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3rd Hour

2 Feb 2011

The Master of Effect

Despite the large number of highly regarded poets and writers who wrote during the late

18th and early 19th century, Edgar Poe continues to be a favorite among readers and literary critics

who enjoy the gothic elements of his work. His mastery of applying effective literary devices

and his understanding of man’s fascination with death and the supernatural, though not as widely

accepted during his time as in contemporary times, greatly contribute to the admiration devoted

to his works. It is Poe’s ability to make use of these devices in two apparent manners: one, for

sound, and the other, to create deeper meaning; both of which elevate Poe’s works above the

works of other gothic writers of his time. Even though other authors used these techniques, Poe

filled every work with them. Poe wrote every word with the intention of creating a sound which

would resonate in the mind and generate as an emotion within the reader. In studying these

aspects, it is notable that very little is written about these mechanics of his work. Examined here

are a number of literary devices which can be found in Poe’s works and the explanation of the

effects they create for the reader, along with an examination of how those effects satisfy the

psychological desire of the mind to stimulate the intense feeling of fear of the unknown. In

examining these items, four of Poe’s works will be utilized as they appear in the Norton

anthology edited by G.R. Thompson, Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Purdue

University. The four works are: “The Raven,” “Ulalume,” “The Murders in the Rue Morgue,”

and “The Tell-Tale Heart.”

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We shall, then, begin with Poe’s poetic technique.

A familiarity with the works of Poe will undoubtedly lead one to agree with Professor

W.L. Werner of Pennsylvania State College who has summarized the theories of Poe’s verse in

his essay “Poe’s Theories and Practice in Poetic Technique” by listing the elements which Poe

regarded as important elements of poetry: poems must be kept short, poetry is closely related to

music, and that beauty is the central purpose of poetry (Werner 157). The other aspects of his

works, though not mentioned as his top priorities, allow for the effects which grant the musical

rhythm and beauty to his work. The first of these effects discussed here is sound. Though the

aspect of congruent consonant sounds is considered a literary technique rather than a device, it is

an important aspect to Poe’s work and will be discussed before moving on to traditional devices.

Poe’s choice of sound is vital to the beauty of his work, particularly in verse. In

Werner’s essay, he lists the frequency of particular sounds alongside the frequency of the same

sounds in works by Whittier, Longfellow, Lowell, and Whitman (Werner 158). Where the latter

four poets used an overwhelming amount of r sounds, Poe used the resounding n sounds which

linger longer on the lips when spoken, thus leaving more of an impression with the reader

(Werner 158). Poe also condemned the difficult transitions between certain sounds, such as

words which end in the letters n-d-t-r followed by words which began with these letters (Werner

159). Poe, citing a line in Amelia Welby’s verse, said that the phrase, “Thy white hand trained,”

makes over excessive use of these harsh consonants whose strong sounds are either lost when

read, or are too distinctly pronounced with an irrelevant and awkward pause between them

(Werner 159). Brett Zimmerman, critic and linguist, defines this former phenomenon as the

“muting” of the last consonant sound of the first word (Zimmerman). By avoiding these tactics,

the words in Poe’s poetry provide stronger, more effective, and more easily pronounced phrases.

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Another method of sound Poe utilized was the use of morphemes. Zimmerman describes

the use of morphemes, or the Greek device called morphological sets, as a set of words linked on

the basis of similar shape (Zimmerman). He says that, “The shapes of words are often

determined by groups of letters…frequently prefixes and suffixes” (Zimmerman). Poe utilized

morphemes in the form of –ing suffixes, which can be seen in “The Raven” lines 3 and 4:

“While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, / As of some one gently

rapping, rapping at my chamber door.” Zimmerman states that the use of suffix or prefix

morphemes are used to stress the steady repetition of the event in question, which in this case is

the rapping and tapping at the door (Zimmerman). This method can also been seen in the

seventh stanza of “Ulalume,” where Poe uses the words “dreaming,” “beaming,” and “gleaming”

to give emphasis to the repeated attempt of his conscience to tempt him to the grave of his lost

love, creating a strained air between him and his conscience (Thompson 64). Looking at his

prose, morphemes are seen in “The Tell-Tale Heart” as the narrator describes the man as “sitting

in the bed listening; just as I have done, night after night, hearkening to the death watches in the

wall,” and again with the –ly ending when the narrator says, “I talked more quickly – more

vehemently; but the noise steadily increased” (Thompson 318, 320). Though not a suffix, one

particular ending used in “Ulalume” also qualifies as a morpheme because it gives shape to the

words. In lines one and four, Poe uses the words sober and October (Thompson 62). Eric

