Poes's Darkest Secret- He Was Kidding: Susan Amper at TEDxBergenCommunityCollege
TLDRThe video script explores the deceptive narrators in Edgar Allan Poe's tales, highlighting how they often deny responsibility for murders through far-fetched explanations. It discusses Poe's skill in creating hoaxes and mystifications, both in his fiction and real-life persona. Despite Poe's intent to blend humor and satire, readers and critics have largely interpreted his work as dark and serious. The script also delves into Poe's lesser-known trickster tales and his fascination with fooling his audience, portraying him as a master of literary deception.
Takeaways
- 📖 The script discusses the unreliable narrators in Edgar Allan Poe's stories, often presenting far-fetched explanations for their actions.
- 🐱 It highlights the theme of hoaxes in Poe's works, such as 'The Black Cat', where the protagonist blames an apparition for his actions.
- 🕵️♂️ The script suggests that readers often misinterpret Poe's stories, expecting them to be scary rather than recognizing the humor and trickery involved.
- 🎭 The portrayal of Poe as a brooding, tormented soul is challenged, proposing that this image was a fabrication by a literary rival.
- 👨💼 Poe is described as a hardworking writer, editor, and critic, contrary to the common perception of him as a troubled individual.
- 💡 The script points out that Poe's stories often involve trickery and hoaxes, not just horror, with many readers failing to see the humor in his writing.
- 🧐 It argues that Poe's tales are filled with red herrings and misleading details that distract from the underlying, rational explanations for events.
- 🔍 The process of uncovering the hidden stories within Poe's works is described as both delightful and disturbing, challenging the reader's perception of truth and literature.
- 📚 Poe's use of specific literary techniques, such as mystification and sensationalism, is analyzed to show how he concealed and revealed hidden narratives.
- 🤔 The script questions why readers and scholars have been so resistant to recognizing the satirical and hoaxing elements in Poe's stories.
- 😏 It concludes by emphasizing Poe's role as a master 'diddler', a trickster who manipulates his audience and takes pleasure in the deception.
Q & A
What is the main argument presented in the video script regarding the narrators in Edgar Allan Poe's stories?
-The main argument is that the narrators in Poe's stories are often untrustworthy, offering far-fetched explanations for the events that transpired, particularly when it comes to the deaths of characters they are involved with.
How does the script describe the typical first-person narrators in Poe's tales?
-The script describes them as being in similar situations, always with a dead body to account for, always the last to see the victim alive, and invariably offering an explanation that falls beyond the outermost limits of far-fetched.
What is the script's perspective on the narrator of 'The Black Cat'?
-The script suggests that the narrator of 'The Black Cat' is lying, using the story of an apparition of a cat and its impact on him as a cover for his actions, which led to the murder of his wife.
What is the script's interpretation of the narrator's claims in 'The Assignation'?
-The script interprets the narrator's claim that the hero of 'The Assignation' died by poison as an attempt to pass off a murder as a suicide, with the narrator being the last person to see the victim alive.
What does the script suggest about the public's perception of Poe's work during his time?
-The script suggests that Poe's work, particularly stories involving murder trials where seemingly sane people claimed insanity, were the talk of the nation, reflecting the public's fascination with such sensational cases.
How does the script challenge the common view of Poe as a 'pathologically brooding tormented soul'?
-The script challenges this view by presenting evidence that Poe was actually a hardworking writer, an astute magazine editor, and a keen critic of his generation, whose work was often misunderstood or misrepresented.
What is the script's stance on the theme of hoaxing in Poe's work?
-The script argues that hoaxing was the most consistent theme in Poe's work, with numerous tales involving people perpetrating hoaxes and tricks, and even more interestingly, tales where the trick is being played on the reader.
What is the significance of the 'amphigory' in the script's analysis of Poe's supposed Tales of Terror?
-The 'amphigory' is a key to understanding Poe's method of writing, where he used nonsensical language to veil another, completely intelligible and rationally solvable story, thus duping the reader into missing the true narrative.
How does the script describe the process of uncovering the hidden murder mysteries in Poe's tales?
-The script describes the process as delightful and astonishing, where by following up on clues such as contradictions, hedges, and dubious explanations, the hidden story emerges with breathtaking clarity.
What is the script's final judgment on Poe's method of writing and its impact on readers?
-The script concludes that Poe's method of writing is deeply disturbing, as it turns literature into a mask and the author into a false friend, an assassin who manipulates readers for his own reasons.
How does the script characterize the typical reader's response to Poe's hoaxes?
