of the house, as Roderick experiences the concepts of death and the last connection to his family. Additionally, Poe exploits “The Fall of the House of Usher”, to influence the reader through the eerie sensation when the crack in the house is “shone vividly.” The symbolism of the house breaking down, elucidates the demise of the Usher twins, further shocking the reader as the intended result of life and death becomes the central essence of this short story.

To conclude, Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher,” significantly examines life and death as a result of fear. Poe exploits the Gothic form of this short story, to illuminate death as being horrific that whoever becomes involved will be affected. This is explored through the house, the narrator and Roderick Usher. More so, “The Fall of the House of Usher” exploits the concept of life ending with death brings forth a sense of fear and anxiety throughout the reader.

There are many similarities and differences in “Story of an Hour” by Chopin, which was an emotional path for the main character Louise Mallory. Who just lost her husband, while locked in her room she was expressing grieving at first, then a sense of freedom came over her. “The Cask of Amontillado” by Poe, was a revengeful novel. The main character Montessori was ravaged against Fortunate. Fortunate insulted Montessori during a Carnival. Montessori led him to a catacombs, then burned him alive. These stories illustrated different settings and srtamsatndese. Both show expense of power and purpose, but there is a simmerialerty in the character’s personality.

“Story of the hour” purpose was a reflection of Chopin’s own opinions on the hardship of women’s roles during this time. In addition to respecting their roles in marriage. “In Cask of amontillado”, this story is about a man who let their desires of revenge over power him. Including that the whole plot deals with the darkness of human nature. Although, Chopin noval shows the signifacters for women’s rights. She demonstrated their desire for freedoms, unfortunately, denied to them. Consequently of the oppressive nature of marriage and, more predominantly, society. “The story of an hour” was settled during the late 19 century when women did not have the same rights as men. The historical setting of the story is significant and contributes regarding the antidemocratic of married women. Nevertheless, “Cask of amontillado” was seated in Italy during the carnival season. While Chopping idealized empowering women. Poe was forced on the evil in human nature. In Chopin, her main character was an Innocent while Peo’s main character was the vile.

Secondly, Both characters were narcissistic, selfish, and power-hungry. Louise Mallard was unsympathetic when delivered the news of her husband’s death. Typically, the main character in a story mostly democrats good moral value and the characteristics of heroism. In most cases, the main characters are the ones that evoke empathy from the readers. Technically, although Montessori and Mrs. Both characters do not show heroism-like quality in these stories. Heroism is defined as greatly brave. While in the ‘story of an hour’ the main character show has sympathies about her loss and ‘cask of amontillado’ should have taken the high road. Both would have shown heroism.From the moment after hearing the news, she felt freedom rather than greiness, and had a revenge-hungry mind rather than having good morals. But at the end of both stories the main character has freedom and power over their lives.

In condition, while Story of the hour was a reflection of at that time, search for identity and the repressive nature of marriage. However, Cask of amontillado was a power hunger reargue story tower and man who insulted the wrong person. Chopin show a woman finally having power over her own life after death of her husband, while Peo shows an man having all the power and by using death for revenge.

Edgar Allan Poe was a civilian from Boston he was an unstable person since his childhood. He had a hard childhood it all started with the death of his mother one year after his father abandoned the family. Poe was separated from his brother and was quickly placed in foster care, he was with a family that took care of him until the 18 years old, but they never adopted him, “The Allans, who were childless, renamed the boy Edgar Allan and raised him as their son, but they never adopted him legally”(Poe 604). He became an American writer who happened to understand his audience, but still he was unstable. He keep traveling looking for jobs from Boston to New York, and Philadelphia. He was best known because of his work; those short, scary, and mysterious stories that he used to write and as well because of his poetry. Poe wrote too many stories using the fatalities of his own life in some of them. Two of the scariest stories that he wrote were named as “ The Black Cat” and “ The Tell-Tale Heart”. In these two stories he design them in horrific style and both of them had in common an assassination by the main character. Poe wrote these stories with to many differences but digging deeply they also had so many similarities.

“The Black Cat” and “ The Tell-Tale Heart” have a few differences the fist of them could be the way the author starts narrating the story. In the story of “The Black Cat” poe starts entertaining the audience by telling them the love he had for animals. During his childhood he was around animals, “I was especially fond of animals, and was indulged by my parents with a great variety of pets”(Allan 670). When he got married he manages to make his wife love the animals the way he did. He starts his story with the traditional way getting his audience with the flow of mystery and making them wonder and anxious of wanting to find out about how the story is going to end. In other words from the beginning to the end. The main character of “The Black Cat” at first seems to be very lovely with his wife and his animals especially with the black cat named Pluto, “Pluto this was the cat’s name was my favorite pet and playmate”(Poe 671). The black cat happened to be his favorite pet. Through the story he tell his readers he had a big problem with alcohol which make him be aggressive with the animals and even with his beautiful wife.

However In the story “The Tell-Tale Heart” Edgar Allan Poe decides to start shocking his audience by telling his readers how the story is going to end and then he starts narrogin why, when, and how everything developed, “Whenever it fell upon me, my blood ran cold; and so, by degrees very gradually-I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thur rid myself of the eye forever”( Poe 666) . Poe after writing the end at the beginning of the story he tries to specify every detail of how everything happened so that way his readers could concentrate on every other detail about the story.

Another clear difference between the stories is the anger that the main characters felt. In “The Black Cat” the main character harms an innocent animal and also a human who supposedly he was in love with. To his favorite pet he cut one of his eyes from the socket because one night when he got home drunk Pluto was avoiding him which got him really angry and aggressive. To his beautiful wife he killed her with an axe due to his anger because he was trying to kill the black cat and his wife interfere, “Goaded, by the interference, into a rage more than demoniacal, I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the axe in her brain” (poe 674). Every event occurred one night when he got home under the influence of the alcohol. The alcohol was his problem because with it he became very aggressive.