Carlson, professor at the University of Connecticut, discusses the effect of the –ober sound, and

calls it “sound impressionism” (Carlson 29). He writes that “the heavy sonority of sober and

October is reinforced by the word Auber, possibly an invented sound symbol which carries on

the tremulous sound and its related mood” (Carlson 29). Continuing with the sound of the

morphemes, he also references Poe’s use of the word Weir, which, by phonetic association,

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suggests weird, eerie, and weary (Carlson 29). The chilling feeling and the somber, sullen

atmosphere creates an intensity of expectation within the reader which is vital for the horror

story. Susan Stewart, Professor of Children’s Literature at Temple University, writes about the

necessities of the horror story, and addresses the intensity. It’s the fear of the unknown. She

calls it, “the tension between the calmness…and the terrifying possibilities” (Stewart 44). This

same emphasis of intensity can also be found in the use of a device call ploce, which is the

repetition of a word with a few words in between (Zimmerman). In some cases, this method is

referred to as conduplicatio, which expresses an emotion, but the difference here is that ploce

includes the repeated word within the same clause and conduplicatio repeats the same word in

separate clauses (Zimmerman). An example of ploce is seen in “The Tell-Tale Heart.” The

narrator says, “I think it was his eye! Yes, it was this! He had the eye of a vulture – a pale blue

eye, with a film over it” (Zimmerman, Thompson 317). This repetition shows the intensity of

the narrator’s obsession with the subject’s eye, creating an object which the reader picture as

intimidating, and begins to obsess over as well. The ploce device is also seen in “Ulalume” as

Psyche is speaking in the sixth stanza: “Sadly this star I mistrust – / Her parlor I strangely

mistrust” (Thompson 63). Poe doesn’t stop with just this type of repetition. He also uses a

device called anadiplosis.

Anadiplosis is the repetition of the last word or words of one line at the beginning of the

next line, which can be seen in “The Tell-Tale Heart” (Zimmerman). The narrator says, “Yes, he

had been trying to comfort himself with the suppositions: but he had found all in vain. All in

vain…” (Thompson 318). The effect then, is a concentration of thought concerning the feeble

effort of the old man to sooth himself, a feeble effort which every reader has at once

experienced, and now experiences again. Similarly to this, Poe uses a device in which

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reiteration of the same word causes the reader to repeatedly experience its effect. This device is

called inclusio. It is not used merely to mark off a sentence or clause, but an entire passage –

that is, beginning and ending a poem, paragraph, or full story (Zimmerman). In the poem

“Ulalume” this device is separating the current events from the past events. The poem begins,

“The skies they were ashen and sober; / The leaves they were crisped and sere” (Thompson 61).

Following this the narrator proceeds through the story with the most recent event first. Not until

the ninth stanza does the line appear again, “Then my heart it grew ashen and sober / As the

leaves that were crisped and sere” (Thompson 64). Immediately following the inclusio, the

events of last year are remembered. The association is that of a spine-chilling recognition of

deathly events before, causing the recurrence of the pain, the sorrow, the anger with which the

reader relates. The task of emotional relation is complete, and the reader now feels what the

narrator feels. Then, the poem, after all this build up, now abruptly ends, and the reader is

released from the grips of emotional intensity – this “peculiar place between the real and the

fictive” (Stewart 35).

Still yet, there is another repetitive device to be discussed. Parallelism is in the

foreground of every Poe work. In many instances, parallelism is combined with anaphora, which

is parallelism at the beginning of two or more successive verses, clauses, or sentences

(Zimmerman). Beginning here with “Ulalume,” we see parallelism without the anaphora, and

for ease of recognition, I have italicized them here:

It was night, in the lonesome October

Of my most immemorial year:

It was hard by the dim lake of Auber,

In the misty mid region of Weir:

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It was down by the dank tarn of Auber,

In the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir

The first, third and fifth line begin the same, continually expressing the atmosphere of the story,

and the fourth and sixth lines begin the same, which provide here a rhythmic effect and entices

the reader into a trance. Parallelism is also used for emphasis, as is seen in the ninth stanza of

the same work where the speaker emphasizes what he has learned from this journey:

Well I know, now, this dim lake of Auber –

This misty mid region of Weir: --

Well I know, now, this dank tarn of Auber –

This ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir.

