Hi.
I'm writing an essay for my American Literature class and, though I'm going to turn it in Tuesday I'd like some feedback from other people--my teacher being the only one who will read this. And, not to mention, I might get feedback quicker than Tuesday if I post here. =]. I'm impatient, you see.
My topic comes from "The Pit and the Pendulum", by Edgar Allen Poe and I'm writing an argumentative essay on how this story provides an example for why fearing the unknown is a human fallacy.
I'd love it very much if you'd read and give me some feedback.
Just a note: I'm fifteen, home-schooled, in the ninth grade, and I want to become a journalist/fiction novelist. Please, judge my writing based on that information.
-Thanks
Misty
(Here's the essay--copy and pasted from Word)
Fallacy of Fearing the Unknown—“The Pit and the Pendulum”
It is foolish to fear the unknown. Human reasoning may find logic in fearing the unknown but it is pure fallacy. Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Pit and the Pendulum” is a perfect example of this fallacy. Going on the notion that, the pit symbolizes fear of the unknown and the pendulum fear of what can be seen, Poe provides a great example of why it is foolish to fear the unknown.
First of all, the pit symbolizes fear of the unknown. The narrator of “The Pit and the Pendulum” fears this form of “death” [death by jumping into the pit] because it is the one he doesn’t know anything about—he doesn’t even consider the possibility of redemption lying at the bottom. He knows what will happen if the walls close in, and if the pendulum reaches him, but the pit is deep, dark, mysterious, and unknown—therefore, it instills the most fear. It seems almost logical for the human mind to reason that one would rather die by a means he knows rather than by unknown means; that, however, is foolish reasoning. Humans reason that if it isn’t known it’s scary, if there’s a mystery there is fear. It does seem logical, but, like in Master Poe’s example, the unknown doesn’t always equal a fearful outcome. As soon as the narrator jumps into the pit, he awakens—or hears the trumpets and is saved; the end of the Spanish inquisition. So in the end, the “death” the narrator said he would never chose was the one that saved him—oh, the irony of Master Poe.
And second, the pendulum—this symbolizes fear of that which is known. This is a slightly more logical passage to fear. The narrator knows what will happen if he is struck by the pendulum, and is frightened by it—a, by all means, logical reaction. However, the narrator foolishly fears the pit more than the pendulum. Again, the human fallacy to fear the unknown is at fault.
Now, I, honestly, am not convinced this whole story was not a dream. Either way, the fact that fearing what isn’t known is a fallacy doesn’t change. After all, why else would someone fear a God they’ve never seen. Going on the reasoning that it’s foolish to fear what isn’t known, does that mean that those who fear a God they can’t see are fools? Well, that’s another topic. So, it’s decided, “The Pit and the Pendulum” is a perfect example of why fearing the unknown is a typical human fallacy.
So...what'd you think?
All I wish to do is spread the good news of Jesus and warn nonbelievers, idolaters, and those engaged in sinful lifestyles that if they don't straighten up and fly right they're going to fly straight to the depths of Hell forever and ever when their time comes.
I don't even know what Poe is. There's Edgar Allen Poe (a sinner) what does he have to do with my ministry?
And also I wish to engage in constructive critical analysis of evolutionary theory (a sinful theory) and they just keep telling me I don't understand sience
What is it called when you use lots of commas in a sentence?I know Edgar Allen Poe used a lot of them but theres a name for that kind of style of writting and I dont know what it is.
Also, what kind of literary device would you say this is: "I was in a numbed daze, living in an aquarium where everything was murky, underwater, in slow motion". (Gregory Galloway). <---I know its not a similie or metaphor...I think.Does anyone know what this is an example of?
-your help would be much appreciated!
I've looked a lot of places. If you can help me I'll love you forever.
In the catacombs where Montresor tries to kill Fortunato who's bone remains are hanging on the walls?
Thanks.(:
on flocabulary.com theres a rap song to the pit and the pendulum by edgar allen poe and i would really like a download of it to put on my ipod....anyone know where i can find it or have it?
Where can I find free sheet music for piano for this song:
Written by Edgar Allen Poe and composed by john Debney; "Come Little Children"
Don't comment if your gonna say something stupid please. Which your probably gonna do anyway.....
