by Maddie Berkson, 10th Grade
The first story, or rather a poem, "The Raven," depicts a man haunted by the memory of his late beloved, Lenore. Opening up on a dark and dreary winter night, the main character continually hears a tapping at his door. Eventually, a raven greets him, and the man thinks out loud while conversing with the bird. He is unsettled by the Raven’s repetition of the word “nevermore” and attempts to remove the Raven from his premise. The poem concludes with the man feeling as if his soul has been ripped from his body and is floating on the floor. This sounds jarring, especially for the youth, and you may be confused as to why they should read it. Although Edgar Allan Poe’s belief was that morals should be separate from stories, there is something to be learned from everything. A reader can relate to the pain the main character is going through. A type of pain most parents attempt to shield their innocent children from, but one that needs to be addressed more. There is a right and a wrong way to cope with grief and the man being presented in an obvious unkind light points out to the reader how not to react to pain.
While "The Raven" is centered around a man on the verge of insanity due to rational emotional distress, the same cannot be stated about the protagonist in “The Tell-Tale Heart.” This new character is a full-on lunatic as proved by the beginning paragraph of the story, in which he, being severely paranoid, repeatedly tries to defend his mental state. He retells a story of being taunted by an old man’s supposed vulture’s eye. It drives him mad every time he makes eye contact with it. One time, as he was watching the old man sleep as he did every night, the senior awakened. Once the protagonist saw the vulture’s eye and heard the man’s beating heart growing louder, he asphyxiated the man with bed sheets he was lying under. Many lessons can be taken away from this peculiar story. One, in particular, is how guilt will haunt you as the man was by the growing sound of a clock.
Both stories share the central theme of death. Despite coming from opposite points of view surrounding the end of a person’s life, they share several details such as the symbolic birds of death, the stories being retold in the first person, a recurring sound, a death that torments the protagonist, the period of time during the day both stories take place, etc. Most of all, the two stories show the reader how not to face something that is bothering them. In "The Raven" the man tries to busy himself by reading, attempts to sleep away the pain, drinks, and talks to a bird about his problems. The Tell-Tale Heart's main character murders a man in order to deal with his problem.
All of this is to explain why you, yourself, or your children should read Edgar Allan Poe. In doing so, a new genre of writing will be unveiled by the author that is most famous for the style. He was remarkable with words and the ability to transport readers into his world. If he were not great at it, no one would find his works as enticing as they do. Instead of having to learn the hard way themselves, readers can learn from the downfalls and the mental patterns of the characters of Poe. They can relate or sympathize with the author’s life and can be taught a piece of history too since some of Poe’s writings are historical fiction such as, but not limited to, “The Pit and the Pendulum.” While the author or genre may not be for everyone, it is certain that the typical person or child should not be restricted from reading it.
"So I’m mad you say? You should have seen how careful I was to put the body where no one could find it."This quote from "The Tell-Tale Heart" may be seen as a cautious sign indicating to anyone with common sense that they should not allow their teenager to read the works of the famous and troubled writer, Edgar Allan Poe. However, it would be unfair to judge a person's whole career by a mere two sentences. With that in mind, there is a whole background behind Poe to read about, which once heard may cause you to feel sympathy towards him. He was orphaned at the young age of three because of the abandonment by his father and the death of his mother from tuberculosis. Poe suffered a hard and miserable life, but from all his struggles emerged the creation of American Gothic literature, one of the darkest writing styles there is.
The first story, or rather a poem, "The Raven," depicts a man haunted by the memory of his late beloved, Lenore. Opening up on a dark and dreary winter night, the main character continually hears a tapping at his door. Eventually, a raven greets him, and the man thinks out loud while conversing with the bird. He is unsettled by the Raven’s repetition of the word “nevermore” and attempts to remove the Raven from his premise. The poem concludes with the man feeling as if his soul has been ripped from his body and is floating on the floor. This sounds jarring, especially for the youth, and you may be confused as to why they should read it. Although Edgar Allan Poe’s belief was that morals should be separate from stories, there is something to be learned from everything. A reader can relate to the pain the main character is going through. A type of pain most parents attempt to shield their innocent children from, but one that needs to be addressed more. There is a right and a wrong way to cope with grief and the man being presented in an obvious unkind light points out to the reader how not to react to pain.
While "The Raven" is centered around a man on the verge of insanity due to rational emotional distress, the same cannot be stated about the protagonist in “The Tell-Tale Heart.” This new character is a full-on lunatic as proved by the beginning paragraph of the story, in which he, being severely paranoid, repeatedly tries to defend his mental state. He retells a story of being taunted by an old man’s supposed vulture’s eye. It drives him mad every time he makes eye contact with it. One time, as he was watching the old man sleep as he did every night, the senior awakened. Once the protagonist saw the vulture’s eye and heard the man’s beating heart growing louder, he asphyxiated the man with bed sheets he was lying under. Many lessons can be taken away from this peculiar story. One, in particular, is how guilt will haunt you as the man was by the growing sound of a clock.
Both stories share the central theme of death. Despite coming from opposite points of view surrounding the end of a person’s life, they share several details such as the symbolic birds of death, the stories being retold in the first person, a recurring sound, a death that torments the protagonist, the period of time during the day both stories take place, etc. Most of all, the two stories show the reader how not to face something that is bothering them. In "The Raven" the man tries to busy himself by reading, attempts to sleep away the pain, drinks, and talks to a bird about his problems. The Tell-Tale Heart's main character murders a man in order to deal with his problem.
All of this is to explain why you, yourself, or your children should read Edgar Allan Poe. In doing so, a new genre of writing will be unveiled by the author that is most famous for the style. He was remarkable with words and the ability to transport readers into his world. If he were not great at it, no one would find his works as enticing as they do. Instead of having to learn the hard way themselves, readers can learn from the downfalls and the mental patterns of the characters of Poe. They can relate or sympathize with the author’s life and can be taught a piece of history too since some of Poe’s writings are historical fiction such as, but not limited to, “The Pit and the Pendulum.” While the author or genre may not be for everyone, it is certain that the typical person or child should not be restricted from reading it.
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