In “ The Tell-Tale Heart” the author tell us that he his problem is a disease but he doesn’t specify what type of disease. Also we can tell that the main character was overwhelmed not by a animal or person but he was really annoyed by only one thing, the eye of an innocent old man who did nothing to him. He watched the man at night for seven days and he waited for the correct time to kill the old man with the mattress of the olds man bed. He had a everything plan and was waiting for the right time to perform his assassination. Another difference is how the murder was provoked and also how the bodies of the victims were found. In “The Black Cat” the police found the pieces of the body by themself and on “The Tell-Tale Heart” the killer confessed the crime because he tough the police was about to find out about the crime he had committed.

Even though these two scary stories had a different title they were very similar in many manners. In contrast both of the stories were published in the same year of 1843, both of them ended with the murder of one person, the main characters think that they are not insane also they got caught by the police. They somehow felt guilty because they thought they heard the victims. In the black cat was the voice of the wife and in “The Tell-Tale Heart” was heart of the old man. In both stories they cut the body in pieces and hide them in their own house. These two stories took place in a house. Additionally, the stories are narrowed by the assassin. Two stories with different titles but with so many similarities.

Madness. A word to describe a state of being mentally disturbed, deranged, coming off the path of normality and sanity defined by the society we live in. It describes a certain form of absurdity, something abnormal, possibly stupid in the eyes of others. But when does one become one become mad? It could creep up on them quietly, slowly, like a headache. Unnoticed by its new host, nestling into their thoughts behind bones and flesh, with a dangerous hunger for every ounce of sanity. Maybe it claws at their back, ripping open naked skin until it can see the unbearable iron rod against their spine and their teeth feel more like sharpened daggers and then it starts whispering things into their ear until clammy hands reach for a knife or rip out strands of hair, gradually becoming worse until their grip on reality disappears. Maybe Madness comes with a pang, from one second to another, after a look in the mirror or after something as simple as forgetting to buy milk at the grocery store. A blink of an eye and of you go down a spiral of chaos (and Stupidity, god knows, what dumb things a human could possibly do). It could be, that there is a piece of madness in every one of us and all it needs is a push over the edge. Many stories in our age as well as in past centuries offer protagonists with certain forms of madness in literature, with different roots and cause of deranged behavior.

The Narrator in Edgar Allen Poe’s story called ‘The Black Cat’, which doesn’t portray the author, but plays the significant protagonist in this story, actively illustrates conspicuous behavior that indicates a form of madness or insanity. Those signs become gradually more striking, the more the narrated story progresses. First of all, it is worth noticing how the narrator keeps insisting that he isn’t mad (c.f. ll. 2-3) despite finding himself on death row and knowing that his execution will take place the following day. The reason for is before standing death is the gory murder of his wife.

As the narrator begins to take a look back on the life he lead, the reader gets an image of a almost stereotypical happy life the narrator lived – a wife, a beautiful house, lovely pets. He introduces the reader to a unique black cat called Pluto, ‘his favorite pet and playmate’ (l.9), which seems like a normal ‘friendship’ a person could have with their pet.

It seems as if the narrator had a content life, until he experiences ‘[…] a radical alteration for the worse’ (l. 26). This sudden change causes the narrator to get ‘more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others’ (l. 27). Now, these feelings could be seen as some sort symptoms after having a bad day or even going in the direction of depression, that may cause the protagonist to feel rather malcontent. Soon, he starts developing abusive behavior, first of only doing harm with his words until he starts to use ‘personal violence’ (l.28) towards his wife and the animals he surrounds himself with, the only exception being his black cat, Pluto (cf. ll. 28-31). Not only could be the abuse and neglect towards an important person in his life a sign for the narrators own suffering, it is also the beginning of the already mentioned madness. As the story goes on, more suspicious problems start to occur along the lines of alcoholism. After another night of consuming too much alcohol, the narrator feels as if ‘the fury of a demon instantly possessed (him)’ (ll. 34-35) after Pluto, his cat, ‘inflicts a slight wound on the narrator’s hand’ (l. 34).

In a moment of uncontrollable rage, he proceeds to grasp the pet by the throat ‘and deliberately cut one of its eyes from the socket’( l.37). The next morning the narrator feels ‘a sentiment half of horror, (…) remorse (and) guilt’ (ll. 39-40). In spite of the fact that he shows violent and horrendous actions, the protagonist still has a sense of sanity, although his cruel behavior exposes growing parts of madness in him. However in a short while the narrator describes ‘ the spirit of perverseness’ (ll. 45-46) which forces him to continue his violent behavior towards Pluto, even though this significant black cat was once his favorite pet. Consequently, the animal gets hung on a tree by the narrator, who is concious and aware that he is indeed committing a ‘deadly sin’ (l.55). Despite the fact that the character feels remorse and guilt ‘with tears streaming from my eyes`(ll. 53-54), his ever growing madness keeps pushing him into doing deranged things. After many suspicious encounters in which the narrators madness was only a faint shadow, the protagonist gets haunted by the ‘phanatsm of the cat’ (l. 78) for the following months, after he barely survived a fire that not only destroyed his home but took most of his valuable possessions ferom him, the same night he murdered his favourite cat. On the occasion of visiting the ruins of his burned home, he finds that a wall of his bedroom survived the flames, even though it was ‘a compartment wall, not very thick’ (l.64) and to his horror discovers the body of a cat without any rope around its neck. The main character tries to calm his nerves with a rather unlikely explanation about how the cat might have gotten into his bedroom, but, like previously mentioned, thee narrator can’t let go his thoughts about his dead pet until he finds another cat which resembles Plutos appearance in almost every aspect except for a rather small white spot (cf. ll.82-87). This occurance is rather strange in light of the fact that Pluto has been described as a unique and unusual cat, which lets the reader believe that there shouldn’t be a second cat that looks similar to Plutos appearance like the animal found by the protagonist.