An example of anaphoric parallelism is seen in “The Tell-Tale Heart” just before the narrator

confesses to the murder. He says, “I foamed – I raved – I swore” (Thompson 320). The

anaphora here, in combination with the parenthetical use of the dash, increases the feeling of

heightening emotion both within the character and within the reader. In addition to the effects of

parallelism creating emotional emphasis, Poe also uses brevity as well.

Poe speaks of the importance of brevity in literature in his essay “The Philosophy of

Composition”, but also recognizes it as an effective device within the literature itself. As a

device, is called brachylogia: excessive brevity of diction, often with words omitted

(Zimmerman). Seen in “The Tell-Tale Heart” even from the beginning as the speaker says,

“Now this is the point. You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen

me” (Thompson 317). These four short sentences show a wide range of emotion on the part of

the narrator, and the transition is so quick that it is indicative of unpredictable change of emotion

often associated with narcissistic behavior. Immediately the reader begins to distrust the

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intentions of the narrator, creating the very effect Poe intended: fear. With this fear, Poe drives

the story. Stewart explains it as, “the absent and controlling hand that guides the present

situation” (Stewart 37). N. Kemp Smith, Chair of Logic and Metaphysics at Edinburg, discusses

fear in his essay entitled “Fear: Its Nature and Diverse Uses:”

“Fear is the most soul-shaking of all the emotions; and as Wordswroth here

relates, the ground-swell which it had generated lasted for several days, and

revealed its continuing presence even in his dreams. As thus persisting, it gave to

all the experiences which it accompanied an unwonted intensity and vividness

which made them stand out in the memory with freshness and a power not

otherwise obtainable” (Smith 15).

Stewart explains further the use of narrative in creating the desired effect. She says that the most

effective use of narrative is the first person narrative which “celebrates the idiosyncrasies of

personal experience at the same time that it calls forth examples of similar experiences from its

audience” (Stewart 35). She later states that, “Nowhere are the narrative’s images of unfolding,

of hesitation, of the step and the key more thematically profound and more clearly worked on the

level of effect than in the horror story” (Stewart 33). Poe’s use of narrator, especially as seen in

“The Raven,” places the reader in the story, causes the reader to draw on their own experiences

of fear, and the power of that fear pushes the intensity to the brink of explosion. In T.S. Eliot’s

discussion of Poe, he says that Poe’s poetry, “because of its very crudity, stirs the feelings at a

deep and almost primitive level” (Eliot 332). But also discusses one of the problems he sees

within the works of Poe.

Eliot writes that, “In his choice of the word which has the right sound, Poe is by no

means careful that it should have also the right sense” (Eliot 332). Eliot refers here to the use of

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the word immemorial in “Ulalume.” He argues that Poe did not use this word for the meaning so

much as the sound, as the word immemorial, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, means

“beyond one’s memory” (Eliot 332). The implication here is that the soothing sound of the

alliterate m provides the calming effect Poe was looking for, as opposed to the abrupt sound of

the b in an alternate word such as memorable, for example. After giving further attention to the

meaning versus the effect, Eliot states that while the meaning of the aforementioned word is not

accurate, the “attention of the reader is directed primarily to the sound,” therefore creating the

desired effect of serenity with which to begin the chilling tale (Eliot 332).

Peter Ackroyd, novelist, biographer and poet, writes that Poe had “an eye for effect…

and a shrewd notion of the public taste for sensation” (qtd in Valiunas 44). Literary critic

Willem Van Doorn agreed with Ackroyd and praised the effectiveness of Poe to create the

perfect atmosphere for his stories:

The monotonous rhythm, the repetitious but slow beat, beat, beat with its lulling,

hypnotic effect, emphasizes the non-rational state of the speaker’s mind where the

real and the unreal intermingle and become indistinguishable. It is a point

midway between waking and sleeping, sanity and insanity (qtd. Carlson 26).

