Comparison Between Short Stories

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July 10, 2021
Comparison between Short Stories
Understanding the importance of various thematic elements in a story is essential for any reader. It allows him to have a better understanding and appreciation of how such elements relate to the overall flow of the narrative and gives him an idea about the contextual background of the story. Accordingly, this article would focus on Edgar Allan Poe's The Cask of Amontillado (Amontillado) and The Raven and the relationship of their respective plots and settings. In line with this, the author would initially provide a brief summary of the plots of both stories, followed by an analysis of how the setting relates to them. All in all, since both of these stories were written by the same author (Poe), the author of this article believes that both emphasize the importance of the setting in establishing the mood and other themes present in their corresponding narratives.
Brief Summary
Both Amontillado and The Raven were stories written by Edgar Allan Poe. On the one hand, the Amontillado focuses its narrative on Montresor's deep desire to seek revenge against Fortunato for the latter's act of offense against him. Ultimately, Montresor lured the latter to go towards the catacombs under his home in order for his plan of burying him to flourish. On the other hand, The Raven focuses on the story about love towards a certain woman named Lenore, as detailed by a mysterious narrator. This was the overarching and recurring theme in the story that would be echoed throughout.
Analysis of Setting
The setting is one of the most crucial elements in both of these stories. As stated earlier, in summary, both of these short stories revolve around a 'tragic and depressing' narrative, either because of one's desire for revenge (and murder) or because of one's untimely and never-ending longing for his loved one. This tragic and depressing portrayal of the events was significantly emphasized by the setting of both stories through different sensory elements such as sight, feeling, hearing, or touch, as would be discussed further in the subsequent sections.
On the one hand, it could be seen that the setting of The Raven was during "the bleak of December" (Poe and Scattergood). When establishing the setting of the story, the narrator himself further used various sensory details such as the lonely and cold chamber with "Bird or beast upon the sculptured bust above his chamber door." By analyzing this phrase in the story, it was clear that these are essential for delivering the emotional impact towards the readers. First, the cold and bleak December signifies winter, which is effective in showing the idea of dying love or hopelessness. According to Podgorski, the bleak December, which is signified by a never-ending cold, can also signify the idea of the after-life (or experience after death), especially when it is analyzed in comparison with Poe's other stories such as A Dream within a Dream. Furthermore, the author of this article also believes that the emotional effect of the setting was further emphasized with the description of the p...