Without further thoughts about it, the narrator of the story adopts the cat, only to develop “disgust and annoyance’ (ll. 95-96), which evolves quickly into ‘bitterness and hatred’ (l.96) for the reason that his new pet keeps reminding him of the sin he commited, his ‘former crime’ of murdering Pluto (l.108). The growing anger and hatred towards the animal triggered solely by its presence and its habits that resemble Plutos behavior may be another sign of the main character madness in this tale, but the memory of his violent actions in the past prevent the narrator from hurting the cat, but nevertheless, he keeps physically abusing his wife (cf. ll. 112). (so, the wife gets beaten and the cat can watch like a little piece of trash???)

The other day, the main character climbs the stairs into the cellar, his wife following him with every step, until he trips over his pet causing him to almost fall (cf. ll. 129-130). Feeling èxasperated … to madness’ (l.130), the protagonist reaches for an axe and starts an attempt to kill the animal, from which his wife can stop him. Instead of starting a second attempt to kill his cat, the narrator now goes for the head of his wife, successfully murdering her with one strike. (cf. ll. 132-134). A point worth noting is, how the only reaction the main character shows is concern about a good hiding place where he can get rid of the corpse of his now dead wife, after proceeding to start yet another try to “put the cat into death’ (l.154) he has to discover, that the cat has fled from the home. As a result of murdrering his wife, hiding her lifeless corpse and the cat being fiagone, the narrator feels ‘satisfied’ (l.150) and slips into a ‘soundly and tranquilly’ (l.158) sleep that night (way to go after you killed your wife and cemented her into a wall, if you ask me, sir). The reader can now only imagine how lost the narrator is and how far he came off the right path. (because no one, I repeat, no one gets rid of a corpse through putting that body into wall)

To sum up everything, that has been stated, the narrators insanity seems to gradually become more prominent. Within each strange occurance, the madness seems to creep up on him like a shadow until the protagonist gets overwhelmed by this deranged feeling that eventually urges him to commit murder. He gets pushed and pulled to the edge, keeps his balance on the edge for a certain time until one single moment pushes him over the edge and he falls into the madness, just like gravity. And suddenly nothing makes sense anymore and it doesn’t have to make sense anymore. The surrounding don’t appear as they truly are and the mainh character has to act on it, even if their actions are abnormal and deranged.

‘The Imp of the Perverse’, also written by Edgar Allan Poe, describes an overpowering impulse that forces a person to do what other faculties say shouldn’t be done. In the 21st century, the french term ‘l’appel du vide’ is similar to the Imp of the Perverse. It translates literally to ‘call of the void’ and describes the unexplainable desire or urge to jump, when on the edge of a cliff – something society says a person shouldn’t do (unless there is water underneath and it is safe, but we’ll just ignore that). The narrator of ‘The Imp of the Perverse’ mentions the pull to such void as he tries to explain the certain impulse of doing a rather dangerous thing in certain situations; ‘It is merely the idea of what would be our sensations durimg the sweeping precipitancy of a fall from such height’.

Likewise feels the protagonist in ‘The Black Cat’. Though he is driven by pure anger at his cat Pluto, he feels an urge to abuse the animal in form of stabbing out one of its eyes, which may already seem cruel enough. As the story of ‘the black cat’ moves further, the main character describes a ‘spirit of perverseness’ – he feels an unexplainable urge to show more violent behavior towards his pet and ultimately kills the cat out of sheer impulse.

‘For weeks, for months (the narrator) pondered upon the means of the murder’, he feels the impulse to attempt a murder, studying and analyzing the behavior of his supposedly victim until he commits the murder. He followed the urge to take someone else’s life without a second thought about the consequences of his actions in that exact moment. The same demeanour has the narrator of ‘the black cat’; he acts on the impulse to commit a murder and kills his own cat. Both narrators feel remorse and guilt after some time, feel harrassed through memories of their crimes. Both mention the feeling of being haunted, by both their thoughts and the feeling of guilt ripping through them, although they murdered with the awareness of committing a sin. The protagonist in ‘the Imp of the Perverse’ seems to get gradually mad, jut like the narrator of ‘the Black Cat’. Their madness is just a shadow behind their back up until the very moment, where it overwhelms the characters and pulls him into the darkness. They are driven by unexplainable urges to murder until their desires are satisfied – The main character in ‘The Black Cat’ proceeds to take the life of his wife, while the protagonist and narrator of ‘the Imp of the Perverse’ takes the life of another inncocent person, without any cause or reason. The insanity of the character builds up with every other situation they experience, it layers itself until the madness crushes the narrators underneath its weight. They get driven mad through their own irrevocable actions and fall down a spiral of chaos.

The idea behind “THE IMP OF THE PERVERSE”

Since Middle Ages, society’s actions and behavior have been guided by laws, which have changed regarding the content over the years. However, it was originally invented in order to separate “wrong” from “right” and thus the human conscience developed. But, isn’t it exactly the forbidden and at the same time the mysterious that lures human beings to break these laws? Edgar Allan Poe processed his theory about this matter in “THE IMP OF THE PERVERSE” and included it as well in his short story “THE BLACK CAT”.

