THE PURLOINED LETTER
By: Edgar Allan Poe
WHO IS EDGAR ALLAN POE?
ANSWER~
Edgar Allan Poe (January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an
American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known
for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and
the macabre.
He is widely regarded as a central figure of Romanticism in the
United States, and of American literature. Poe was born in Boston,
the second child of actors David and Elizabeth "Eliza" Poe.
CONTINUATION~
His father abandoned the family in 1810, and when his mother died the following
year, Poe was taken in by John and Frances Allan of Richmond, Virginia.
He attended the University of Virginia but left after a year due to lack of money. He
quarreled with John Allan over the funds for his education, and his gambling debts. In
1827, having enlisted in the United States Army under an assumed name, he published
his first collection Tamerlane and Other Poems, credited only to "a Bostonian". Poe
and Allan reached a temporary rapprochement after the death of Allan's wife in 1829.
Poe later failed as an officer cadet at West Point, declared a firm wish to be a poet and
writer, and parted ways with Allan.
CONTINUATION~
Poe switched his focus to prose and spent the next several years working for
literary journals and periodicals, becoming known for his own style of literary
criticism.
Poe and his works influenced literature around the world, as well as specialized
fields such as cosmology and cryptography. He and his work appear throughout
popular culture in literature, music, films, and television. A number of his homes
are dedicated museums. The Mystery Writers of America present an annual award
known as the Edgar Award for distinguished work in the mystery genre.
FA M O U S W O R K S O F E D G A R
ALLAN POE
“To Helen” (1831)
“The Raven” (1845)
“Annabel Lee” (1849)
The short stories of wickedness and crime “The Tell-Tale Heart” (1843)
“The Cask of Amontillado” (1846)
And the supernatural horror story “The Fall of the House of Usher”
(1839).
STORY
SUMMARY OF THE STORY
In a small room in Paris, an unnamed narrator, who also narrates “The
Murders in the Rue Morgue,” sits quietly with his friend, C. Auguste Dupin.
He ponders the murders in the Rue Morgue, which Dupin solved in that
story. Monsieur G——, the prefect of the Paris police, arrives, having
decided to consult Dupin again. The prefect presents a case that is almost
too simple: a letter has been taken from the royal apartments. The police
know who has taken it: the Minister D——, an important government
official.
CONTINUED
According to the prefect, a young lady possessed the letter, which
contains information that could harm a powerful individual. When the
young lady was first reading the letter, the man whom it concerned
came into the royal apartments. Not wanting to arouse his suspicion,
she put it down on a table next to her. The sinister Minister D—— then
walked in and noted the letter’s contents. Quickly grasping the
seriousness of the situation, he produced a letter of his own that
resembled the important letter. He left his own letter next to the original
one as he began to talk of Parisian affairs.
CONTINUED
Finally, as he prepared to leave the apartment, he purposely retrieved
the lady’s letter in place of his own. Now, the prefect explains, the
Minister D—— possesses a great deal of power over the lady.
END
THEME
Truth is often hidden in plain sight
SYMBOLS
Letter
which symbolized high power and confidential matter for which
all characters and actions are interwoven together in a single
thread.
GENRE OF THE STORY
Short story
Mystery
Detective Fiction
WHAT MOVEMENT?
Dark Romanticism (Romanticism)
W H AT I S T H E M O R A L O F T H E
S TO RY ?
The moral of the story in The Purloined Letter is that things can
sometimes be hidden in plain sight, and that logic and
rationality are useful in solving problems.
FIN
