Edgar Allan Poe: Mystery and Suspense - Essay Example

How has Edgar Allan Poe's style as mystery and suspense influenced other Nobody would argue that Edgar Allan Poe plays a significant role in the detective fiction history. Arthur Conan Doyle, for instance, described Poe as "the father of the detective tale". (qtd in Morrow) Detective writings are usually built around imitation and repetition, but Poe is not consistent in his reflections about values of originality or imitation. He anonimouslt reviewed one of his own works, and in his review he wrote about his originality: "the great fault of American and British authors is imitation of the peculiarities of thought and diction of those who have gone before them . . . . The evident and most prominent aim of Mr. Poe is originality, either of idea, or the combination of ideas. He appears to think it a crime to write unless he has something novel to write about, or some novel way of writing about an old thing" (Poe, p. 868) It is hard to overestimate the influence the Poe's writings produced on the literature process all over the world. He determined the style and structure of detective stories, influenced the theory of poetry and inspired mystical literature of his contemporaries and the descendants as well. Many critics speak about the influence that the works of Poe made on the fiction by Borges. It is known, that Borges translated the writings of Poe and was his great admirer. The commentators find many similar features inherent to the writings of both these authors. For instance, Irwing in his book "The Mystery to a Solution" asks the following question: "How does one write analytic detective fiction as high art when the genre's central narrative mechanism seems to discourage the unlimited reading associated with serious writing" (Irwin, p. 37) He tries to answer this question in his book, and according to his point of view, the center of detective stories written by both writers is self-consciousness, that defines investigation of analytic power, described in fiction. As soon as the mystery of self-consciousness is irresolvable, the detective plot and the reading is to go on infinitely. Accordingly, disproportion and impossibility to reveal the essence of mystery and endlessness play a significant role in analysis of the writings of both these authors. Of course, the writings by Poe and Borges cannot be regarded as equal, the critics find difficult to define if similar features are more numerous that the odds. This uncertainty that oscillates between similarity and distinction reflects the tendency to self-reflexiveness and division of the identity that are inherent to human nature. When one attempts to learn his consciousness, he needs to fancy a part of consciousness, to observe and investigate the consciousness as a whole, and Irwin in his critical review uses arithmetical progression, paradoxes of Greek culture to prove this viewpoint. The writings taken as a sample are "The Purloined Letter" by Poe and "The Aleph" by Borges. All disproportionate variables stand for a mystery or a puzzle from the writings. Connections between the reveal of Poe's automatic chess player of Maezel and the detective stories are evident. The characters of Dupin and automatic chess player reflect the division of a human identity and the conflict between mind and body. Superior intellect of Dupin makes other people seem to be predictable robots, however, in "Rue Morgue," "the narrator's description of Dupin's altered physical appearance as he exercises his analytic skill makes Dupin himself sound like an automaton.... It is as if Dupin's body had suddenly become a physical medium for an alien spirit" (Irwin, p. 113). "Rue Morge" focuses on the problem of division that a human identity experiences. Here a connection between Poe's writings and the stories by Borges can be found "like the labyrinths Borges constructs and alludes to, Poe's story is a puzzle with a half-human beast at the center, a beast that must be overcome in order to prove the protagonist's superior, non-bestial nature." (Irwin, p. 178) It is also possible to find similarity between mystery in "Rue Morgue" and the mythology of a labyrinth, that is reflected with the help of Dupin, explaining his solution of the case, where a broken nail "terminated the clew" (i.e. finished the chain of logical conclusions), and a clew on a nail is reflects the method of Theseus he used to find a way out of the labyrinth. Irwin adds: "And, of course, the French work for nail, the word Dupin would have used repeatedly, is clou. Which is simply Poe's way of giving the reader a linguistic clue (hint) that the clew (thread) will ultimately terminate at a clou (nail)--although even the most attentive reader will probably experience this pun as a clue only retrospectively, so that Poe remains one up" (p. 196). While rewriting detective stories, Borges is attempting to be a step forward to Poe. It is evident that Borges