1. Forms of madness in the short story “THE BLACK CAT”:

One day before being executed, the narrator of the story “THE BLACK CAT” would like to free his conscience telling us the story about how he murdered his favorite pet, a black cat, and his wife.

Although he does not consider himself as mad and evaluates his crimes as “mere household events” (p. 1, l.6), there are some other forms of insanity. Firstly, his bad temper has developed over the years, in which he has lost his childish fondness for animals, apart from the devotion to his cat. Therefore, he must have known how to keep himself under control around his favorite cat, whereas he abuses his other pets and even his wife without any regrets in such moments (cf. p.2, l.43-47). After his addiction to alcohol has become worse, the black cat experiences the same violence. The lunacy lies in the sudden change of his personality, for which he does not provide the reader any specific reason.

During one of his outbreaks, he “deliberately cut[s] one of its eyes from the socket” (p.2, l.58-59) because it has avoided him. At first, he feels guilty as he “ha[s]so much of [his] old heart left” (p.2, l. 68), yet he hangs the cat.

The following incidents are mad situations due to their coincidental interaction. The fact that the narrator kills his cat is predictable thus far, however, in the same night a fire burns down his house. Additionally, only one wall maintains, on which the narrator perceives immediately his black cat with a rope around its neck. On the one hand, he shows complete apathy, but on the other hand, his conscience makes him see, and later on miss his cat so much that he is in search for a new one, successfully finding one that looks almost exactly like the dead.

As time goes on, the narrator is again annoyed by the new cat’s allegiance to him, even though that has been the reason he has adopted the new pet, so that one day he attempts to kill it unhesitatingly with an axe. Therefore, one can assume that the narrator might suffer from anxiety, which might especially seem mad in the century the story is set, as on the one hand he despises and even fears the cat’s fondness for him (cf. p.5, l.185-189) and thus rids himself of any similar behavior. Nevertheless, he regrets his deeds due to his following loneliness.

Being furious about his wife prevented him from slaying the cat, he murders her instead and hides her body behind a wall of bricks he builds within a short time. For some days he has been expecting in anticipation to be conquered by his conscience, thereby revealing being capable of controlling natural human mechanisms as he must have held back the remorse. The question is why he has not been able to contain his anger at any time before.

Additionally, he claims to believe in God (cf. p. 7, l. 268) whereas his crimes are the opposite of what his duty due to God’s commandments would be. These two aspects are as well part of his madness.

2. The theory of “THE IMP OF THE PERVERSE” in “THE BLACK CAT”:

The perverse about the humans’ actions is the fact that the unreasonable of two options is the most appealing one to choose whether it harms others or one’s self as being explained in “THE IMP OF THE PERVESE”. However, the short story “THE BLACK CAT” deals with the same theory. Therein, the narrator commits multiple murders, motivated by the tempting feeling of doing the opposite of what he is supposed to do. There are several causes determined as his personal “Imps”.

Firstly, the theory of the perverse is represented by the narrator’s sudden change from a lovely, animal-liking boy to a cold-hearted alcoholic (cf. “THE BLACK CAT” p. 1, l.39). He has most likely been aware of the repercussions that the consumption of alcohol implicate, yet his curiosity about the feeling that would follow on the one hand and on the other hand the constant thought about it have made him surrender. Thus, all the other immoral events on his account are only the consequence of him making one bad decision. Therefore, the initiate impulse for his change has been his preference of the intoxicated feeling. His cruelty towards his wife and his pets follows (cf. p. 2, l.42-44). Although he has not noticed it back then, but his intoxication has covered his reason, so far that he injures his black cat and “drown[s] in wine all memory of the deed” (p. 2, l. 63-64). Thereafter, the narrator does not mention alcohol again, which lets the reader assume that he either conceals it or that he has no more access and is thus on sort of a withdrawal.

However, he hangs the cat because of, as he himself describes it, pure “PERVERSENESS” (p.2, l.71). Assuming that the narrator has been on a withdrawal as the remorse for his prior deed “[has given] place to irritation” (p.2, l.70), he longs for the feeling of being intoxicated. Nevertheless, as his subconscious might associate him torturing the cat with the condition of being drunk, he is selfish and murders the pet, although he knows it is wrong to punish someone else just to fulfill one’s own desires. He then has nothing left that is related to his intoxication and he hallucinates the “relief upon the white surface [of the only wall surviving the great fire in his house], the figure of a gigantic cat” (p.3, l.104-105). This illusion torments him until he finds another that looks the same.

Furthermore, this new cat, which admires him, represents the forgiveness he receives for his deeds, however, instead of accepting it, the “Imp” forces him to punish himself and to not forgive himself by making him smash an axe into the cat’s head. Therefore, when his wife prevents him from doing so, he murders her because of a “more than demoniacal [rage]” (p.5, l.202). His motive here is not anger, but his perverse propensity to do the wrong, in this case torturing him, that exists in every human being (cf. “THE IMP OF THE PERVERSE”, p. 1, l. 2-3).

The last impulse being literally his death-sentence is that the narrator confesses to the murder of his wife, similar to the ending of “THE IMP OF THE PERVERSE”, and is thus imprisoned and sentenced to be executed. If his conscience had not submitted him, he would have stayed undetected, which he has known, yet the “Imp” has been able to tame him.

Summarized, the madness in this short story lies in the narrator’s paranoid behavior and in the coincidence of some incidents. However, the madness is only the result of the narrator’s addiction to alcohol and therein lays the message of the story. It should demonstrate how dangerous the danger and repercussions of the consumption of alcohol and that once having exaggerated, regarding the amount, it will stay with one for a lifetime.

