Edgar Allen Poe

                Edgar Allen Poe had a brilliantly warped mind.  The two selected readings were creative, but very dark. Poe's ability to portray the characters thoughts was amazing. While I read his words, I felt like I was truly reading the mind of a murderer. How did Poe come up with this stuff? Did he sit around all day thinking about murders? What made him want to write about such dark subjects? His stories feel like they are alive. His descriptions make the reader feel like they witnessed the gruesome horrifying acts.

“The Cask of Amontillado”

                I enjoyed this read. Montresor clearly stated he wanted revenge in the first few lines of the short story. Montresor was a man with a purpose and a plan. The reader is left to wonder what caused him to desire vengeance. He manipulates Fortunato from the moment they first talked. He easily enticed him to become intoxicated. Montresors clever plan worked very well. Fortunato wasn't very fortunate. He had no clue what was happening until it was too late.

“The Tell-Tale Heart”

                This short story is a glimpse into the mind of a crazed killer. I could not help but think of the recent theater shooting. Did the shooter have similar thoughts? The killer in Poe's story was infatuated with the old man's eye. It seemed to torture him in some way. The eye spoke to him. Further into the story he became obsessed and tortured by the sound of the man's beating heart. Why did this man kill? Did the old man do something to him? Maybe he did or maybe he just couldn't stand his eye. In the end admitted to his dead. Apparently the old man was not the fix to his own problems.

                Both these stories are vibrant with thought provoking details. I see two men who think the solution to their problems lies in taking another person's life. Is there good and evil? The old man seemed pretty innocent, but Fortunato seemed like the kind of person who may have wronged some people. Does Poe mean for there to be underlying messages?  I don't know.  I see two murderers and two victims. Poe made these stories come to life. Now we are left to decide or speculate why he wrote such dark stories.