Christable by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

BibliographyAsbee, S. (2006) Approaching Poetry, Milton Keynes, The Open UniversityReid, N. (2006) Coleridge, Form and Symbol, Or the Ascertaining Vision, Aldershot, Ashgate PublishingWellek, R. (1963) The Concept of Romanticism in literary historyin Bygrave, S (2006) Romantic Writings London, The Open UniversityZuk, E. Coleridges Blank Verse [online], http://www.expansivepoetryonline.com/journal/cult072004.html (Accessed 28th April 2008)

Who is the Gothic Villain? Is he a villain/hero? Is he a dangerous lover? The villain is usually dark and handsome, though he might have some tell-tell sign that warns he is wicked. The villains ranged from dark priests to mysterious bandits. Some start out as heroes but turn into villains. The Gothic villain has several identifying characteristics. They are shifty, cunning and can mold their behavior to match the need of the circumstance. Villains will utilize intimidation, deception, and even flattery to attain their objective.

In the short story, “The Tell-Tale Heart,” Edgar Allan Poe uses many varying symbols, symbols that represent more than one feeling or idea. The old man’s eyes in the story are symbolic of a few things. The eyes are symbolic of how old man had a distorted view of the world which could possibly be why the narrator felt he had to kill the old man. The narrator calls the eye the “vulture eye” symbolic of the narrator’s feeling that because of the eye the man is evil (“The Tell-Tale Heart”). Kenneth Silverman says, “... eyes in Poe’s works arouse the dread of being consumed” (207). This is similar to how the narrator felt that the old man’s eye was controlling and took over its surroundings. Poe also portrays a blindness symbolized

Another character that creates fear for the reader and thereby creates a gothic atmosphere is Frankenstein’s monster. Its outer appearance is described by Walton as “… horrible […] that I shut my eyes involuntarily” (Shelley 221). Hence, the horror to the gothic element is added thorough the appearance of the monster.

Friendship is a blessing, people say, and it is. Men often express their appreciation and respect for male friends through literature. A fellowship, medieval authors call it. A deep and unbreakable connection between males, transcending romantic love. A relationship based on mutual support and admiration, thriving of intellectual stimulation. Nothing is more valuable to a man than a friendship, not even the love of a woman; it is only a man, after all, who can understand another man. To seventeenth century men, friendship (just like everything else) is a male blessing – a patriarchal gift – not for women. Female friendship was “impossible,” for an amicable and supportive relationship between women could never exist. Platonic friendships existed between men, not women. Yet, several female poets challenged this notion, emphasizing importance of female friendships as male authors and poets do. Friendship is defined through a feminist lens in Aemilia Lanyer’s “The Description of Cookham” and Katherine Philips’ poetry in which female characteristics that are often overlooked are deeming meaningful through friendship.

“The courtly lady…possesses a curiously hybrid gender. While maintaining stereotypically female sexuality, she also holds, in principle at least, the status of a feudal lord.” Burns’ statement insinuates a reversal of power dynamics between man and woman in the courtly love lyric, implying that the woman’s stereotypical beauty and sexuality in courtship, is a gateway to subverting and overpowering the lovesick male, making her a superior lord. The Amour Courtois lyric is deemed inconsistent with the representation of woman as an empowered “feudal lord” due to the sheer objectification of femininity and beauty. Poets such as Geoffrey Chaucer and William Dunbar commend a woman’s aesthetic appeal or satirise the lack of it, thus elevating medieval misogynistic expectations of physical beauty as a feminine necessity that objectifies women under the control of man’s advances. Throughout courtly love lyrics female beauty is a purely frivolous and superficial trait lacking predominant depth, to render woman as a “lord” would be poetically conflicting as the only power exemplified by female subjects in courtship is through the idolisation and sexual lust of the male devotee.

An important feature of gothic is the horror and terror seen within the text. The two were differentiated by Anne Radcliffe who suggests that terror relies on subtle suggestion which results in the creation of tension and fear, whilst horror is direct and explicit and causes instant fear. A good example of terror is an example of the pathetic fallacy used at the start of chapter 5, during the creation of the monster. It is described as a ‘dreary night of November’ and that the ‘rain pattered dismally against the panes’. This slowly builds tension and helps portray a sense of foreboding. Examples of horror include the ‘yellow eye’ of the monster as it infers decay and the ‘grave worms crawling in the folds of the flannel’ in Victor’s dream about his mother. These features of gothic would have been especially effective on a Victorian audience, as they were not often confronted with this sort of imagery, whereas it can be argued overexposure has caused modern audiences to be less sensitive, or desensitized, to this kind of content.

