...{A Case Study of Madness } Robert “Devin” Earl {Friday, February 5, 2016} Throughout Edgar Allen Poe’s work Tell Tale Heart several patterns, and symbolic elements are present. Each of these elements play respective roles in revealing the purpose of the work as a whole. Poe wants to convey a feeling of paranoia and mental illness. Its as if Poe wants his work to function as a summary of a case study about mental deterioration. He uses his diction purposefully and scarcely in order to have the main character convey a feeling of obsession with very specific entities of the old man. The main character has a unhealthy fixation on the old man’s eye, his heartbeat and even his claim to sanity. As the story progresses sever different psychological contradictions come to illumination that each contribute to the general profile of a murder. In example the narrator openly admits “to being dreadfully nervous”, however he is unable to comprehend why he is thought of as deranged He articulates his self-defense against madness in terms of increased sensory ability. Instead of of viewing this hypersensitivity as a clue to being mentally unwell the narrator uses it to prove to himself his possession of sanity and not a product of madness. Another symbolic element that proves Poe is conveying a study of the mentally unstable is the narrator’s detachment between emotional feelings such as love and hate. Poe uses his story to explore a psychological paradox between those who cannot truly...
Words: 420 - Pages: 2
...Christina Coke Dr. Catherine Milton ENG 102, Essay #1 –First Draft October 1, 2014 The Use of First Person Point of View Have you ever tried to tell somebody’s story? A story meant to be funny, and all you got were blank stares and awkward silence? But when that person tells their story, it’s a lot more hilarious, and everybody laughs? It’s the same story but from two different point of views, which makes all the difference. In the world of literature, there are three common point of views often used. Evidently in this superb story, the author Poe chose to use the first person, this establishes a sense of rapport between the reader and the narrator. We see everything through their eyes and understand their motives, thoughts, feelings and actions. Poe could have conveyed the story through the third person, but with a story like “The Tell- Tale Heart” the first person point of view becomes so vital to the whole concept of the story. Using the first person point of view enhances the drama, helps the reader to understand not only the plot of the story, but also the central character on which the story hinges. Throughout this story, it seems like the narrator is present there in the room, telling their story, first-hand, and this intensifies the dramatic effect of the story. A classic example of this would be the opening sentence where the narrator describes how “very dreadfully nervous” he feels. His feelings don’t become filtered through the distance of a third person narrator...
Words: 1134 - Pages: 5
...deep-sea depths of my being, like a creature thrown into audience with thunder.At the same time, I am secretly unfooled. The uproar is only my own shriek, and chasms are, like all things vast, inanimate. They will not snatch me in a thousand years, unless, in a lunatic fit of religion, I jump. (10) | Critical Response The words used are informal, giving us a feeling that the character is trying to relate to use. Most of the words are denotative, giving us a specific meaning to hold onto, while some are less clear which gives more mystery to the passage. The diction is mostly concrete, speaking of the chasm and his voice, not of other abstract ideas mentioned previously in the chapter. The words are also cacophonous, not sounding pleasant together and further expressing the distress Grendel seems to be experiencing as the monster he is. The words are mostly monosyllabic, making it easier for us to understand. The diction used clearly expresses the idea that Grendel pretends to be intrigued by the idea of the dark chasm seizing him, he also understands that this would only be possible if he gave in and jumped. | Personal Response I think this quote relates to me because I too, often talk to inanimate things as if they could hear me, while still realizing they can’t. I mostly do this when I am lonely, which relates me to Grendel in this instance. He seems like the lonely type. In a way I pity him, in a way I don’t. I’m sure if he tried hard enough he could find some...
