Important Points
• 1. Poe’s major works. • 2. Poe’s literary characteristics and achievements
Introduction
a miserable childhood
entered the University but didn’t finish went to West Point but was dismissed at 27 he married his 13-year-old cousin was adopted by John Allan an unhappy relationship died in mysterious circumstances, in 1849
tales
Horቤተ መጻሕፍቲ ባይዱor
two kinds
a collection of short stories
Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque
«述异集» ―The Black Cat‖ 《黑猫》
―The Cask of Amontillado‖ ―Ligeia‖《莉盖亚》 （红色死亡假面舞会） ―The Fall of the House of Usher‖
Poe’s theory for poetry
poems short but achieve maximum effect produce a feeling of beauty in the reader "pure―, not to moralize He stresses rhythm 真实能够满足人的理智, 感情能够满足人的心灵, 而美则能激动人的灵魂
--- The writer must decide the effect first and then determine the incidents.
--- Truth rather than beauty is often the aim of the tale. --- The merit of a work of art should be judged by its psychological effect upon the reader.
•
Ah, Psyche, from the regions which Are Holy Land!
III. Walt Whitman (1819---1892) Leaves of Grass: 9 editions ,more than 400 poems all written in free verse form, that is , poetry without a fixed beat or regular rhyme scheme. The title implies rebirth, renewal, or green life.
Chapter 4 High Romantics
Edgar Allen Poe 爱伦· 坡 (1809—1849)
Edgar Allan Poe (1809---1849): Poe established a new symbolic poetry, formulated the new short story in detective and science fiction line, developed an important artistic theory, and laid foundation for analytical criticism.
2) ―Annable Lee‖ 《安娜贝尔· 李》
3) ―The Sleeper‖ 《睡梦人》 4) ―A Dream Within a Dream‖ 《梦中梦》 5) ―Sonnet—To Science‖ 《十四行诗—致科学》 6) ―To Helen‖ 《致海伦》 7) ―The City in the Sea‖ 《海中的城市》earlier entitled The Doomed City 《衰败的城市》
There are some comments made by American critics.
Introduction
Poe enjoyed respect and welcome in Europe His reputation was first made in France Poe's influence was considerable in Spain, Italy, Germany and Russia. Today, his works are read with appreciation and understanding.
--- The immediate object of poetry is pleasure, not truth. --- Music is essential because it is associated with indefinite sensations. (alliteration, assonance, repetition) --- Poe preferred the tale to other fictional such as the novel because it is brief. He stressed the principle of concentration and thematic totality.
insists on an even(规则的) metrical flow
Poe’s theory for short story
• Short story should be of brevity, totality, single effect, compression(压缩) and finality.
Poe is generally regarded as a pioneering aesthetician, psychological investigator, literary technician and his influence on American literary circles can never be overrated.
Ratiocination（推理）
―The Murders in the Rue Morgue‖ 《莫格街谋杀案》 ―The Gold Bug‖《金甲虫》 ―The Purloined Letter‖《被窃的信件》
―The Mystery of Marie Roget‖ 《玛丽罗杰谜案》
works
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)
•
father of modern short
story • • father of detective story father of psychoanalytic
criticism
E.A. Poe (1809—1849)
Poe’s mother
Conclusion about his theories:
--- Only short poems could sustain the level of emotion in the reader that was generated by all good poetry. --- The most important purpose of poetry is the creation of beauty --- The tone of its highest manifestation is one of sadness. (The death of a beautiful woman is the most potential topic.)
Literary theory:
• The Philosophy of Composition 《创作原理》 • The Poetic Principle 《诗歌 原则》
Themes
1. death – predominant theme ―Poe is not interested in anything alive. Everything in Poe’s writings is dead.‖ 2. horror 3.negative thoughts of science
a poet，
a short story writer
a great writer of fiction, a poet of the first rank, and a critic of insight
Poe’s Major Literary Works
poems 1) ―The Raven‖ 《乌鸦》
Poe’s achievement
1. His aesthetics, his call for "the rhythmical creation of beauty" have influenced French symbolists and the devotees of "art for art's sake." 2. He is the father of psychoanalytic(心理分析的) criticism. 3. He is the father of the detective story.
her death in 1847 left him a bitterer life
Introduction
a villain(坏人) with no virtue an evil genius Emerson: "the jingle man" Whitman: ―its narrow range and unhealthy, lurid quality‖ (不丰富和不 健康的选材、可怕的质量)