George Kelly, professor at the University of Maryland, writes about Poe’s theory of beauty. He

says that Poe designates beauty as the “province of the poem,” and in “The Philosophy of

Composition” he states the relationship between beauty and effect: “When men speak of Beauty,

they mean not a quality, as is supposed, but an effect – they refer, in short, just to that intense and

pure elevation of soul…” (Kelly 525). Carlson speaks of this as well, citing Poe’s use of image

words as a tool to bring the reader into the narrator’s world: “In order for the reader to re-create

imaginatively the reality of the speaker he must enter into the dramatic world of the narrator’s

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mind and there participate in the symbolic drama which unfolds” (Carlson 26). By using words

which suggests a particular atmosphere (ashen skies, leaves crisped and sere), Poe masters the

effect of pulling the reader into the story to feel what the narrator feels (Carlson 26). This

ability, along with his constant use of rhetorical devices, is what provides us with the emotion of

fear and anticipation. But Poe also had a talent for including deeper meaning to his works, also

generating a stimulating underlying result of effect itself, what Carlson refers to as the

“psychological” meaning (Carlson 28). In his attempt to stimulate effect through meaning, Poe

uses a number of literary devices.

The first of these devices discussed here is allegory, partly because of Poe’s dislike of

such a term. Despite Poe’s opinion of allegory and his efforts to avoid such, Stephen Whicher

and Lars Ahnebrink, editors of Twelve American Poets, write that “there may be more to his

subject-matter than meets the supercilious eye,” suggesting the use of allegory in some form

(qtd. Carlson 22). Poe did believe literature should contain a more meaning than what appears

on the surface. While examining the psychological undertones of “The Murders in the Rue

Morgue,” J.A. Leo Lemay, professor at the University of Delaware, states that, “the

psychological explorations are the major undercurrent. The narrator hints that ‘mere self’ is the

theme” by citing a portion of the story: “I was deeply interested in the little family history which

he detailed to me with all that candor which a Frenchman indulges whenever mere self is his

theme” (Carlson 168). Carlson also suggests the metaphor of house-as-body (“windows in their

bosoms”) and implies that the persons in the story, or at least the character Dupin, are

symbolically and psychologically two different aspects of the same person (Carlson 169). One is

the creator of the story; one is the analyst (Carlson 169). The deduction, then, is that the entire

story implies each person exists as two separate entities: one good, one evil. Carlson continues

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with this idea in discussing that the sailor and the orangutan never actually appear at the same

time: that these are the two voices “heard in contention” in the locked room while the murders

are taking place, and that the sailor keeps the orangutan in “careful seclusion” most of the

time(Carlson 169). This underlying meaning of the story is in fact, a much deeper meaning that

what appears on the surface, and is so in such a manner than many long reviews have been taken

with it. The effectiveness of an underlying meaning, then, should be credited with this: that the

allegory gives way to involved discussion; that there is a didactic element; that the reader may

use this knowledge to take an intrinsic look at himself. Allegory gives deeper meaning to the

overall story, but Poe also provides the characters with depth through other devices.

Bomphiologia is defined by Zimmerman as bombastic or pompous speech which can be

used either for comedic effect or to indicate education (Zimmerman). In “The Murders in the

Rue Morgue,” bomphiologia is common. When we arrive at the point in the story where the

police have decided the culprit must have left via the door, Dupin begins to examine the nails on

the windows and says, “it was thought a matter of supererogation to withdraw the nails and open

the windows,” when he could simply have said that it was a matter of duty (Thompson 256).

Later, as he speaks of the necessary ability of the culprit to exit the window, he calls it “the

almost praeternatural character of that agility which could have accomplished it,” rather than

calling it supernatural (Thompson 258). The use of vocabulary probably indicates the

educational level of the character Dupin, especially since his role in the story is that of an

analyst, and provides us with a bit of background and substance to the character, creating a more

reliable character in Dupin for the reader to trust. In connection with defining a character’s

education through bomphiologia, Poe also uses soraismus to do so.

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Soraismus is the mingling of languages, usually through a desire to show off – or, for the

sake of linguistic playfulness (Zimmerman). Often used within the story of “The Murders in the

Rue Morgue,” it is most likely being used to show off the education of the characters. Because

of the large number of them, I count 27 instances of this device within this short story, only a

few will be included here. Poe uses both phrases and single words with this device, used by both

the narrator and Dupin. Dupin says, “the mender of soles was not of sufficient height for Xerxes

et id genus omne” (Thompson 244). The narrator says, “Chantilly was a quondam cobbler …”

(Thompson 244). Such use of these phrases emphasizes not only the education of the characters,

but also the high socio-economic status of the two characters, which leads the reader to believe

they are highly intelligent and reliable in the information they provide. The final device

discussed here will be that of analogy.

