Edgar Allen Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart"

           "The Tell-Tale Heart" is a poem in which a unnamed narrator insists he is sane yet suffers from a disease, or nervousness that causes "over-acuteness of the senses". The old man whom he lives with has a clouded, pale, blue "vulture-like" eye which so troubles the narrator that he plans to kill the old man. Although the narrator states that he loves the old man, and hates only the eye, he insists that his careful thought put into committing this murder proves that he cannot possibly be insane. Seven nights in a row, the narrator opens the door to the old man’s room however; the vulture eye is always closed making it impossible for the narrator to commit his crime. On the eighth night, the old man awakens and sits up in bed while the narrator once again goes to open his door. Only this time the narrator does not draw back. When he shines his lantern light onto old man's eye, it reveals that it is wide open. Hearing the old man's heart beating unusually fast from terror, the narrator decides to strike, jumping out with a loud yell and murdering the old man with his own bed. The narrator takes apart the body and nails the pieces under the floorboards, making certain to hide all signs pointing to the crime. Despite this however, the old man's scream during the night causes a neighbor to alert the police. The narrator invites the officers in to investigate as he claims that the screams heard were his own in a nightmare and that the man is away in the country. Certain that they will not find any evidence of the murder, the narrator brings chairs for them to sit on the very spot where the body is concealed, yet they suspect nothing, as the narrator is calm and composed. His coolness however, begins fade as he starts hearing a faint noise. As it grows louder and louder, he realizes it is the heartbeat of the old man coming from under the floorboards. Although the sound is drastically increasing the officers seem unbothered by it as if they don’t hear a thing. Shaken by the constant beating and an irritated feeling that not only are the officers aware of the sound, but that they also suspect him, the narrator confesses to killing the old man and tells them to tear up the floorboards to uncover the body.

Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” had a very dark vibe to it. My question for Poe would be, if the narrator loved the old man why did they feel they needed to be rid of him and his vulture’s eye? Perhaps it was the narrator’s disease or hypersensitivity. The story implies that the narrator has gone mad, if not before, definitely after the murder simply cannot deal with the guilt. As the story progresses the narrator’s conscience is perhaps what it making the noise of the heartbeat. A theme is the story seems to be that a guilty conscience does not rest well with the soul.

Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven"

Edgar Allen Poe’s poem “The Raven,” portrays a talking Raven’s cryptic midnight visit to a mourning narrator. The raven’s mysterious visit traces the lover’s slow spiral into madness. The lover, who is acknowledged as being a student, is sorrowfully regretting the loss of his love, Lenore. His method of attempting to forget his loss of Lenore, and sooth his pain, is by reading “Forgotten Love.” When the man notices the Raven appear perched on a bust of Pallas, he demands his name. However, the raven only answers with “Nevermore,” and the lover is amazed the raven can talk. As the man goes on distraught, he laments that the raven will soon fly out of his life, just as "other friends have flown before" along with his previous hopes. When the Raven seems to answer with “Nevermore,” the man claims that it is the only word he knows and must have learned it from a previous “unhappy master.” Even so, the narrator pulls his chair directly in front of the raven determined to learn more about it. He ponders for a moment however, and his mind wanders back to his lost love, Lenore. He thinks the air grows deeper and feels the being of angels around him. Flustered, by what this bird might have to do with this, the narrator grows angry, calling the raven a "thing of evil" and a "prophet". As he shouts at the raven it only replies, "Nevermore." Finally, he asks the raven whether he will be reunited with Lenore in Heaven. When the raven responds again with "Nevermore", he yells and commands the raven to go back to the "Plutonian shore,” but it doesn’t budge. The narrator's final stanza is that his soul is confined under the raven's shadow and shall be lifted "Nevermore."

Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven,” had a very eerie feeling to it. From the sorrowful lover lamenting his lost love, to the repetitive and rather annoying raven in the night, “The Raven,” was dark and cold. The narrator experiences a wavering conflict between desire to forget and desire to remember. Although trying to forget, the lover seems to get some pleasure from reminiscing and focusing on his loss. The narrator presumes that the word "Nevermore" is the raven's "only stock and store", and, yet, he continues to ask it questions. My question to Poe would be, why does the narrator continue to do this, knowing what the answer will be? His questions, then, seem purposely self-critical and further provoking of his feelings of loss.

