AP English Language 2015-2016: Edgar Allan Poe and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle--Mystery writing

http://www.worlds-best-detective-crime-and-murder-mystery-books.com/poeinfluenceondoyle01-article.html

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

The Murders in the Rue Morgue

1. What is the purpose of Poe's discussing analytical power and ingenuity as well as chess and

card games in the first four paragraphs of the story?

2. Who is Dupin?

3. How did the narrator meet Dupin, and how did they come to share the same flat?

4. What was their daily life like at the flat?

5. Dupin says, "He is a very little fellow, that's true, and would do better for the Theatre des

Varieties." What do we learn about Dupin from this statement and the explanation which

follows?

6. What newspaper article drew the attention of the narrator and Dupin? What was the article

about?

7. What was peculiar about the murders?

8. Why was Dupin so interested in the murders?

9. Why did Dupin become involved with the case?

10. What three things confounded the police?

11. What facts that the police missed did Dupin uncover?

12. How did Dupin test his theory and lure the sailor to his apartment?

13. What "reward" did Dupin want from the sailor?

14. What series of events actually took place regarding the murders?

15. What was the reaction of the Prefect of Police to Dupin's solving the murders?

16. Poe leaves out many details by using a dash. Why does he omit the details?

17. What is the narrator's function?

18. At what point is the climax of the story? Explain

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6Pi44Yfegc

The Masque of the Red Death:

Why Seven Rooms in "The Masque of the Red Death"?
One interpretation is that the seven rooms represent Shakespeare's "Seven Ages of Man" from As You Like It: (bolding is from me).
"All the world's a stage, / And all the men and women merely players: / They have their exits and their entrances; / And one man in his time plays many parts, / His acts being seven ages. At first the infant, / Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms. / And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel / And shining morning face, creeping like snail / Unwillingly to school. And then the lover, / Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad / Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a soldier, / Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard, / Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel, / Seeking the bubble reputation / Even in the cannon's mouth. And then the justice, / In fair round belly with good capon lined, / With eyes severe and beard of formal cut, / Full of wise saws and modern instances; / And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts / Into the lean and slipper'd pantaloon, / With spectacles on nose and pouch on side, / His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide / For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice, / Turning again toward childish treble, pipes / And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all, / That ends this strange eventful history, / Is second childishness and mere oblivion, / Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything." (II, vii, 139-66).
Many consider "The Masque of the Red Death" an allegory. The seven rooms, therefore, represent the life of all humans. It differs in respect to Shakespeare's monologue insomuch that death (symbolized by the sounding of the ebony clock) oft intervenes in the six rooms preceding death. The physical arrangement of the seven rooms also lends itself to this allegorical interpretation:

(1) the first room lies furthest East, or where the sun rises;

(2) the last room lies furthest West, or where the sun sets;

(3) the rooms are arranged in such a manner "that vision embraced but little more than one at a time" in the same way life only provides short glimpse into the future.
Another Interpretation
Others interpret the 7 rooms in "The Masque of the Red Death" as a symbol of Prospero's indulgence in the seven deadly sins:
1. Pride/Vanity - Pride is the excessive belief in one's own abilities, similar to vanity, which is setting one's heart on things of little value. Prospero's belief that he is more powerful than death is a vivid demonstration of pride.
2. Envy - It is unclear who the Prince might envy, but he sure is trying hard to impress someone.
3. Gluttony - Gluttony is the act of consuming more than one is required. Instead of using his means to protect more people, something he is obligated to do as prince, he lavishes his guests with "ample provisions" and "the appliances of pleasure."
4. Lust - Lust is an excessive craving for the pleasures of the body, usually associated with sex. The era in which Poe wrote prohibited the explicit or implicit description of sex, but what do you think was going on at an anything goes party?
5. Anger - The Prince becomes angry with the uninvited guest and attacks it.
6. Greed - Although it is apparent Prince Prospero shares his wealth with a thousand guests, he helps those who need it least and withholds his substance from those in need.
7. Sloth - Sloth is the absence of work. The prince seems like a hard worker; his work, however, is on the physical realm not the spiritual realm.
What do you think they mean? If you have an alternate interpretation, let me know in the comments.