Edgar Allan Poe endured many difficulties and sadness over the course of his life. His life was filled with unstable living conditions, a broken family, and the loss of many loved ones.. These life experiences heavily influenced the way he developed his poems and short stories, which led him to become one of the greatest writers of his time. Poe is known for his Gothic style of literature which include elements of fear, horror, death, gloom, and suspense. There is a psychological element that characterize some of Poe’s tales of horror, and are written in first person. Through first person narration, Poe is able to develop the character’s individuality. Poe’s short stories, “The Tell-Tale Heart,” “The Black Cat,” and “The Cask of Amontillado” are told by first-person narration which helps develop characterization.

In Poe’s “Tell-Tale Heart,” the short story is written from the perspective of the murder in first person. The narrator is obsessed with the vulture-like eye of an old man, so he smothers the old man, cuts up his body, and hides the body parts under the floorboards of the bedroom. Through the narrator telling his account of the story, the overall view is heightened. The narrator continually stresses to the reader that he or she is not mad, and tries to convince the reader through the planning and execution of the crime, ultimating adding an effect of horror to the story. The point of view helps to convey the theme of madness throughout the story. By allowing the narratives to be in first person, the narrator is able to control the narrative, and the reader is only able to see through their eyes.

Poe’s short story, “The Black Cat,” is also written in the first person point of view. In the beginning of the story, the narrator is trying to prove his sanity and says that he is sentenced to death. The suspicion heightens when the reader learns that the narrator kills his wife when he was really trying to kill the cat again, though he is still trying to prove his sincerity. The point of view conveys to the reader the true madness of the narrator, as he expresses his true actions revealing his true insanity.

Poe’s story of murder and revenge, “The Cask of Amontillado,” is told through the perspective of an insane murderer in first person. In “The Cask of Amontillado,” Montresor repays his enemy, Fortunato. The Montresor lures Fortunato into his home with some sherry and locks Fortunato in a wall while a carnival goes on above him. Through first-person point of view, the reader is more involved in the thoughts and motives of the Montresor as he tortures and murders Fortunato. The point of view also affects the conflict of man versus man, because the reader knows very little about the antagonist, Fortunato. First person allows the Montresor to justify his murder, whereas it would not work in a third person point of view. The justification for his crime is only learned by his readers because of them being able to be in his mind.

Edgar Allan Poe uses first person point of view in many of his short stories. FIrst person point of view allows the narrator to control the narrative and allows the reader to see through his or her eyes. The narrator often expresses his or her own morbid actions so well that they demonstrate their true insanity. They are then unable to distinguish their own madness.

Comparing and contrasting two stories requires a summary of both stories to allow an understanding of the aspects that they are similar and those that they differ. Two different stories by two different authors will be analyzed in this paper, with the aim of understanding whether they have similar themes, symbols, and setting among other elements. The two short stories are “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson and “The Gift of the Magi” by O.Henry. Some of the themes that will be analyzed from both stories include sacrifice, traditions, and poverty.

​“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson offers the story of a traditional lottery ceremony, where instead of winning a price, the community member who picks the odd piece of paper in the lottery gets murdered by the townspeople. The Hutchinson, through their patriarch Bill, found themselves as the family that will have to produce the sacrifice for the lottery. Tessie Hutchinson, Bill’s wife, had begun protesting about the unfairness of the lottery when her husband picked the slip with the black dot in the first round. She ends up being the one who picks the slip with the black dot during the final round of the lottery and is stoned to death. “The gift of the Magi” by O. Henry provides the tale of Della and Jim, a couple extremely in love. It is Christmas time, and each goes out of his/her way to provide a gift that will be adored by the other. They part with their valuable gifts, without informing the other to buy the other a present. Della sells her hair to get a chain for James’ pocket watch, while James sells his pocket watch to get Della a set of combs. In the end, it did not matter that they bought these gifts as long as they are happy together.

​One of the key themes that are elaborated in both stories is the theme of sacrifice. Both stories demonstrate how the actions taken by the characters focus on sacrificing something that is valuable to them. In “The Lottery,” the annual ritual of picking a community member who will be stoned is considered a sacrifice that will bring good fortune to the people. A family member is lost during the lottery, but the society does not see this as a loss of an individual but instead as a sacrifice made by the murdered individual to ensure that the agriculture in the region is prosperous. When Bill picks the odd slip of paper that dooms his family, it is his wife Tess that shouts that the lottery is unfair and therefore individuals should not be sacrificed for it (Jackson 55.) It is interesting to note that these community members are not being forced to participate in this activity, but rather are engaging in it because they believe that they are doing the right thing. For them, this is not a criminal and inhuman activity but rather an act of duty, which sustains their economy.

​Sacrifice is also presented in O. Henry’s story but is demonstrated differently. While the community members in the lottery were sacrificing themselves out of duty, Della and James were sacrificing things they love for the one they love. Della’s hair and James’ pocket watch were not only the most valuable possessions for both of them, but they had sentimental attachments to each of them (Henry63).They were, however, willing to part with them as long as they got what each other desired. They were not blinded by their selfish needs or by duty to their marriage, but rather for the love and passion that they felt for each other. They felt that their sacrifices were worth it because they would see each other being happy. This unlike in the lottery where the sacrifices made did not make the individuals happy but rather led to a feeling of grief as community members lost their lives and family members lost their loved ones.