Thanks for your help though.
I found this poem in a book and i've been trying to decifer it. It's by Edgar Allen Poe. i think its something about how he was really depressed then met a girl name annie.
this may help, its the poem:
http://books.eserver.org/poetry/poe/for_annie.html
on an epsode of law and order svu there was a resturaunt that the detectives went to that had an e.a.p. theme and all the waitresses and waiters dress up as characters from his stories. i cant rmember the name of the resturaunt. its a play on words of his name but i cant remember. HELP??!!
I have to do a mad-libs for the poem The Raven, by Edgar Allen Poe and I need a word to replace "Nevermore." (the only word the raven ever says) Thanks!
by sir arthur conan doyle?
what are the themes in the stories? how are the themes in the murders similar or different to the themes of supernatural, good vs evil and truth vs fantasy?
how is the watson character in the hound similar/different to the narrator in the murders?
both stories have an animal as a murderer. (an orangutan in the murders and a dog in the hound) what are the similarities and differences with the 2 stories?
ive read them but i have no idea what the themes are in the murders.
Thanks.......Anyone know what Edgar Allen Poe was trying to say in this stanza? I can't figure it out.
Hear the sledges with the bells-
Silver bells!
What a world of merriment their melody foretells!
How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle,
In the icy air of night!
While the stars that oversprinkle
All the heavens, seem to twinkle
With a crystalline delight;
Keeping time, time, time,
In a sort of Runic rhyme,
To the tintinnabulation that so musically wells
From the bells, bells, bells, bells,
Bells, bells, bells-
From the jingling and the tinkling of the bells.
hey i need some help for english i have a huge test tomorrow that im stressing about so im studying for it and i had h1n1 (SHOCK) they day we learned the definations for the following words and i cant find them on the internet. this is for english class ok!
1. Story Theme
2. Universal Theme
3. Cause and Effect
4. Narrative poem
5. Outline
well i just have to know what they mean....and i do not because i wasn't at school when we learned them so can you please please help me!!!!!!!! plus can you give me some background info about edgar allen poe aswell! thank you so much! Wish me luck!!!!!!
i have to memorize the first 12 lines of annabel lee for my LA class.
this iswhat i have to memorize:
It was many and many year ago in a kingdom by the sea,
that a maiden there lived whom you may know,
By the name of Annabel Lee.
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child, and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea:
but we loved with a love that was more than a love-
I and my Annabel Lee-
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
Ok i know thats not a lot to memorize, but the wording is a little weird cuz its an old poem.
any advice on memorizing this?
btw- i have to write it all down tomorrow for a test.
wow thank you so much!
Questions for "Murders in the Rue Morgue";
1. How does the narrator first encounter Dupin? What first impressions does the Frenchman make on the narrator?
2. What does the narrator say about Dupin’s intellect? Is it purely analytical?
3. What kind of relationship develops between the narrator and Dupin? The narrator says: "We existed within ourselves alone." What does he mean??
4. What news in the Gazette des Tribunaux grabs the attention of Dupin and his friend? What has happened to Madame L’Espanaye and her daughter?
5. What reason does Dupin give for criticizing the police’s investigation of the murders at Rue Morgue?
6. What about the murders, according to Dupin, makes them unsolvable by the Paris police department?
7. Why does Dupin rule out the possibility of a murder-suicide scenario? What does he hope to accomplish by remaining at the murder scene?
8. Why does Dupin rule out theft as a motive for the murders? What evidence does he give to support this conclusion?
9. Who does Dupin suspect committed the murders of Madame L’Espanaye and her daughter? How does Dupin plan to catch those responsible for the crime?
10. According to the sailor, how were the murder victims killed? Why was it that none of the witnesses were able to identify the nationality of the voices they heard as they rushed towards the crime scene?
Questions for "The Gold Bug";
1. Why has Mr. Legrand left New Orleans? Why do you think the narrator says he is “infected with misanthropy”?
2. Jupiter is Legrand’s servant and slave. What do you make of this man’s character? Why does he believe Legrand is sick?
3. Why does the narrator suspect that Legrand is mad? How do you think Poe defines madness? Do you agree that Legrand is mad?