-The script characterizes the typical reader's response as one of being easily taken in, even when Poe explicitly states his satirical intentions, due to a desire for dark and tormented narratives.
Outlines
🐱 The Unreliable Narrator and Poe's Tales of Deception
This paragraph discusses the theme of unreliable narrators in Edgar Allan Poe's works, particularly in stories like 'The Black Cat' and 'The Tell-Tale Heart'. It suggests that these narrators, who often claim innocence or insanity, are lying and that their stories are far-fetched. The paragraph also explores the idea that Poe's reputation as a brooding, tormented soul was a fabrication by a rival and that his actual work is more dominated by humor and hoaxes than by horror. It highlights how readers and even scholars have often missed the satirical and deceptive nature of his stories, focusing instead on the macabre elements.
🎩 The Art of the Hoax: Poe's Mischievous Literary Pranks
The second paragraph delves into Poe's fondness for hoaxes and trickery in his stories. It mentions several tales where characters are involved in scams or where the reader is the one being tricked, such as the story of a man who unknowingly marries his own ancestor or the tale of an asylum taken over by its inmates. The paragraph also touches on Poe's use of sensationalism and supernatural elements to distract from the mundane realities of his murder mysteries, which are often solvable and rational when examined closely. It points out how Poe's humor and desire to mystify have been overlooked in favor of a darker, more serious interpretation of his work.
🕵️♂️ Unmasking the Charlatan: Poe's Hidden Messages
This paragraph examines how Poe used specific literary strategies to conceal and reveal hidden murder mysteries within his tales. It discusses two key pieces, 'Mystification' and 'How to Write a Blackwood Article', which provide insight into Poe's methods. The paragraph explains how Poe employed sensationalism and vague language to misdirect readers, while also leaving clues that, when followed, reveal a clear and rational story beneath the surface. It suggests that Poe's work is not just entertaining but also deeply unsettling, as it plays with the reader's trust and expectations, presenting a darker side to the author's humor and mystification.
😈 The Darker Truth Behind Poe's Humor
The final paragraph reflects on the implications of Poe's use of humor and deception in his stories. It suggests that beneath the surface of his seemingly lighthearted tales lies a more sinister reality, where the author manipulates his readers for his own reasons. The paragraph concludes by likening Poe to a master trickster who takes pleasure in his ability to deceive, leaving the reader to question the nature of truth and the role of literature as a mask for the author's true intentions.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Execution
💡Uncontrollable urge
💡Apparition
💡Hoax
💡Mystification
💡Narrator
💡Insanity defense
💡Trick
💡Diddling
💡Supernatural
💡Mystification (in the context of Poe's work)
Highlights
The condemned man's story of murder involving a series of extraordinary events and his denial of responsibility.
The man's claim of being tormented by an apparition of his cat and the subsequent appearance of a second cat.
The assertion that the narrators in Edgar Allan Poe's stories are often the last to see the victim alive and offer far-fetched explanations.
The discussion of Poe's first-person narrators who are often suspected of lying or manipulating the truth.
The exploration of Poe's themes of hoaxes and trickery in his stories, such as 'The Assignation' and 'Ligeia'.
The revelation that the narrator in 'The Tell-Tale Heart' may be attempting an insanity defense, despite claiming sanity.
The suggestion that Poe's narrators often deceive the reader, with examples of trickery tales like the man marrying his great-great-grandmother.
The analysis of Poe's use of sensationalism and supernatural elements to distract from the mundane realities of his murder mysteries.
The argument that the common perception of Poe as a brooding, tormented soul is a misconception.
The presentation of Poe as a hardworking writer, astute editor, and keen critic, contrary to the popular image.
The discussion of Poe's real-life struggles with alcohol, poverty, and ambition, as opposed to the fictional torments often attributed to him.
The examination of Poe's humor in his fiction, often overlooked in favor of the darker themes.
The observation that readers and scholars often overlook or misinterpret Poe's satirical and hoaxing intentions in his stories.
The critique of the tendency to romanticize Poe's work as dark and demonic, despite evidence of his lighter, satirical side.
The presentation of 'Mystification' as a key to understanding Poe's method of duping readers with nonsensical tales that hide a rational story.
The explanation of 'How to Write a Blackwood Article' as a guide to Poe's method of concealing murder mysteries behind sensationalism.
The conclusion that Poe's true art lies in his ability to deceive and manipulate readers, leaving them with a sense of betrayal and disturbance.
Transcripts
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