James Cooper's "The Last of the Mohicans"

Cooper’s Last of the Mohicans takes place in 1757, during the French and Indian War when France and Great Britain battled for control of the North American colonies. Cora and Alice Munro, daughters of Lieutenant Colonel Munro, are traveling with a group of assistances from Fort Edward to Fort William Henry. Among the men, are David Gamut, the singing teacher, and Major Duncan Heyward, the group's military leader.  A Huron scout, Magua, offers to take the group by a shorter route. However, unknown to the Munro’s he is really on the French side and intends to lead them into an ambush, but is interrupted when they meet, and the two Mohicans, Chingachgook and his son Uncas, on the road. Hawkeye says Mangua has deceived them by trying to lead them astray but the Huron escapes before they can capture him. Hawkeye leads the group to safety in a cave however they are soon interrupted and the Huron’s capture Alice, Cora, Heyward, and Gamut. When Heyward tries to convert Magua to the English side, the Huron tells that he seeks revenge on Munro for past disgrace and proposes to free Alice if Cora will marry him. Cora feels passionate for Uncas, however, and angrily denies him. Suddenly Hawkeye and the Mohicans burst into the scene, rescuing the captives. Magua is the only Huron who escapes this attack.The party at last reaches Fort William Henry, once inside; Cora and Alice reunite with their father. A few days later, the English militaries call for a truce. Munro finds that he will receive no back-ups for the fort and will have to surrender. While the English troops depart from Fort William Henry, the Indian allies attack the dispersing soldiers. Among the chaos, Magua recaptures Cora, Alice, and Gamut and takes them into the forest. Heyward, Hawkeye, Munro, and the Mohicans soon discover Magua’s trail and begin to hunt him down. Gamut reemerges and tells them that Magua has separated his captives, sending Alice to a Huron camp and Cora to a Delaware camp. Using many different of disguises and tricks, the group manages to rescue Alice from the Hurons. When attempting to rescue Alice, however, the group fails and Magua runs off with her.  A big chase and battle occurs where Cora is unfortunately murdered by a Huron and Magua eventually stabs Uncas in the back, but when he tries to leap across a large gap he stumbles and falls to his death. During the burial of the two, Uncas is declared to have been the last warrior of the Mohican tribe.

The Last of the Mohicans takes place in a time period of brutal war, conflict, and in an unstable newly discovered land. In the time period it was written the newfound nation was still feeling after effects of the war and pain that was involved with that. At a time when the colonies were so oppressed there was little trust and faith in anything. The Indians in general, especially the Herons are a big target in The Last of the Mohicans as untrustworthy heathens that take only conflict with and hate the white race. Munro towards the end expresses a hope that white and Indians will one day come to a peace where skin color no longer matters, but Hawkeye attempts to bring him back into reality by saiying that for racial equality were to exist there land is to contradict nature. I agree with this idea that Cooper is trying to convey. Although all races receive equal rights in America racism has always been an issue in this country unfortunately up to this present day. Along with his idea, will we ever see the day where all races truly see each other on equal levels? 

Washington Irving's "Rip Van Winkle"

                

Rip Van Winkle, a colonial British-American villager is loved by all in his town. However, a his bad habits including avoidance of all productive labor, for which his nagging wife criticizes him, results in his home and farm to fall into disorder due to his lazy carelessness. One day Rip is escaping his wife's nagging, by roaming up in the mountains with his dog, Wolf. Hearing his name being yelled, Rip realizes the speaker is a man dressed in Dutch clothing and carrying a keg up carrying a keg up the mountain, who needs Rip's help. While climbing up the mountain Rip soon stumbles upon discovers the origin of loud noises he heard before and sees a group of silent, Dutch dressed, men who are playing nine-pins. Although there is no exchange and Rip does not ask the men who they are or how they know his name, he begins to drink some of their whiskey, and soon falls asleep. He awakes in strange conditions, his gun is rusty, his beard has rapidly grown, and Wolf is gone. Rip goes back to his village where he finds that he recognizes no one. Rip soon learns that his wife has passed away and that his friends have also died in a war. He immediately gets into trouble when he declares himself a faithful subject of King George III, not knowing that the American Revolution has taken place; and the king's portrait in the town has been replaced by George Washington. Rip is also troubled to find another man is being called Rip Van Winkle, although this is his son all grown up. The men he met in the mountains, Rip learns, are supposedly the ghosts of Hendrick Hudson's crew. Rip is told that he has been away from his village for twenty years. An old local recognizes Rip and Rip's adult daughter takes him in. Rip continues his typical laziness and men in the town after hearing his story wish they could share in Rip's good fortune, and be able to sleep through the sufferings of war.

In Washington Irving’s Rip Van Winkle it was very easy for me to envision his common character of an early British-American settler. It seems obvious that the very first thing Rip notices when he wakes up is all the changes around him from the rust on his gun, to his physical appearance, and change in his usual surroundings. The changes that occur in a time period of 20 years are quite drastic anywhere, whether it be socially, physically, technologically, or democratically. I think the point of Rip falling asleep and waking up 20 years later was to show the contrast in time and how corrupt America has become. The age he wakes up in has a depressing vibe with war consuming or even taking everyone’s lives. This story is perhaps anti-American as well as anti-war.It really shows how much war was hated with the statement explaining how Rip had the luxury of sleeping for 20 years, so they too might be able to sleep through the raging war. My question for Irving would be does he find any good in the war at all? And although they were terrible, weren't those hardships necessary to bring about freedom?