​Another prominent theme witnessed in the two stories is poverty. Poverty forced James and Della in “The Gift of Magi” to sacrifice their most valuable possessions. The story begins at $1.87, which was all Della had, after saving for a month. It is not like Della did not work, she was working, but after deducting her necessary expenditures, she did not remain with much to save and get James a good present (Henry 62). Their living conditions are also elaborated in a manner that showcases that they are poor. It is however interesting how their love story showcases that they refuse to be held back by the notion of being poor. The author portrays them in a manner that suggests that they are rich at heart and that being poor does not hold them back from showcasing their love for each other. This is in contrast to the characters in ‘The Lottery’ where poverty leads the community members to engage in the lottery. Their human sacrifices are made to ensure that the community gains good agriculture produce (Jackson 54). Due to poverty, they do not stop to think what the lottery means for them and how it affects their community. They are intent at finding ways to end poverty even though these ways entails the death of some of their community members. The author portrays them in a manner that showcases that they are poor physically, mentally and emotionally. They do not have the rich love characterized by Della and James to see that sacrificing their loved ones is wrong.

​The aspect of blindly following traditions and customs, without considering the effects they may have on other people has been showcased in ‘The Lottery.’ The community members refuse to question the lottery, and even though they have heard of other villages refusing to participate in the lottery, they refuse to abandon this tradition. While traditions can be good where they keep individuals grounded and allows them to follow the rules hence live in a certain way, they can also be considered dangerous for a society. The community members refuse to think of the consequences of their actions but rather focus on keeping the traditions alive. In the story ‘The Gift of Mag’ however, traditions are showcased as a good thing, where even though they are followed, they are do not negatively influence the characters. Giving presents on holidays such as Christmas is considered a tradition which families uphold and they show their love and appreciation for one another through it. Della and James chose to follow this tradition, out of their love (Henry 61). However, one can argue that Della and James also followed the Christmas tradition blindly. They decided to give up things they truly valued and symbolized their wealth to buy a present for each other. The tradition of buying presents for loved ones has been ongoing for a long period, but it one does not have to lack or sell a valuable possession to buy a present. Della and James would have found a small gift worth their money, which means that they would not have sacrificed their valuable possessions.

​Various objects have been used in both stories to symbolize the motives behind the actions of the characters. In the lottery, the lottery box is used as a symbol for the action of human sacrifice conducted by the villagers. They have formulated an origin story of the lottery box, which has seen it symbolize their origins. The presence of the box reminds the villagers that the lottery must be held and the murdering of one of their own must occur. They justify their actions with the box indicating that without the lottery box their agriculture would not be thriving; hence they would remain extremely poor. In the “ The Gift of the Magi”,’ Della’s hair and James’ pocket watch are used to symbolize the love that each has for the other. Della loves her hair but she loves James more than the hair, and it is the reason she chooses to cut it. The same goes for James, indicating that these two objects are a symbol of their love.

​The setting of “The Lottery” and “The Gift of Magi” are different. The lottery is set in a rural area. Other rural areas are surrounding the region and have each adapted to the concept of the lottery. The villagers are narrow-minded and will follow anything they are told as long as they believe following traditions. The village is small with about 300 people, which means that each one knew the other (Jackson 56). Jackson uses this setting to showcase that even though the village was in a rural area and was not heavily populated, the villagers did not care for one another but were focused on upholding traditions. The setting of the Gift of Magi is in the urban town, specifically in New York. Though the year is 1900, it is more advanced than the village in the lottery. The characters in the ‘Gift of Mag’ understand the importance of loving and cherishing one another despite their poor situation.

​A reader can gain valuable lessons from both stories. One of the lessons is the importance of sacrifice. A reader understands how sacrifice can end or build a relationship. The sacrifice portrayed in the lottery is wrong, and the reader can apply it in several instances such as when experiencing violence at home. The sacrifice that is showcased in the gift of the mag is however good as it pushes one to be selfless and put the needs of those one loves above all needs. Another valuable lesson that a reader learns is that following traditions blindly may be dangerous. It is, therefore, necessary for one to be open-minded and incorporate new aspects if the traditions that one has been following are harmful.

​In conclusion, even though both stories have different messages, they use similar themes and symbols to convey their messages. The theme of sacrifice, poverty and traditions have been used by both authors to elaborate their story and to ensure that the reader understands their valuable lessons.

Work Cited

1. Henry, Ossian. The gift of the Magi and other short stories. Courier Corporation, 2012.
2. Jackson, Shirley. The lottery and other stories. MacMillan, 2005.

Time moves, whether it’s slowly or fast. There are people who embrace time and there are others who try running from it. Those people who do attempt to escape it try many different ways to accomplish, either by delusions or Botox. These attempts, however, will forever end in defeat. In the story titled ‘The Swimmer’ by John Cheever, the audience witnesses the main character Neddy Merril attempting and failing to avoid the impending passage of time.

In the second paragraph, Neddy is described as someone who is far from young but still youthful and agile. And in that morning of the second paragraph, Neddy slid down his banister of the pool on a hot summer day. This is the start of Neddy’s journey throughout the story. Neddy is not a young man, but his morning routine speaks to his self- image as a man who feels younger than he is. He is a man who lives life feeling young and untroubled, as seen by him lounging by the pool while drinking gin.

Right when Neddy describes the string of pools as ‘unexplored, uncharted territory’ for him to discover is when we really see him avoiding the truth of him becoming an aging man. Neddy’s desire for feeling like a young man finds itself through the expression of being an explorer, which this childish delusion indicates that the image of a ‘strong, masculine man’ may also be a delusion to Neddy. Nevertheless, he starts off his journey with a naive mindset and believes people will help him accomplish this childish goal.

We see the first signs of time passing right after the storm ended, Neddy was in Levy’s yard when he notices the color of the leaves changing to red and yellow, and that he was hit with a sudden chill. This transition of seasons sets a transition in the mood, setting it to a more eerie and unsettling path. Neddy starts to feel weak, which can mean that aging is finally starting to hit Neddy himself.