4. Do you think the narrator of this story is a reliable witness? Why or why not?
1. Poe loved puzzles and boasted in his editor's columns about his ability to solve any cryptogram. In what ways does this story reflect this fascination with puzzles, particularly word games?
2. “The Gold Bug” is considered to be a mystery but it isn’t concerned with a crime. Do you think this story should be classified as a mystery? Why or why not?
i can't do it. I have been practising for 5 days and today is the last day and i only have one of three stanzas memorized for the raven. I always get distracted and even when i learn it i forget right after. I repeat it over and over and i write it down but i can not memorize Stanzas 13 14 and 15 from the poem by Edgar Allen Poe: The Raven.
Do i have a medical condition or something?
You might say that I am crazy
Mental, sick, disturbing maybe
But even as the sun goes down
I always end up with a frown
You see, I have never been happy
For the voices of hell haunt me
And though I might not move about
I know to never ever shout
For you not know what is shame
Until you have felt the pain
The pain the demons of hell brought
They gave to me and watch me rot
You might think that I am crazy
Mental, sick, disturbing maybe
As the night’s plutonian shore
Comes closer each night as a door
Each night that door arrives on time
Exactly, on the dot at nine
Oh the sorrows that the door brings
The memories of my lost things
Especially my dear Nora
Ah the happiness she brought me
But now, miserable, alone
At night the bright light is again shone
I'm talking about the poem by Edgar Allen Poe
and what it's all about- the full story?
or could someone recommend a really good website that goes through each bit in detail?
thanks very much
I'm talking about the poem by Edgar Allen Poe
and what it's all about- the full story?
or could someone recommend a really good website that goes through each bit in detail?
thanks very much
The word is "unredressed." It's from Edgar Allen Poe's "Cask of Amontillado."
Definition: not corrected or compensated for.
Quote: "A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser."
I just need a image cue as an illustration. But I don't know how to draw the word "unredressed."
(Deb caletti)( wild roses)
CHAPTER ONE
(mostly an introduction)
To say my life changed when my dad married Jessica, She changed my dad entirely. There is only one other thing that impacted my life so much, and that was when Ryan Broad drove up our road in his yellow 2008 Camaro, his windows down and his hair being moved by the wind.
My stepmother was crazy, gorgeous and a genius, and I guess that’s how I should start my story. If you read about her recently you would know that she was a wildfire blooming every other minute. But supposedly, there’s a research link that can explain her. They describe her as how delicate women can be and how they have there moments. But I believe she can be labeled having a mental illness and extreme creativity, I believe I’ve seen it with my own two eyes. Sure, you have the sporty, car builder and car shop owner like my dad, say who is talented and calm and gets things done when told and without much complaining. The closest he gets to madness is when someone is chomping on their food like a cow and calls me Shay, which is our dog’s name. But there are the people out there, whose hunger so deep and far down that greatness lies there too, nestled somewhere beneath there own skin… those who get their inner voice and direction from their freaky dreams they have at night. In other words, They’re brilliantly nuts.
I guess we should also begin with a statement that justifies that if you aren’t happy how every person breathes and it may not be politically correct in your opinion. It’s probably best if we part company now. Ill loan you my copy of Little House on the Prairie (I really liked it when I was ten) and you can vanish into the prairie perfection, because I will not explain this topic word by word so you can understand it. Because Jessica Tansum was joy-impaired (Hugely depressed, unless on the runway) and excessively imaginative (hell I think she was delusional), abundantly security conscious (as paranoid as a dog with a burr stuck to its ass) or emotionally challenged (deserves to live in a psycho house) I’m not talking about your mentally ill mamma or your best sick aunt -I’m not judging anyone else who's ill, or crazy. This is my singular experience. I’ve lived with it; I’ve earned the right to describe how it felt from inside my own skin. So if your truths and secrets have to be protected the same way people rap their Christmas ornaments in paper towels, then perfect. Have a wonderful nice life. If we bump into each other at Wal-Mart, I’m the one buying the plain and boring gummy worms, and that’s all you need to know about me.
