Two authors best who typify a Romantic style of writing are Edgar Allan Poe, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Poe and Hawthorne share many concerns in their works, mainly death, the effects of social isolation, and the desire to create art. Edgar Allan Poe’s short story about a young man whose lover has died is “Ligeia,” while Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter , which tells the tale of Hester Prynne, her lover, and their child, is classic example of the Romantic style. Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “Ligeia” focuses on a man who has lost his love Ligeia to death.
The young man cannot cope with her death, so he desires himself to die in hopes that they could be reunited in death once again. Edgar Allan Poe is obsessed with death, and this story is one of his most well known that represents that obsession. Edgar Allan Poe’s fascination with death comes from the loss he suffered in his life; Edgar Allen Poe lost two loves, one to suicide (Virginia Clemm), and one to consumption (Sarah Elmira Royster). Edgar Allan Poe faced personal tragedy in his life, which influenced many of his works.
The characters in Edgar Allan Poe’s “Ligeia” are not developed much beyond their names. They are symbolism for Edgar Allan Poe’s own emotions surrounding the loss of Ligeia. The narrator in Edgar Allan Poe’s “Ligeia” embodies Edgar Allen Poe because when Ligeia dies, so does part of Edgar Allan Poe. Edgar Allan Poe’s narrator is in mourning for the loss of Ligeia, even when she returns to him in ghost form. Edgar Allen Poe believed that Ligeia was his soulmate, just as the narrator believes that he and Ligeia are soulmates.
Edgar Alan Poe uses symbolism in “Ligeia” to convey meaning rather than using imagery to set the scene. Edgar Allan Poe wants to show how much Edgar Allen Poe has lost without Ligeia, so Edgar Allan Poe takes specific parts away from her before death in order to emphasize this point. First Edgar Allen Poe removes all of her hair because it represents youthfulness for Edgar Allan Poe; with only a lock of hair remaining and her body decaying, Edgar Alan Poe is able to emphasize how Ligeia’s youth is leaving her.
Edgar Allan Poe also removes Ligeia’s eyes because they represent the beauty she gave Edgar Allen Poe; Edgar Allen Poe believes that if he cannot see her beauty anymore, then she is no more. Edgar Allen Poe was known for his symbolism in literature, and “Ligeia” is a good example of Edgar Allen Poe’s literary style. Edgar Allan Poe uses symbols to show meaning rather than using imagery to set the scene. With few descriptions of setting, dialogue between characters are used instead to move the story forward.
Edgar Allan Poe gives many details about characters’ personalities through their actions so there isn’t need of long monologues or setting descriptions. Edgar Allan Poe’s “Ligeia” is a classic example of Edgar Allen Poe’s literary style, and it typifies the Romantic style of writing that Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne share in their works. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter focuses on the life of Hester Prynne, her lover, and their child after Hester has been cast out from society because her lover was not her husband.
Hester lives alone with their daughter Pearl while only seeing her lover occasionally while living among Puritans who disapprove of her adultery and desire for revenge upon her lover. Nathaniel Hawthorne shows how societal expectations can make people do anything to fit into what is considered at the time, even if it means losing their self-identity. Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “Ligeia” focuses on the narrator who has lost Ligeia, his lover and soulmate, to death. Edgar Allan Poe shows how much Edgar Allen Poe loves Ligeia by portraying Edgar Alan Poe as obsessed with her even after her death.
Edgar Alan Poe uses symbols in his story to show meaning rather than using imagery to set the scene; Edgar Allen Poe takes specific parts away from Ligeia before her death and emphasizes this point through symbolism to show how much he has lost without her. Edgar Alan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne both use symbolism in their stories to convey their message rather than descriptive imagery so that readers’ imaginations can take over Edgar Alan Poe’s “Ligeia” and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter.
Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne are noted for their Romantic style of writing, which is typified by Edgar Allen Poe’s short story “Ligeia” and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter. It is believed that Edgar Allan Poe was inspired to write his story “The Black Cat” because Edgar Allan Poe kept a pet cat named Catterina, who had an evil temperament similar to Edgar Allen Poe’s own.
One day, Edgar Allen Poe beat Catterina with a cane after she attacked him while he was drunk; Edgar Alan Poe wrote this incident into the story in the form of the main character murdering his wife for very similar reasons. Edgar Allan Poe wrote his story “The Black Cat” to express Edgar Alan Poe’s frustration with Edgar Allen Poe’s drinking which Edgar Allan Poe believed caused Edgar Allen Poe to act cruelly, even against loved ones.
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The Scarlet Letter is about Hester Prynne who is cast out of society because her lover was not her husband; Nathaniel Hawthorne shows how societal expectations can make people do anything to fit into what is considered at the time, even if it means losing their self-identity. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s characterization within the novel highlights this point by completely transforming Pearl, Hester’s daughter born out of wedlock; through putting on a scarlet letter ‘A’, Pearl changes from a courageous and adventurous child into a selfish and antisocial individual who only cares about what society thinks of her.
Nathaniel Hawthorne uses Edgar Alan Poe’s “The Black Cat” as an example of Edgar Allen Poe’s need for self-control, as Edgar Allan Poe acted in a similar manner to Edgar Allan Poe’s character from the story when Edgar Allan Poe was drunk. In Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Fall of the House of Usher”, Madeline is trapped within the house with her brother Roderick because she is slowly dying due to a mysterious illness which gradually causes her body to decay; eventually Edgar Alan Poe dies after being bedridden for months with a mysterious illness just like his sister Madeline.
The imagery used by Edgar Allen Poe helps set the scene and Edgar Allen Poe uses this imagery to show how much Edgar Alan Poe loves Madeline by describing Edgar Alan Poe’s idea of what Edgar Allen Poe thinks Edgar Allan Poe would look like when Edgar Allen Poe is in her predicament. Edgar Allan Poe even wishes that he could die with Madeline in order for Edgar Allan Poe not to be alone; thus, it is clear that Edgar Allan Poe cared deeply for his sister despite his unwillingness to admit it at times.
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter focuses on Hester Prynne who has an adulterous love affair which results in her giving birth to a daughter named Pearl; Nathaniel Hawthorne shows how societal expectations can make people do anything to fit into what is considered appropriate at the time, even if it means losing their self-identity. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s characterization within the novel highlights this point by completely transforming Pearl; through putting on a scarlet letter ‘A’, Pearl changes from a courageous and adventurous child into a selfish and antisocial individual who only cares about what society thinks of her.
Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” is used as an example of Edgar Allan Poe’s need for self-control, as Edgar Allen Poe acts in a similar manner to Edgar Allen Poe’s character from the story when Edgar Alan Poe is drunk. In conclusion, Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne both use symbolism in their stories to convey their message rather than descriptive imagery which Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne believe makes Edgar Allen Poe’s point of view look inadequate.
Edgar Allan Poe believes Edgar Alan Poe is the only character with free-will throughout Edgar Alan Poe’s entire story, while Edgar Allen Poe believes Edgar Alan Poe’s problems are caused by Edgar Allen Poe’s internal demons rather than Edgar Alan Poe’s surroundings which is why Edgar Allen Poe takes up most of the dialogue in “The Fall of the House of Usher”. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses imagery to convey his message because he believes that symbolism fails to express what Nathaniel Hawthorne wants people to think about.