Words: 3915 - Pages: 16
...Terms – AP English Language and Composition These terms should be of use to you in answering the multiple-choice questions, analyzing prose passages, and composing your essays. allegory – The device of using character and/or story elements symbolically to represent an abstraction in addition to the literal meaning. In some allegories, for example, an author may intend the characters to personify an abstraction like hope or freedom. The allegorical meaning usually deals with moral truth or a generalization about human existence. alliteration – The repetition of sounds, especially initial consonant sounds in two or more neighboring words (as in “she sells sea shells”). Although the term is not frequently in the multiple choice section, you can look for alliteration in any essay passage. The repetition can reinforce meaning, unify ideas, supply a musical sound, and/or echo the sense of the passage. allusion – A direct or indirect reference to something which is presumably commonly known, such as an event, book, myth, place, or work of art. Allusions can be historical, literary, religious, topical, or mythical. There are many more possibilities, and a work may simultaneously use multiple layers of allusion. ambiguity – The multiple meanings, either intentional or unintentional, of a word, phrase, sentence, or passage. analogy – A similarity or comparison between two different things or the relationship between them. An analogy can explain something unfamiliar by associating...
Words: 4357 - Pages: 18
...Religion portrayed in “The Devil And Tom Walker” In Boston Massachusetts it is said that ‘kid the Pirate’ buried a large amount of treasure and never returned for it. The devil took it under his guardianship. Later in the year of 1727 a man named Tom Walker lives near with his wife, and both are money-crazed. Tom takes a shortcut through the swamp, and comes across old scratch. Tom and old scratch walk home together where he later offers Tom “kidd the pirate” treasure. Tom shares the deal with his wife but tells her that he is not thinking about taking it. Tom Walker's wife sets out to find old scratch but never returns. Tom sets out to look for his wife and finds her heart and liver tied up to a tree. He sets off to find...
Words: 1527 - Pages: 7
...PREFACE This major project examines the indispensable desiderata of Transcendentalism in comparison to the Dark Romantics background and how these technicalities prepare this work of art as an influential synthesis of human imagination incorporated with mystic facts. Transcendentalism and Dark Romanticism were two literary movements that occurred in America during roughly the same time period (1840—1860). Although the two had surface similarities, such as their reverence for Nature, their founding beliefs were quite different, enough to make one seem almost the antithesis of each other. Moreover one’s genesis is ventured out from other; i.e. Dark Romanticism from the roots of Transcendentalism or precisely the lacunae are best determined for raising up the term called Dark Romanticism. Contents S. No. Page no. Chapter 1.........................................................................................................4-14 Chapter 2.........................................................................................................15-23. Chapter 3..........................................................................................................24-27 Resolution.........................................................................................................28-29 Work Cited................................................................
Words: 9948 - Pages: 40
...caring nature. “My noble father”, “to you I am bound for life and education. My life and education both do learn me how to respect you” and “you are the lord of my duty” The use of diction such as ‘lord’ and ‘noble’ when referring to her father shows the immense respect and love she has for him as she views him as her god for giving her life and education. She admits to her marriage and also understands her duties towards both her father and her husband. “You are lord of all my duty” (181), “But here’s my husband”. Othello was honest when he said that he has won Desdemona’s heart by telling her tales of his past. Desdemona is very faithful and truly loves Othello as she was very charmed by him and at the same time truly respects her father and his views showing her good nature. Brabantio is a very protective father. He makes sure that his daughter Desdemona lives a sheltered life under his care. She is his only child so he treats her like a prized possession. He also made certain to keep her under a tight leash, especially with male callers. When Roderigo tries to court her, he disapproves, "The worser welcome! / I have charged thee not to haunt my doors. / in honest plainness thou hast heard me say/ My daughter is not for thee" (1.1.93-95). Brabantio is in disbelief when Roderigo instead tells him of Desdemona's elopement with Othello and says:...
