Poe's Obsession with Death

Edgar Allen Poe

       Edgar Allen Poe has sent a chill down the spines of many through his literary works and unique writing style. Poe is referred to as one of the best Gothic authors of all time. With a Gothic theme comes mystery and macabre, two topics that he loved to incorporate into his short stories. Poe cherished the opportunity to write a story about murder and things that would perturb a grown man’s stomach. He truly possessed a talent denied to most of Earth’s population. Poe’s edge was the obsession with death.

            Edgar Poe was born January 19, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts. Death and confusion overwhelmed Poe as a child, affecting him both physically and mentally. His Mother died when he was quite young and his cowardice Father was nowhere to be found; due to these tragedies Poe became an orphan. This is why he is such a great Gothic author. Death and agony has surrounded Poe his whole life and he knows firsthand what the outcome of death feels like. This obsession with death is portrayed in most all of his stories including, The Cask of Amontillado, The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the Red Death, and The Premature Burial.

            The Cask of Amontillado may seem like a story built around revenge but don’t be fooled, this is what Poe wants his audience to think. The aspect of death is simply hidden throughout the venture of Montresor and his quest to erase Fortunato from the world. “I forced the last stone into its position; I plastered it up. Against the new masonry I re-erected the old rampart of bones. For the half of a century no mortal has disturbed them (“The Cask of Amontillado” Poe).” Montresor is the narrator in this story and is Poe’s main tool in “touching” the minds of the audience. In this quote Poe is expressing his personal emotions through Montresor of glorifying torturous death. This is a blatant example of Poe’s infatuation with death. This is why he can describe death in such an effective manner.

            The Masque of the Red Death is another Gothic work shrouded in death by Poe. The story takes place in a castle of a Prince during the plague. The Prince, being afraid of the spreading disease and alone invites his wealthy friends to a party at his elegant castle. A mysterious figure appears at the party and he/she symbolizes the plague and death. ”It was in this apartment, also, that there stood against the western wall, a gigantic clock of ebony. Its pendulum swung to and fro with a dull, heavy, monotonous clang; and when the minute-hand made the circuit of the face, and the hour was to be stricken, there came from the brazen lungs of the clock a sound which was clear and loud and deep and exceedingly musical…(“The Masque of the Red Death” Poe).” The reason why Poe included this ebony clock in this story was to symbolize the relationship between death and time. The only thing that death answers to is time itself and when time expires death awaits. Poe mixes the true aspects of death and time wonderfully in this short story.

            The Premature Burial also demonstrates Poe’s views on death. Mostly all who walk this Earth fear the day when they stop breathing. Poe utilizes this fear to scare his audience and to teach them a valuable lesson to not run from the inevitable. Back in the nineteenth century the thought of being buried alive was not uncommon. Coffins were equipped with emergency devices such as a bell at the end of a rope in case the corpse was to awake. “In fact, the lady had been buried alive. Vitality had not altogether departed, and she was aroused by the caresses of her lover from the lethargy which had been mistaken for death (“The Premature Burial” Poe).” This quote depicts the fear that the narrator held within of being buried alive. In all, Poe relates fear with death and if death is what scares someone as they prepare to go to bed then they have not lived their life to the fullest.

            The Case of M. Valdemar refers to the agony of death. In this story by Poe Mr. Valdemar is withering away and wishes to evade death by being mesmerized “hypnotized”. “"For God's sake! -- quick! -- quick! -- put me to sleep -- or, quick! -- waken me! -- quick! -- I say to you that I am dead!"(“The Case of M. Valdemar” Poe)”. Here in the late stages of Mr. Valdemar’s mesmerized state he realizes that he was a fool to delay death through hypnosis and now he is technically already a dead man. In agony the narrator decides to wake Mr. Valdemar to relieve his suffering. “His whole frame at once -- within the space of a single minute, or even less, shrunk -- crumbled -- absolutely rotted away beneath my hands. Upon the bed, before that whole company, there lay a nearly liquid mass of loathsome -- of detestable putridity (Poe)”. Poe yet again warns his audience of the dangers of fleeing death but most importantly highlights the true misery death brings.

            The Fall of the House of Usher is the best example of Poe’s obsession with death. The narrator travels to his friend’s eerie house to meet and catch up. Odd activities occur in the home but the most important one was the mistaken death of the friend’s twin sister who had catalepsy, a disease that basically paralyzes the body and renders it incapable of any speech or movement. The men proceed to bury her body in the family tomb.” There was blood upon her white robes, and the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame. For a moment she remained trembling and reeling to and fro upon the threshold, then, with a low moaning cry, fell heavily inward upon the person of her brother, and in her violent and now final death-agonies, bore him to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had anticipated (“The Fall of the House of Usher” Poe).” His sister fell dead on the floor from her struggles, followed by her brother, dead, due to fright. Poe in this fantastic short story communicates to the audience that all death aside from time is caused by mistakes. In this case the mistake was the act of burying a living human.

            Poe is obsessed with death period. In one way or another all of his Gothic short stories relate to death or an aspect associated with death. The Cask of Amontillado, The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the Red Death, and The Premature Burial are all proof of this obsession. Poe taught the population about death and received enjoyment from scaring them to no extent with death. Overall, Poe’s Obsession with death is why he is such a known figure in literature to this day. He set the standards for all Gothic Authors that followed in his footsteps.

Bibliography

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"Edgar Allan Poe." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Mar. 2012. Web. 16 Mar. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Allan_Poe>.

"Poe, Edgar Allan." Poe, Edgar Allan (1809. Web. 16 Mar. 2012. <http://www.credoreference.com/topic/poe_edgar_allan_1809_1849>.