The Gothic nature of both Poe's A Tell-Tale Heart and Faulkner's A Rose for Emily resides in the author's ability to take a very common human emotion and exaggerate the emotion to irrational levels. In A Tell-Tale Heart the narrator is stricken with animosity towards the old man. While dislike of another person is a common human emotion the narrator takes it a step further and kills the object of his hate. This ability to force a familiarity between the character and the reader makes the character's fall into madness seem somewhat rational. However, the fact remains that the reader can still see the wrongness in the character while still connecting with him on a personal level. The character's ability to rationalize his irrational behavior causes a conflict in the reader. The actions, the motive, the extent of the emotions may seem exaggerated but the connection has already been made. For the reader that connection makes is seem as though the character is correct in his actions and thoughts.
--Still Under Construction
I am intrigued by your thinking on this one--it's true there is an intimacy Poe creates that aligns us with the character--can you find precise moments in the story when this "familiarity" draws the reader in?
ReplyDelete