Madness. Beauty. Genius. It’s a very disturbing thing to think about. The people in this world who have no idea what they’ve dug themselves into. Insanity walks alongside the brilliant like some creepy intent stalker. Edgar Allen Poe, Charles Dickens, Billy Jusco and whomever, they’re crazy. And we can’t forget the weirdest married people and the people who work way too hard, because this story is about them. Another crazy person is Jessica Tansum.
And the funny thing about this is that our dog is named Shay, for example, the whole reason behind that is because Jessica Tansum bought him during a bad bout of paranoia and named him for her enemy and former runner contestant in the Beauty pageant, Shay. She like the idea of this poor, ugly dog-named Shay that would eat used Kleenex if he had a chance. She liked yelling at Shay for getting way… to personal with our guests. I can here her voice even now, in her British accent. So raspy, and annoyingly loud… “Shay! Get your nose out of Mrs. Berry’s crotch.” She’d say with mock seriousness. I sure knew that you didn’t want to get on Jessica’s Bad side.
Oh! Did I ever mention Shay is a boy? Well he is.
Some people think the Brilliant have been touched by the heavens above (Mostly God). If this is true then Jessica got god on the day when he was drunk and wearing black leather, a biker bandana listening to whatever the bikers listen to. ---Sorry to the Christians out there, but I’m just stating a fact. God must have seen something in her that no one has ever seen before, well god sees everything but that’s beside the whole point.
My dad, also known as handy man, worries allot about Jessica and how her actions are becoming more and more out of the ordinary. I mean I care; its just she’s psycho and way too annoying for me to hang out with her.
My mom Leslie, (weird name right?) takes care of me Wednesday through Saturday so then I don’t have to put up with all of my step-mom’s shit. All I can say is that the freedom I get when I’m at her house is like being in heaven, happy.
I need about 3 really good reasons to help me research for my research paper. I really appreciate it guys because English is my worst class right now!
My teacher doesn't want this to be like a BIOGRAPHICAL thing... so please nothing about how his life was REALLLY bad blah.
I am writing an essay on how the poem Annabel Lee was Edgar Allen Poe's coping mechanism for when his young wife Virginia Clemm died and I need lots of background information about coping mechanisms.
When someone close to you died, how did you react?
How close was your relationship to this person?
Did you self mutilate, exercise your emotions in healthier ways, cry constantly?
I'm sorry for your losses <3
http://s664.photobucket.com/albums/vv9/Caroline-Walters/?action=view¤t=IMG_8186.jpg
http://s664.photobucket.com/albums/vv9/Caroline-Walters/?action=view¤t=IMG_8188.jpg
http://s664.photobucket.com/albums/vv9/Caroline-Walters/?action=view¤t=IMG_8191.jpg
Prince Prospero (The main character of Edgar Allen Poe's short story "The Masque of the Red Death")
Rupert
Terrence
The last two are just awesome names...
Which is your favorite?
okay so for my english homework i had to read "the masque of the red death" by edgar allen poe. usually i can understand and decipher what he is trying to say considering his morbid and eccentric style but i don't get this what-so-ever. my questions on it are due tomorrow and i really need help. so if someone who gets it could give me like a short summary or something that would be grand. thanks :]
*okay so obviously if i DONT UNDERSTAND it then i am not capable of doing it. not to sound rude but thats kind of why i'm here; to get help. thanks again.
I love reading Edgar Allen Poe Poems. They fascinate me. Ive read all of His poems and Im searching for more.
Any ideas on who elses poetry is close to his?
I need to dress up as a literary character for school. Something cheap, unique, and easy to put together.
I was thinking the Raven from Edgar Allen Poe but my friends have tried to talk me out of dressing like a bird although I thought it was a good idea...
Ideas anyone??
For English We Have a question at the End of the Short Story that asks
"Find out how long fortunato could last in a walled up niche,What would happen to him after being deprived of fresh air,water,and food from these gruesome facts,Draw some conclusions about how the human body reacts under certain conditions!" Now i Need Help answering this question What do i Write..Some One Please Help??
I have been blessed with one asset that no amount of money can buy. I have a lot of friends. My friends have referred me to great schools, terrific jobs, advancement opportunities, apartment and condo deals that nobody off the street would ever hear about, and invaluable advice and help on matters of the heart.