intentionally tried to match his detective fiction to definite stories by Poe. "Ibn-Hakkan al-Bokhari, Dead in His Labyrinth" is connected to "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," "Death and the Compass" is linked to "The Purloined Letter", and "The Garden of the Forking Paths" matches with "The Mystery of Marie Roget". These matches are interesting to be observed from the structuralist and poststructuralist viewpoint. For instance, "Death and the Compass" is linked to "The Purloined Letter" are regarded as the stories, reflecting the oscillation between three and four. Lacan defines a triangular diagram, reflecting the relation to the letter: King/Queen/Minister, Police/Minister/Dupin. But in case the narrator will be added to this scheme, it will turn into quadrangular, as defined by Derrida. In the same way, in the story "Death and the Compass," a labyrinth is created by Red Scharlach for Erik Lonnrot, and this labyrinth is regarded as a triangular by the police, but Lonnrot finds out that it has a shape of a diamond. Despite of the fact that Lonnort is killed by Scharlach at the 4th point, in fact only three murders take place, and these events reflect the series consisting of four letters (YHWH, JHVH etc), and this is a clue that helps Scharlach find Lonnort. Accordingly, Borges also reflects a triangular scheme by Poe, consisting of police, detective and a criminal. It is completed with identity doubling of criminal and detective characters. Many poets who lived in the same period as Poe were influenced by his style. Lyrics of Alfred Tennyson were influenced by Poe's poetry as well. Poe expressed his ideas about lyrics in "the Poetic Principle". It is possible to point out the key Poe's ideas that significantly influenced the lyrics by Tennyson: 1. The size of a poem should be short. Poe states, "I hold that a long poem does not exist," "the phrase, 'a long poem,' is simply a flat contradiction in terms."(qtd in Williams, p. 25). He demands that the poem should be too short, however, it shouldn't turn into "mere epigrammatism" (qtd in Williams, p. 25). This is a primary criterion that is stated by Poe, he insists that it should be possible to read the poem fast, the critical term that can be needed for reading is half an hour. He writes: "The ultimate, aggregate, or absolute effect of even the best epic under the sun, is a nullity", therefore epics a "artistic anomalies". Poe is assured in the success of a short poem, and he is so sure in it that he states that "it is at least clear that no very long poem will ever be popular again". (qtd in Williams, p. 26). 2. Intensity is regarded by Poe as the single effect that should be produced by a poem. "Song" by Tennyson illustrates this conception. Poe refers to intensity as to a tool to make a judgment of an aesthetic nature. He writes, "A poem deserves its title only inasmuch as it excites, by elevating the soul," "the value of the poem is in the ratio of this elevating excitement" (qtd in Williams, p. 30). Poe argues that the absence of passions and emotions is controversial to the poetry, he states that the nature of the poetry is wild, and he names the music as the way to find a poetic state of mind. He writes that in poetry makes the readers "feel, with a shivering delight", the poems are designed to make "that pleasure which is at once the most pure, the most elevating, and the most intense". (qtd in Williams, p. 30). Here he again reminds that the poems are to be short, because "that degree of excitement which would entitle a poem to be so called at all, cannot be sustained throughout a composition of any great length. After a lapse of half an hour, at the very utmost, it flags - fails - a revulsion ensues - and then the poem is, in effect, and in fact, no longer such." (qtd in Williams, p. 30) 3. A poem should demonstrate effect unity. Unity of effect is regarded by Poe as the tool for reaching intensity. He also calls it "totality of effect or impression" (qtd in Williams, p. 31), and it means that the atmosphere in various sections of the poem should be the same. As Poe states, this point is "that vital requisite in all works of art". (qtd in Williams, p. 31) Poe states that in case a reader tries to read epic writings in changed word order, it will produce quite different effect on the reader, and this is another confirmation of the concept about a small size of a poem, as regarded by Poe, because long poem cannot produce a sole impression. Poe assumes that it is possible to appreciate epic writings, but only in case the reader sees it as a set of small poems, while each of them will produce a single effect on the reader. "The Dying Swan" is one of the poems by Tennyson that illustrate this principle. 