Edgar Allan Poe: Short Stories

For the past month (actually, i've had the book for three months but didn't begin reading until last month), I've made my way through a book called Ten Great Mysteries by Edgar Allan Poe. To comment on Poe, he is a classic literary figure and I found his stories to be deeply dark and hauntingly hair-raising. I did enjoy his stories a great deal and I found that he uses the word "abyss" quite often.

The ten mysteries I read are:
The Murders in the Rue Morgue
The Purloined Letter
The Tell-Tale Heart
The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar
The Pit and the Pendulum
A Tale of the Ragged Mountains
A Descent into the Maelstrom
The Black Cat
"Thou Art the Man"
Metzengerstein

I found similarity between The Tell-Tale Heart and The Black Cat. And A Tale of the Ragged Mountains reminded me a lot of Doctor Who. I think The Murders in the Rue Morgue and The Purloined Letter (about the detective C. Auguste Dupin) were the most challenging to get through. Partly it was due to my inability to follow everything that was happening.

My favourites of Poe from this book would have to be The Tell-Tale Heart, A Tale of the Ragged Mountains, The Black Cat, "Thou Art the Man", The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, and The Pit and the Pendulum.

A few lines that I found intriguing are:

From The Pit and the Pendulum:
"After this I call to mind flatness and dampness; and then all is madness - the madness of a memory which busies itself among forbidden things.
Very suddenly there came back to my soul motion and sound - the tumultuous motion of the heart, and, in my ears, the sound of its beating."

"Then the mere consciousness of existence, without thought..."

From A Tale of The Ragged Mountains:
"The scenery which presented itself on all sides, although scarcely entitled to be called grand, had about it an indescribable and to me a delicious aspect of dreary desolation."

"In the quivering of a leaf - in the hue of a blade of grass - in the shape of a trefoil - in the humming of a bee - in the gleaming of a dew drop - in the breathing of the wind - in the faint odors that came from the forest - there came a whole universe of suggestion - a gay and motley train of rhapsodical and immethodical thought.

From a Descent into the Maelstrom:
"There are some passages of his description, nevertheless, which may be quoted for their details, although their effect is exceedingly feeble in conveying an impression of the spectacle."

"The attempts to account for the phenomenon - some of which I remember, seemed to me sufficiently plausible in perusal - now wore a very different and unsatisfactory aspect."

"Our boat was the lightest feather of a thing that ever sat upon water."

"And then down we came with a sweep, a slide, and a plunge that made me feel sick and dizzy, as if I was falling from some lofty mountain-top in a dream."

"But while we were up I had thrown a quick glance around - and that one glance was all-sufficient."

"I supposed it was despair that strung my nerves."

"Never shall I forget the sensation of awe, horror, and admiration with which I gazed about me."

"I now began to watch, with a strange interest, the numerous things that floated in our company."

To comment individually, The Murders in the Rue Morgue began with a challenge. The outline of the analytic mind was a bit over my head. I found the similarities to Sherlock Holmes as was mentioned in a brief outline to what it was about and I found the associations to be amazingly accurate. I had no suspicion as to the outcome and after completion, I was still left in awe.

The Purloined Letter was again part of the C. Auguste Dupin mysteries and I found this to be more inviting than the first. I think the outcome was a bit more obvious but maybe I was just more accustomed to his writing style.

The Tell-Tale Heart is one of Poe's most widely known short story. I have read this story on several occasions and still find it to be a chilling tale. I admire this story and the way the main character is portrayed.

The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar was a gripping story of mesmerism and the unbelievable tale of a man kept alive through this means.

The Pit and the Pendulum was a scary dark read. The main character, trapped in a prison filled with dangerous objects designed to kill him, has to do what he can to stay alive when the whole room is created to destroy.

A Tale of the Ragged Mountains shouts Doctor Who to me. The time travel aspect of a man "older than his years" has the connotation of The Doctor. I found myself comparing but I did enjoy the story greatly.

A Descent into the Maelstrom a story about sailos caught in a giant whirlpool and the plight of one man who, through sheer thinking and judgement, managed to survive the storm at sea while others had before perished.

The Black Cat reminded me of The Tell-Tale Heart. I found the similarities to still have it's own story told but could see the same mind frame involved.

"Thou Art the Man" had a wild conclusion. I wasn't expecting the end to come out the way it did, but I did suspect the killer.

Metzengerstein, a tale of a phantom horse and rivaling families gives the reader a sense of wariness the entire time. The suspense is intense and the fire plays a key role to sum the story up.