How can a pair of eyes bring death to its owner? How can a black veil bring alienation to its wearer? These are examples of the power of symbols. “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe and “The Minister’s Black Veil” by Nathaniel Hawthorne both use symbols to convey the dark human nature, which is a Gothic motif. Also, the symbols are representative of Gothic tradition because they relate to elements like dark settings, supernatural events, a gloomy mood, and unexplainable mysteries (Harris). Through the utilization of symbolism along with Gothic elements, both “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Minister’s Black Veil” explore people’s dark side and their reactions toward fear; thus revealing the underlying themes.

This highlights the shift in values from marriage and chastity to sex before marriage and experimentations amongst adolescents. Cher changes the tone of her voice when she welcomes Christian into her “classic” house highlighting the value of image above truth. Cher’s failed attempts to seduce Christian and lose her virginity, with Christian covering her “cold” legs with a pillow when she tries to run her foot up and down his leg display how she was wrong which leads to her self-reflection later on. Her superficiality is reinforced through “I don’t get it, did my hair get flat?” with image more valued than

In this essay I will be commenting on the presentation of relationships in two poems. The first poem is ‘Les Grands Seigneurs’, in which the speaker remarks on her life before marriage, where she was adored and worshiped by men, and how it has changed after marriage. ‘My Last Duchess’ is a dramatic monologue in which the speaker comments on his late wife and her character, suggesting that she was unfaithful to him and hinting that he may have murdered her because of this.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge viewed the world in a different light than his peers. He was known as one of the greatest poets of the Romantic Period, but he had a hard, troubled life and this was reflected in his poems. Most of his poems were not only made to indulge the reader, but to make the reader think. His poems were much deeper than just their literal meaning. They invited the reader into Coleridge’s heart and mind. In doing so, the reader learned a different way to view the world and what Coleridge felt. Many of Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poems include intimate self-revelation of the poet by expressing emotions, thoughts, and using spirituality, such as is seen in “This Lime Tree Bower- my Prison” and “Dejection: An Ode”.

Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne are the great Gothic writers of the 19th century. Gothic in the 19th century was considered gritty, grim and barbarous, depending on the author you come across. It is what brought the unconscious mind, also known as altered states, to the surface. The unconscious mind being, the fear you don’t seek. Most of the time, in your dreams—or what you think to be your dreams. The unconscious mind shows you that with great hope, also comes great fear. It makes you think about the darkness you fear and creates it into your Gothic, which is why it scares you. Poe and Hawthorne both made Gothic their own versions of their fears and they did it well.

In the 'Tell-Tale Heart' the author uses the symbol of the eye to portray a truly dark and gothic atmosphere. For example when he is describing his feelings for the old man he says " I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever." (Poe) This quotation is important because he is describing his plans and explaining why he is going to kill the old man. This is significant because it shows how dark the atmosphere of the story is as he is killing the old man just because he despises his eye. '

However, it is through the events that happen to the heroine in opening of the bloody chamber that the reader gets the impression a similar situation has happened with his ex-wives- it becomes clear to the reader that once the heroine reaches sexual maturity that the Marquis feels as though he has to empower the female through the act of fearing him and causing pain in which he finds most pleasurable- this is evident when he describes ‘’the act of love as the act of torture’’- to the reader this seems fearful and we can imagine the act to be painful due to the connotations that can be taken from ‘’torture’. However- Carter employs a different approach from the young girl’s naïve nature, emphasising the dark nature of the gothic. It appears that she seems to gain a source of pleasure from being his seemingly ‘prey’: ‘’tender, delicious, ecstasy of excitement’’.

Robert Browning’s poems “Porphyria’s Lover” and “My Last Duchess” depict a mastery of the dramatic monologue style. Said style contains a narrative told by a character’s point of view that differs from that of the poet.The character’s monologue consists of them discussing their particular situation that they find themselves within, this is meant to convey their internal information to the reader or audience. This in turn allows the reader a glimpse into the personality of the narrating character. Within “Porphyria’s Lover” and My Last Duchess” these monologues are used along with poetic devices to develop unique male personas. Between these two personas there are evident differences in class and within each class social issues arise within each work.