An analogy is typically seen as the author reasons or argues from two separate chases

which are alike in certain respects, often when a less familiar object or idea is explained by

comparing it to a more familiar object or idea (Zimmerman). However, it can also be used in

reverse by using an esoteric idea to explain a simpler one (Zimmerman). In the example given

here, Poe is expressing how Vidocq is flawed in his examination of a particular object by merely

holding it too close, but then explains his meaning with technical rhetoric:

Vidocq, for example, was a good guesser, and a persevering man. But, without

educated thought, he erred continually by the very intensity of his investigations.

He impaired his vision by holding the object too close…To look at a star by

glances – to view it in a side-long way, by turning it toward the exterior portions

of the retina…is to behold the star distinctly – is to have the best appreciation of

its luster…(Thompson 252).

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Chronographia is a type of enargia which describes time. Time is used in many of Poe’s stories,

so much so that he is named as “the maniac of time” by Jean-Paul Weber, author, critic, and

literary scholar (Zimmerman). Here we will examine its use within “The Tell-Tale Heart.” The

clock and its meaning are best explained by author and literary critic Dennis Eddings:

Poe uses clocks and clock imagery to delineate and judge the character’s attitude

toward life and its possibilities, their treatment of the clock being what tells the

tale. Those who depend upon the clock would impose reliability and

predictability upon a universe that is, for Poe, anything but reliable and

predictable. Such characters are almost invariably the victims of their own

clockwork mentality. On the other hand, those who beat the clock through a

transcendent conversion of the physical world enter a new realm of possibility, an

imaginative world “Out of Space – out of Time” (qtd in Zimmerman).

Constant reference to time implies within the reader that their own time is running out, providing

an urgency which feeds the fear of the unknown and increases the tension of the story.

Poe’s constant and varied use of rhetorical and literary devices provides a chilling,

daunting, terrifying, forbidding and bloodcurdling effect on the reader. The first to create such a

creepy atmosphere through the use of literary devices, Poe has withstood criticism after criticism

and remains one of most popular and well-known authors of his time. He clearly mastered the

effect of the sound of a letter, the sound of repetition, the sound of rhyme and alliteration, as well

as the effect of placing an underlying meaning beneath what is seen upon the page. It is this

talent that leads to the conclusion of this examination: that Poe was unquestionably the master of

effect.

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Works Cited

Carlson, Eric W. “Symbol and Sense in Poe’s ‘Ulalume.’” American Literature 13.5 (1963): 22-

37. JSTOR. Colo. State U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 17 July 2009

<http://www.jstor.org>.

Eliot, T.S. “From Poe to Valery.” The Hudson Review 2.3 (1949): 327-342. JSTOR. Colo. State

U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 16 July 2009 <http://www.jstor.org>.

Kelly, George. “Poe’s Theory of Beauty.” American Literature 27.4 (1956): 521-537. Academic

Search Premier. EBSCOhost. Colo State U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 12 July 2009

<http://web.ebscohost.com>.

Lemay, J.A. Leo. “The Psychology of ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue.” American Literature

54.2 (1982): 165-188. JSTOR. Colo. State U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 27 July 2009

<http://www.jstor.org>.

Smith, N. Kemp. “Fear: Its Nature and Diverse Uses.” Philosophy 32.120 (1957): 3-20. JSTOR.

Colo. State U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 26 July 2009 <http://www.jstor.org>.

Stewart, Susan. “The Epistemology of the Horror Story.” The Journal of American Folklore

95.375 (1982): 33-50. JSTOR. Colo. State U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 16 July 2009

<http://www.jstor.org>.

Valiunas, Algis. “No to Poe.” Commentary 127.1 (2009): 42-45. Academic Search Premier.

EBSCOhost. Colo. State U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 16 July 2009

<http://web.ebscohost.com>.

Werner, W. L. “Poe’s Theories and Practice in Poetic Technique.” American Literature 2.2

(1930): 157-166. Academic Search Premier. EBSCOhost. Colo. State U – Pueblo Lib.,

Pueblo, CO. 12 July 2009 <http://web.ebscohost.com>.

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Zimmerman, Brett. “A Catalogue of Rhetorical and Other Literary Terms From American

Literature and Oratory.” Style 33.4 (1999): 637-658. Academic Search Premier.

EBSCOhost. Colo. State U – Pueblo Lib., Pueblo, CO. 29 June

<http://web.ebscohost.com>.

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DUE THURSDAY FEB 17Final draftWorks cited pageOutlineEditing sheet Rough draft w/ editing marksRubricNotecards