It is also at this point in the story that we see the examples of perhaps a man developing a memory disorder, which corresponds with aging. Neddy notices the Japanese lanterns on the Levy’s yard and yet he does not remember Levy ever going to Japan. In the Halloran’s yard, Mrs. Halloran sends his condolences to Neddy for the loss of his house, but Neddy himself does not recall such thing, instead denying it.

Even the Halloran’s ‘natural’ pool, Neddy still felt exhausted and weak and needed something to recover that exhaustion quick. As Neddy confusedly smells, he scent of woodsmoke, it implies that Neddy’s age is mirroring the seasons, winter being the old while the summer is youth. The way Neddy refers to the start of the story as if it were long ago emphasizes how much time seems to have passed for Neddy.

Neddy is reminded of the fragility of humans when he visits his friend Eric, who had undergone surgery that Neddy didn’t even know he needed (another indicator of memory loss). Neddy still sees himself as a young man, but even he can’t deny the truth. And yet, Neddy turns away from Eric after seeing his scar, implying that maybe if he didn’t look at Eric, Neddy can still somehow convince himself he is a young man. Neddy has aged physically throughout the story, but he essentially has never change mentally. He still believes he can finish the childish goal he set himself at the beginning of the story, and he believes with naivety that every one of his neighbors will help him, which as shown by the Biswanger’s attitude towards Neddy, that is clearly not the case.

Neddy goes on to one of his houses, which belongs to his old mistress, Shirley Adams in hopes of relieving his exhaustion through pleasure, although that in itself is a temporary thing. After Neddy described his quest of swimming across town through swimming pools, Shirley ridicules him and tells him to ‘grow up’ of that foolish mind. Seeing the man from the bathhouse of Shirley’s home appears to Neddy as if to highlight Neddy’s identity as an old man.

The final pools of Neddy’s quest represent the completion of Neddy’s transformation into an old man. Neddy is now the man he once taunted: someone too weak to dive into the pool. The man who slapped the bust of Aphrodite in the morning is gone, only leaving an old man exhausted from completing what is originally a young man’s quest.

We can see the passage of time through the swimming pools. At first, Neddy is a strong and active man. Warm in the sun, he feels like a ‘legendary figure’, as though there is nothing he can’t accomplish. As he goes from pool to pool, however, Neddy changes. Unknowingly Neddy grows weaker, unable to pull himself out of pools without a ladder and unwilling to dive in as he once did. Around him, the bright summer day grows increasingly colder, and a storm passes. The trees lose their leaves, and the constellations change to those of fall. His status in the social circle has changed as well. Once respected and given to disregarding those who aren’t part of his group, he is now disregarded by Grace Biswanger and the bartender at her party. Neddy’s old acquaintances pity him for his ‘misfortunes’, which Neddy isn’t aware that he has suffered. A lot has happened as he’s been moving from pool to pool, and Neddy has undergone these changes unwittingly.

How much can a parent sacrifice for their child? How should a person handle the gray area between right and wrong? These were just some of the questions I had in my mind as I read through the book. The Hand Bringer written by Christopher J. Penington is a story of sacrifice, family, friendship, and love entangled with time travel.

The Hand Bringer started with the introduction of Peter Hadrian, a member of the police force, in the middle of an encounter with a formidable opponent that later was revealed to be a vampire. Injured and weak, Peter was brought to a laboratory secretly handled by various doctors and military officers. There, he discovered the threat of a vampire outbreak in the modern world. In order to save humanity, Peter was asked to travel back in time to medieval Romania to address the problem at its roots. Peter agreed to the mission once he found out there was a possibility of getting to the bottom of what happened to his son.

When I read the description of the book, I was curious about the integration of time travel and vampires into the modern setting. This was achieved through the writing style of the author. He was able to fully capture the concept of time traveling including its risks and paradoxes. This was why the writing style was what I loved most about the book. It enabled me to perfectly imagine the scenes in the story as they progressed through each chapter. I also liked the dynamics of the characters in the book. With their varying personalities, the characters were able to balance out and fill the shortcomings of each other. In terms of the plot, I liked the fusion of time travel and vampires in the modern world. It added an interesting twist to the story that left the reader intrigued and wanting more throughout the book.

There was nothing I particularly disliked about the book. My attention to what was happening in the story was consistent. Aside from this, I enjoyed following the characters throughout their adventures in time travel. I consider the book well-edited because I did not find any errors or mistakes.

I give this book 4 out of 4 stars because of how wonderfully it was written and the different characterizations. There were some scenes in the story with extreme violence and graphic depiction of death which is why I do not recommend this to individuals who may potentially be triggered by these themes. However, I do recommend the book to people who have an interest in time travel, adventures, and vampires.

The short story “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” written by J. D. Salinger, depicts how Salinger views World War ll, reflecting it in his story through the eyes of main the character Seymour Glass. The story highlights Seymour’s attitude and behavior after being affected by the war, which showcases his suppression and anxiety towards society through the psychoanalytic lens. The theme of isolation is prevalent throughout the story and Salinger achieves this through the effective use of language.