4. Beauty should elevate over the truth. Poe states that the poem should reveal poetic feelings, rather than truth. Truth should play a minor role in poems, because it requires a calm state of mind which is alien to poetry, which should be emotional. As the result, the conflict appears, reflecting "radical and chasmal differences between the truthful and the poetical modes of inculcation" (qtd in Williams, p. 32). In addition, the opinion that poetry should contain morality is "a heresy too palpably false to be long tolerated" (qtd in Williams, p. 32). "The Lotos-Eaters" by Tennyson is the poem where poetic emotions occupy a primary position to a morality. The influence produced by Poe on the writing of Arthur Conan Doyle is evident. Poe wrote a series of stories about French detective Auguste Dupin. This character is not a popular literary character at present but it is possible to state that this character inspired many famous detectives and Sherlock Holmes in one of the most prominent characters, inspired by Dupin. Doyle's Watson even remarked that Holmes reminded him Dupin, portrayed by Edgar Allan Poe. Edgar Allan Poe and his character Dupin influenced the writings of Doyle so much, that it is now possible to find numerous parallels between the stories by Poe and Doyle on the pages of both authors. For instance, the beginning of the second story about Dupin's adventures, 'The Purloined Letter', is often regarded by critics as the scene similar to the scenes, depicting Watson, Holmes and Lestrade. (Morrow) It cannot be argued that Poe's mystery inspired Doyle when the writer created the series of detective stories about Sherlock Holmes. There is a famous quotation of Doyle, who said "Each [of Poe's detective stories] is a root from which a whole literature has developed.... Where was the detective story until Poe breathed the breath of life into it" (qtd in Dayan, p. 267) "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is regarded as the literary ancestor of the series featuring Holmes by Doyle. The relations between Dupin and narrator are similar to relations between Holmes and Watson. The same is the attitude of the narrator to Dupin and of Watson to Holmes. The style of telling the story is also similar: "the way in which Dupin announces he has a visitor coming, whom they must capture to solve the mystery, is very close to Doyle's climaxes. The emphasis on Dupin's intellect, and the use of reasoning and deduction to solve the mystery, anticipate both Doyle and detective fiction as a whole" (Werner, p. 27) Dupin describes his deductive conclusions in the manner that seems to be similar to Holmes' storytelling. Literary criticism states that there are many parallels between the writings of Poe and the writings of Herman Melville. Melville admitted it, and spoke of Poe as of one of his favorite poets since childhood. The influence that Poe's style produced on the writings by Melville can be observed by the example of "Fragment 2", one of Melville's short stories. This story focuses on Poe's obsession with mysterious heroines of perfection and beauty. In this story the narration does not result in a great love, that brings the narrator to Other world, created by Poe, but it brings the hero to a cruel reality, demonstrating that the lover is dumb and deaf. This is a satire, but a general atmosphere of a story is humorous and light. The narrator is described in the same satirical manner, as his sweetheart, and this satire also parodies the narrators portrayed by Poe. The story starts with the passage that reflects Poe's "pretensions to learning" (Connery, p. 27). The main character ridicules a Greek lexicon, and another sign of referencing to Poe's style is the satirical use of allusions and quotations in an accurate manner. It is almost probable that such Poe's quality was remembered by many young intellectuals and Melville as well, for further reflecting it his stories. "The misuses of learning are too frequent and at times too blatant not to be viewed as a part of a conscious satiric design" (Davidson, p. 267) The main character rushes out in "bracing coolness of an April evening", which assuages his "aching temples" (qtd in Williams, p.197). Then he proceeds to a river, and resides on the bank of a river, "lost in revery, and up to the lips in sentiment" (qtd in Williams, p.197). Then a cloaked person comes and brings a letter from his sweetheart making him to follow this person. Then it turns out the sender is a woman who has a mystic ability of locomotion, and the narrator attempts on three occasions (parallel to Poe's obsession with schemes consisting of three elements) to overtake the heroine. The main hero of Melville has many features that are inherent to Poe's narrator: "he is a poseur; he takes his silliness seriously, and he evinces that detailed attention to his emotional weather that so characterizes Poe's narrators". The main hero, described by Melville, does not provide detailed description of the environment and his actions, because he is captured by the process of following the messenger: "A circular space of about a dozen acres in extent had been cleared in the very heart of the grove: leaving, however, two parallel rows of lofty trees, which at the distance of about twenty paces, and intersected in the centre by two similar ranges, traversed the whole diameter of the circle. These noble plants shooting their enormous trunks to an amazing height, bore their verdant honors aloft, throwing their gigantic limbs abroad and embracing each other with their rugged arms." (qtd in Benitez) Poe is famous all over the world as an author of detective stories, and stories of horror: "In his supernatural fiction Poe usually dealt with paranoia rooted in personal psychology, physical or mental enfeeblement, obsessions, the damnation of death, feverish fantasies, the cosmos as source of horror and inspiration, without bothering himself with such supernatural beings as ghosts, werewolves, vampires, and so on." (Benitez, p 46) But he succeeded in many other genres of literature; he was a talented poet and journalist. But there is one more significant effect produced by his talent - he defined the style of many authors of mystical literature and poetry, and contributed much to their creative activity as a inspirer of many literature masterpieces. Poe appeared to influence the literature of France as well, and one of the writers who experienced his influence was Allen Ginsberg. Poe became an inspirer of his topics and literary style, and Poe appeared to be an example of personal capabilities and talents for him as well. Ginsberg wrote much about this influence, in allusions that can be found in his poems, for instance, in Collected Poems, than in his seminars he delivered in Naropa Institute in 70s, he mentioned it in his commentaries in journals, he wrote about it in headnotes of his books, and he noted it in his interviews and recordings: "When I was young [at eight] ... I [used to] know yards and yards of poetry, like ... The Bells,' The Raven,' [and] Annabel Lee.", "I discovered Poe at the fine age of six or seven", he speaks of Poe as of his favorite poet. Ginsberg stated that he was charmed by Poe's music of words, and he especially pointed out two poems with hypnotic rhythm" which "permanently alters ... the nervous system ... an electrochemical effect caused by art."(qtd in Quinn, p. 67) Ginsberg mentions that Poe's meters and rhythms defined his own style during all his life, and he said that his "Howl" published in 1956 had been created "in the tradition of strong rhythmical panegyrics like Poe's Bells.'" (qtd in Pollin) Allen Ginsberg's style is often associated with Poe's thinking that detracts the mind from traditional viewpoints and submissive behavior. Ginsberg omits Poe's hostile attitude to popular model of behavior, rejecting authoritarianism, but he constantly admires the power and influence produced by such an outstanding theorist and poet. He spoke about it in his interview in 1990 on a radio program with Lewis Hyde. He said that he in his youth was the most grateful admirer and reader of Poe's works, he described how he was delighted with his mysterious style and secrets, feeling the "pleasure or mind-expansion". He added that Poe was a "great awakener of youth throughout the world." (qtd in Pollin) He mentioned the feeling of "paranoia" that appeared from "mind-expanding, psychedelic "The Tell-Tale Heart."( qtd in Pollin) He asserted that Poe wrote immortal poems, and stated that with "artwork, like Poe.... you can ease the pain of living" ( qtd in Pollin). As it has been mentioned above, Ginsberg delivered lectures in Naropa Institute, and he reflected his admiration with creations of a real artist in his teachings. Works Cited Morrow, Laurie. The Doctor and the Detective - Arthur Conan Doyle's Creative Journey. World and I, Vol. 17, June 2002 Poe, Edgar Allan. Complete Stories and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe. New York: Doubleday, 1990. Williams, Michael J. S. A World of Words: Language and Displacement in the Fiction of Edgar Allan Poe. Durham: Duke University Press, 1988. Dayan, Joan. Fables of Mind: An Inquiry into Poe's Fiction. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987. Quinn, Patrick F. The French Face of Edgar Allan Poe. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1957 Benitez, R. Michael. Edgar Allan Poe Mystery. University of Maryland Medical News. 1996. Available at (http://dir.salon.com/tech/feature/2000/09/01/rich_stevens/index.html Irwin, John T. The Mystery to a Solution : Poe, Borges, and the Analytic Detective Story. The Johns Hopkins University Press; Reprint edition (September 18, 1996) Werner, James V.. The Detective Gaze: Edgar A. Poe, the Flaneur, and the Physiognomy of Crime. The American Transcendental Quarterly, Vol. 15, 2001 Pollin, Burton R.. Edgar Allan Poe as a Major Influence upon Allen Ginsberg. The Mississippi Quarterly, Vol. 52, 1999 Connery, William. The Poe Society. World and I, Vol. 14, October 1999 Davidson, Edward H.. Poe: A Critical Study. Belknap-Harvard University Press, 1957 Read More