About six months ago, I started a very painful process of separating from my wife of six years. After six years of being a working househusband and no sex, I had enough and she fought the divorce tooth and nail with her lawyer. There were not real assets to fight over, no children thanks to her refusal to allow me any, but just to win an argument that left us both losers. She has gone back to live with her parents and continues to make my life miserable and I see more of her now than when I was married to her.
Anyway, I digress. I got some tips from some of my friends to check out a couple of on line dating services.
I met Jackie there. Jackie is a very attractive woman who also has a list of problems that if you measure each by a value of one dollar could equal or surpass the size of the National Debt. I was lured in by her blond hair, her light, bright eyes that change color like a German wolf (a warning sign I completely ignored), and a curvy body that seemed to send smoke signals to every straight guy to drop every thing they happened to be doing and save her.
My blond flower and damsel in distress started to wilt by the second week but we remained friends for two months. After having too much to drink on the second date, and when sober Jackie said she would not even kiss a guy on the second date, there we were changed out of our street clothes into sweats sitting on her couch in her living room after dinner. I leaned over to kiss her on the lips, and then Jackie whipped out a list of demands, a honey do list, of things she wanted taken care of before I went any further. How a woman can down four triple shot cocktails, and three glasses of port wine, and hold her liquor enough to hit a guy with a verbal assault like that has remained a mystery to men going back to the days of Salome.
Like Salome with Herod, giving Jackie half of what I had was simply not enough for Jackie. She wanted heads on plates as tokens of my love for her.
She had a list. Her ex boyfriend, who had become a raging alcoholic under her spell, had given her mink coats (as in more than one), diamonds, white gold (not just that cheap yellow 24 karat stuff), a Mercedes that was in need of repair due to female abuse and neglect, his job (which she was fired from due to poor performance but somehow managed to collect unemployment from. Thank you, Massachusetts), and on and on ad nauseum. Jackie's ex boyfriend sued her for $15,000 and she managed to cross her legs at the male judge like Sharon Stone and the case was dismissed. Men. Idiots who lose their heads over pieces of tail like Jackie. She no doubt returned the favor on the old judge for his judicial act of kindness and all the more reason judges need more accountability and term limits.
After two months of Jackie's head games, I had enough. It was time to bring in the troops in to rid me of this Nazi in a skirt. As Edgar Allen Poe said in the "Cask of Amontillado," when (she) ventured upon insult, I vowed revenge...and there must be punishment with impunity."
It was time to give Jackie a taste of her own medicine for all the dates she called at last minute to cancel or just never showed up. It was payback time. This time I intended to screw Jackie in a much different fashion and I succeeded beyond my wildest dreams.
I have a black friend of mine who looks like a professional football and basketball player. This guy is a 6 foot ten inch tower of power that is many a white girl's sexual fantasy. He has no interest in white women but is curious from a racial stereotype point of view as to why white women find black men so fascinating. So I siced him on Jackie.
He created a profile on this on line service and the simple act of him visiting her profile page sent Jackie chasing after him like a love sick teenager. She was emailing my black friend five to ten times a day and making a complete slut of herself over this guy whose only interest in her was a curiosity about sexual racism and to help out his long time friend. I helped my buddy create a profile page that looked so much like Jackie's own page he could have passed for her black male alter ego. Same career, same car, same love of sports, photography hobby, lived and worked in the same cities, and so forth. It is simply amazing just how dumb and gullible a woman can get when she is lead by her tail by some stud she has the hots for.
In this case, Jackie was lead to her favorite Italian restaurant for a blind date with my friend. She gave him her number but she didn't question when she asked for his number he did not give it out. She went on the date anyway. We waited at the restaurant for Jackie to show. It was li
I need some good scary music for my PowerPoint presentations that I'm doing on The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe. I was thinking along the lines of scary organs or like those Italian choirs that sound spooky or something...i was thinking of something that goes from happy to sad b/c that's the story...it goes from happy to sad and dark
Any ideas?
Thanks!
would the x-files theme song go good with it?
I need some good scary music for my PowerPoint presentations that I'm doing on The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allen Poe. I was thinking along the lines of scary organs or like those Italian choirs that sound spooky or something
Any ideas?
Thanks!
would the x-files theme song go good with it?