To begin with, the short story by Salinger examines how the traumatic experiences of the main character impact the way in which he acts in the present. Seymour Glass is a soldier who fought in the Second World War, and his experiences from the past have driven him to isolate himself from an emotionally detached society. Seymour and his wife, Muriel, are on vacation in Florida but the reader can see how Seymour spends most of his time alone while his wife tries to enjoy her time. While on the phone with her mother, Muriel explains how Seymour spends his time in, “the Ocean Room, playing the piano. He’s played the piano both nights that we’ve been here” (3 Salinger). Seymour’s need to isolate himself from the rest of society, suggests his lack of connection to the people around him, which makes him want to be alone. Seymour would rather be alone than spend his time with people who only care about relationships on a surface level (meaningless and shallow relationships), thus leading to the deterioration of his mental state ultimately leaving him feeling suicidal. Furthermore, the author examines how Seymour isolates himself from the rest of society, but he still deeply craves some semblance of the meaning of connection. During his interaction with Sybil he wishes to have a ‘real’ conversation and he says, “‘Sybil,’ he said, ‘you’re looking fine. It’s good to see you. Tell me about yourself” (7 Salinger). Regardless of the fact that Sybil is just a child, Seymour still wishes to speak to her in a meaningful way, and it is evident to the readers that due to the lack of depth in his relationship with his wife, he is so isolated that he craves for something ‘real’ with anyone whom he is in contact with. Therefore, Salinger has gone through times when he does not want to socialize with people, where he just wants to isolate himself from the world. But as time progresses, he still shows some connections to society and wants to talk to someone and anyone who he can reach out to.

Adding on, the short story “The Masque of the Red Death” by Edgar Allan Poe, also incorporates the theme of isolation, similarly to Salinger, when interpreted through the psychoanalytic lens. Firstly, Prince Prospero and the surrounding kingdoms are dealing with a fatal, horrible disease the Red Death, raising concern for Prince Prospero and his empire. To resolve this issue Prince builds, “A strong and lofty wall girdled it in. This wall had gates of iron” (Poe) around his castle. The whole idea of constructing this wall is to protect himself and his favorite knights and ladies from the fatal disease Red Death, which has already killed off half of the kingdom. As a result, he ends up isolating himself from his kingdom and the external world. People inside the castle are not allowed to leave or enter the castle, which forces individuals to cut ties with their other family members and friends who are living in the neighboring kingdoms. Furthermore, Prince throws a party where he provides his favorites with all essential needs and luxuries. Prince provides them with, “…. buffoons, there were improvisatori, there were ballet dancers, there were musicians, there was Beauty, there was wine. All these and security were within. Without was the ‘Red Death.’” (Poe). Even though Prince builds a wall around his castle, he is still able to provide luxury to his members and fulfill their needs and desires. But Prince lacks the connection with his kingdom and the external world which causes them to feel sick and fear the Red Death. Even though the Prince has isolated himself, he and his favorites continue to be afraid of the spread of the Red Death, believing that it will kill all of them sooner or later. Therefore, people, despite not physically being ill, still suffer psychologically, from the horror of the Red Death, despite being isolated, proving how isolation can cause people to go insane, as they feel unsafe and believe they can no longer seek help from other people. This also connects to Salinger’s story as Seymour feels he is alienated from the ‘normal’ society that does not understand his mental condition.

Furthermore, the short story “The Looking Glass” by Anton Chekhov, showcases how Nellie isolates herself from the real world, where she ends up finding the love of her life in her perfect husband. First and foremost, Nellie’s primary priority is to take care of her husband. Nellie’s dream starts with, “… one was for Nellie everything, the significance of life, personal happiness, career, fate. Outside him, as on the grey background of the looking-glass, all was dark, empty, meaningless” (Chekhov). Nellie makes herself believe that her life only revolves around her husband and that anything beyond him is meaningless to her. She isolates herself just to take care of her husband, and he becomes the focus of her life. This changes Nellie’s behavior and all she cares now is about her husband, completely isolating herself from her real family and friends. Furthermore, Nellie seeks happiness only through the marriage she upholds in her dream. When Nellie first looks, “…. seeing before her a handsome, gently smiling face, she was conscious of bliss, of an unutterably sweet dream that could not be expressed in speech or on paper.”(Chekhov). Nellie is depending on a man to achieve happiness in her life. When she dreams about the perfect husband she wants, she is obsessed with him and she leaves everything behind her just to be with this man. Nellie also excludes other people from her life just to be with her husband. Therefore, Nellie’s desire of having a perfect husband leads to her isolation, as she does not want to leave him alone, and fears losing him. Thus, a presence of fear leads to Nellie’s isolation from the world on both a psychological and physical level.

Finally, isolation is defined as something being ‘placed apart or alone.’ However, there are different types of isolation that capture the imagination of writers and artists. Isolation is something the majority of individuals deal with these days. A person may isolate themselves based on their individual opinions or because of their present situation. My personal connection to this is that in grade nine I saw one of my classmates sitting alone for a couple of days, and she never responded back to anyone in the class. So, the following day one of my friends explained to me about her having social anxiety and how she feels rejected from the world. I tried to talk to her but could not get anything out of her mouth. After 2 years I saw her at school again, she was talking to a group of people. So, I decided to go talk to her, she was polite and looked innocent. I asked how she was doing, and she told me how she went to therapy for her social anxiety and got better. Later she tells me how awful and unpleasurable experience it was to isolate herself from society. In her therapy, she learns how everyone is not the same and not everyone judges you or negatively evaluates you. She has now completely reinforced herself and feels comfortable engaging with others. Even though she had a rough start due to her isolating herself from society, she has completely overcome this hurdle and is enjoying the company of her new friends.

To conclude, in my opinion, isolation has a significantly negative impact on people’s character, which further impacts the lives of other people who are attached to them through a ‘butterfly effect’ of negativity and anxiety. Understanding one’s attachment to society through a psychoanalytic lens enables one to recognize their identity and better their relations with those around one. All in all, in the short story “A Perfect Day for Bananafish” by J. D. Salinger, depicts the theme of isolation and how Seymour Glass is going through a rough time and wants to be isolated from society. Through becoming more educated on this topic I have become more comfortable and learned the importance of isolation and how it impacts one’s behavior. Personally, my own understanding of isolation continues to evolve as I learn to recognize and think critically about the issue.