Words: 1092 - Pages: 5
...This work was later attributed to a unknown author by the Nazis party in the 1930's because they could not erase it form the culture and minds of the German people. The poem “ Die Lorelei” is translated to “The Lorelei”. This poem is about a rock on the Rhine river. It is stands to the soaring height of 393 feet above the waterline and is the narrowest part of the river. This section of the river is the cause of many boat accidents. Heine was inspired by the old folklore tale of the Lore Lay that is often associated with this rock. In this poem he depicts the bewitching Lore Lay as a siren on the cliffs of the Rhine river, sitting on the top of the rock to enchant and distract the boat man passing by. It is a free verse poem written in the style of lyric poetry. This work is also consider a ballad poem and is one of the key reason why it flows with composed music so well. “The Loreli” can also be sung as well. The poem contains six stanzas all written in quatrain form. In the first stanza Heine starts to tell the ballad form the first person point...
Words: 1091 - Pages: 5
...Professor of creative writing, 1994-95; University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada, writer-in-residence, 1998-99. Life's Work Jamaican-born journalist, poet, and short story writer Olive Senior is one of Caribbean literature's leading feminist voices. Her works, though written in English, remain heavily influenced by the region's patois, and draw heavily upon its oral storytelling traditions. In both her verse and fiction, Senior critiques the political and cultural ties that continue to bind Jamaica to its British colonial past. Her protagonists often find themselves divided between the resulting two worlds of assimilation and preservation, and she gives their speech and inner dialogues a corresponding tone. "In Jamaica, much as in England, diction has traditionally signified place of birth, level...
Words: 2658 - Pages: 11
...due to different pieces of literature and society in general. Men court women and rescue them from danger. Women learn the necessary skills to become a proper housewife and mother. For a man to successfully complete the requirements of his “part” in the relationship, he must provide for his spouse and assert his dominance as the head of the household. The woman must then complete the dance by deferring to her husband’s wishes and presenting the perfect picture of a cultured, subservient wife. The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer and Lanval by Marie de France challenge this notion. In both works, the women represent the dominant force in the relationship, reversing gender roles and overturning modern-day gender stereotypes. However, despite the fact that both pieces of literature oppose the standards of the time, the social commentary the two works provide greatly contrast. Although Lanval still incorporates many of the common romantic stereotypes, The Canterbury Tales does not address these stereotypes; not only does the work present a profoundly different picture, illustrating a highly negative image of what occurs when women contain the power in a relationship, but also it also gives this classic piece of literature less relevancy in the eyes of the modern-day reader. Traditionally, women held little to no power in a relationship; however, Lanval challenges this long-standing idea. Lanval, a knight “far from his inheritance,” gains his wealth through the success of his...
Words: 1694 - Pages: 7
...Concision and Repetition in Babel’s Collected Stories With laconic power, Isaac Babel tells short stories that are at once cold and full of exultation. This effect arises as much from his prose style as from the wrenching content of his narratives. In this paper, I will explore several techniques that compress his prose to the lapidary and one that is more expansive and cuts against his impulse to concision. One of Babel’s most striking tools for reducing his text to essentials is the simile (and more rarely the metaphor), a tactic that allows him to juxtapose images that complicate the text in a short space. He also has a knack for rendering psychological states in terms so compressed that they seem irreducible; for instance, at the end of a story when a character’s heart is constricted by a foreboding of truth, there really is nothing more to say. To an extreme, Babel makes his prose do more than one thing at a time: his descriptions of scenery frequently delve to the heart of the point-of-view character. Cutting against this tendency and made powerful by it, the stories indulge in the repetition of words, a tactic that can propel the prose toward exultation. §1 Simile and Metaphor Babel makes good use of simile and metaphor, both of which lend power, complexity, concision, and often violence to his writing. At times the similes are simply vivid juxtapositions that enliven the prose but do little else. “His stomach, like a large tomcat, lay on the silver pommel” paints...
Words: 2477 - Pages: 10
...Rhetorical Terms/Devices Figurative language is the generic term for any artful deviation from the ordinary mode of speaking or writing. It is what makes up a writer’s style – how he or she uses language. The general thinking is that we are more likely to be persuaded by rhetoric that is interesting, even artful, rather than mundane. When John F. Kennedy said, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” (an example of anastrophe), it was more interesting – and more persuasive – than the simpler, “Don’t be selfish.” Indeed, politicians and pundits use these devices to achieve their desired effect on the reader or listener nearly every time they speak. The stylistic elements in a piece of writing work to produce a desired effect related to the text’s (and author’s) purpose, and thus reveals the rhetorical situation. In classical rhetoric, figures of speech are divided into two main groups: Schemes — Deviation from the ordinary pattern or arrangement of words (transference of order). Tropes — Deviation from the ordinary and principal meaning of a word (transference of meaning). *Important Note: Words marked with an asterisk* are words for which it would be impossible for you to write 3 examples for your weekly vocabulary assignment. In those cases, please write only the definition, in your own words, and the rhetorical uses/effect of that device, or do what you are instructed to do under those words. Please mark these words that deviate...
Words: 7172 - Pages: 29
...The Nature of Evil in Young Goodman Brown The Nature of Evil in Young Goodman Brown In Young Goodman Brown, Nathaniel Hawthorne tells the tale of a man and his discovery of evil. Hawthorne’s primary concern is with evil and how it affects Young Goodman Brown. Through the use of tone and setting, Hawthorne portrays the nature of evil and the psychological effects it can have on man. He shows how discovering the existence of evil brings Brown to view the world in a cynical way. Brown learns the nature of evil and, therefore, feels surrounded by its presence constantly. Hawthorne creates a serious and somber tone throughout much of the story. From the start, the audience gets a sense that Brown will go through relentless agony from the devilish stranger. His diction in the opening paragraphs is a good indicator of this. He uses words such as “melancholy”, “evil”, “dreary”, and “grave” to evoke a certain mood in the reader. There is little relief from this seriousness that would suggest that Hawthorne’s attitude about the story be hopeful. Brown’s attitude and actions portray a negative view of Salem and its people. He ponders the hypocrisy of the town as well as that of the Puritans. He examines the possibility that evil and corruption exist in a town that is supposedly characterized by piety and devout faith. The story is set in seventeenth-century Salem, a time and place where sin and evil were greatly analyzed and feared. The townspeople, in their Puritan beliefs...
Words: 1862 - Pages: 8
...The novella Chronicle of a Death Foretold, based on a true story from the early 1950s, tells the tale of Santiago, a young man falsely accused of taking the virginity of Angela, a woman who was to be wed to another, and the events that unfolded leading up to his gruesome murder. Though no one believed Santiago actually seduced Angela, it was to greater misbelief that no one did anything to prevent his wrongful death at the hands of the Vicario twins. The story focused on how the townspeople's cultural beliefs had led to their inaction in preventing his untimely death. Cultural values play a considerable role in this novella; it is the primary factor to why the crime took place. In the novella, Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Marquez’s use of...
Words: 1475 - Pages: 6
...the first time. Each child will eventually join the ranks of all the other members of society fighting a war against evil at the personal level so cleanly brought to life by James Baldwin (Albert). Amongst all the chaos, the reader is introduced to Sonny's special secret weapon against the pressures of life: Jazz. Baldwin presents jazz as being a two-edged sword capable of expressing emotions like no other method, but also a presenting grave danger to each individual who bears it. Throughout the story, the reader follows Sonny's past and present skirmishes with evil, his triumphs, and his defeats. By using metaphorical factors such as drugs and jazz in a war-symbolizing setting, Baldwin has put the focus of good and evil to work at the heart of "Sonny's Blues. At several points in the story, Baldwin emphasizes the quickness at which Harlem residents fall to the pull of evil. The children of Harlem are described as often turning "hard or evil or disrespectful, the way kids can, so quick, so quick, especially in Harlem". These children can be compared directly to soldiers in a war....
Words: 1280 - Pages: 6
