What Gothic Literature that we've read so far is your favorite, explain why? (The Raven, The Masque of the Red Death, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Minister's Black Veil, or The Black Cat)
What are some similarities between all the Gothic Literature stories we've read so far? Again, be specific and use details in your response.
1. The protagonist is the man. The man at first is very kind to the cat but after he is drunken one day, he becomes very mean.
ReplyDeleteThe antagonist is the spirit of perverseness. The author puts the word perverseness upper case. The author uses the black cat’s eye to remind the man of the perverseness and makes him feel terrified.
2. The Masque of the Red Death is my favorite because in this gothic literature, the author describes a selfish prince who thinks the rights and interest are important in his life and he holds the top position, but the Red Death gives him a lesson and kills everyone in the party. The author wants to tell the readers that no people can control everything because there is no power over the death.
3. The similarities are they all happen in the midnight, the protagonists feel fear in the stories and they all relate deaths in the stories. They sometimes include the secrets in a family and they are mysterious.
Shelley -October 11,2010
Chisom Oraedu:
ReplyDelete1) Discuss who could be the protagonist and antagonist in The Black Cat; explain your logic and reasoning for why. Please remember to use details and specifics from the story to support your response.
• The protagonist is the narrator. He tells the events that occurred from his perspective. He does not expect the audience to believe the events that he tells: “For the most wild, yet most homely narrative which I am about to pen, I neither expect nor solicit belief” (Black Cat 63). In Gothic literature, the villain always wins; this means that the narrator must be the protagonist, because he loses in the end.
• The antagonist is the second black cat because in the end, it prevails over the narrator, therefore leading him to his demise: “…the hideous beast whose craft had seduced me into murder, and whose informing voice had consigned me to the hangman” (Black Cat 70). The second black cat is also the antagonist because it taunts the narrator and represents his repressed emotions of shame and guilt: “I avoided the creature; a certain sense of shame, and the remembrance of my former deed of cruelty…” (Black Cat 67).
2) What Gothic Literature that we've read so far is your favorite, and explain why. (The Raven, The Masque of the Red Death, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Minister's Black Veil, or The Black Cat)
My favorite work of Gothic literature is The Raven because it has many recognizable elements of literature. For instance, it has a rhyme scheme that gave the short story an upbeat sound when reading it. Words such as “dreary” and “weary” and “beguiling” and “smiling” (Raven 754-755) kept me interested in the story and wanting to read more. Because the flow of it was so enticing, it made me more aware of the words, and therefore what they meant. I paid very close attention to the details of the story because of the rhyming, which made it the most understood piece of literature for me.
3) What are some similarities between all the Gothic Literature stories we've read so far? Again, be specific and use details in your response.
There were many similarities between the 5 stories. This was probably because 3 out of the 4 were written by the same author, Edgar Allen Poe. In all of the stories, the protagonist remains isolated from the rest of society, whether voluntary or involuntary. For example, in The Raven, the narrator is both voluntarily and involuntarily isolated. First, he loses his love Lenore involuntarily, which leaves him sad and alone: “…vainly I had sought to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore…” (Raven 754). He then voluntarily isolates himself when he shuts himself inside of his chamber to grieve and to try to ebb his pain. This sense of isolation can be found in all the protagonists of the 5 stories.
Discuss who could be the protagonist and antagonist in The Black Cat; explain your logic and reasoning for why. Please remember to use details and specifics from the story to support your response.
ReplyDeleteI think that the protagonist is the man, the narrator of the story. I think he would be the protagonist because since the story is told in his told in his point of view that he would tell it as if the bad things were happening to him instead of him doing the bad things. The man is also the protagonist because in the end he ultimately comes downfall in the end and in the structure of Gothic Literature the protagonist never prevails and the antagonist is the character that has some sort of success in the end. I also think that the antagonist is the 2nd cat. I think that they are the cats because they are the reason that leads the man to his demise. They cause his repressed emotions to come out by taunting him, with walking in between his legs. Also the 2nd cat brings out the man’s shame; disgust which makes him hurts everyone around him.
What Gothic Literature that we've read so far is your favorite, and explain why. (The Raven, the Masque of the Red Death, the Tell-Tale Heart, the Minister's Black Veil, or The Black Cat)
I don’t necessary have a favorite story. I thought that the writing and the amount of detail and that were in the stories just do not find these pieces that interesting. One thing that I did think was very good about all of the pieces was how Poe’s writings made the reader see and while reading sort of feel the emotions that the protagonist and the antagonist are feeling. So the gothic literature stories are not that interesting to me but I did think that the level of writing and thought that was put into the stories make the reader appreciate classic Gothic Literature stories.
1) I think that the protagonist is the man, even though he is not a good person. He is the protagonist because he has to repress his emotions throughout the story, and he also ends up "losing" in the end, because he is sentanced to the gallows. I think that the second cat is the villian because he inspires the man do bad things, like murder. I think that Pluto is both cats in the story, but he is more aggresive as the second cat. As the first cat, he pushes the man to do a bad dead, but the reader dosn't know if it is intentional. However, when Pluto is the second cat, he is back for revenge and uses the man's alcohalism and his emotions against him and pushes him to the point where he commits the ultimate crime of murder.
ReplyDelete2) I think that my favorite story so far was The Tell-Tale Heart because I like the way it was written. I liked the way the the author made it seem like the narrator was crazy by using hyphins and fast paced language.
3) There are many things that are similar in all of these stories. One of the main things is that the protagonist is always dealing with a heavy mental load. Some of them are dealing with the loss of a loved one or thing, and some of them are dealing with something about themselves that they don't like. And, in all the stories, the protagonist tries to repress these emotions by using some sort of escape. For example, in The Raven, the man isolates himself in attempt to repress the loss of his lover, Lenore. In The Masque of the Red Death, Prince Prospero tries to repress the fact of his mortality by closing himself off and having a party. Another similarity between all of them is that the antagonist represents the emotions that the protagonist is trying to repress. For example, in The Raven, the raven taunts the protagonist by continuosly saying, "nevermore." In The Black Cat, the second cat represents the guilt, anger, digust, and annoyance the man feels about himself. And, lastly, in all stories, the protagonist ends up "losing" to the antagonist. This means that in the end, the protagonist ends up breaking and being caught for their deeds or meeting their demise. For example, in The Black Cat, the man ends up being sentanced to the gallows because the police find the body in the wall. In The Tell-Tale heart, the man is also arrested because he is taunted by the sound of the old man's heart beating to the point where he admits his deed.
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ReplyDelete1) I think that the protagonist is the man, even though he is not a good person. He is the protagonist because he has to repress his emotions throughout the story, and he also ends up "losing" in the end, because he is sentanced to the gallows. I think that the second cat is the villian because he inspires the man do bad things, like murder. I think that Pluto is both cats in the story, but he is more aggresive as the second cat. As the first cat, he pushes the man to do a bad dead, but the reader dosn't know if it is intentional. However, when Pluto is the second cat, he is back for revenge and uses the man's alcohalism and his emotions against him and pushes him to the point where he commits the ultimate crime of murder.
ReplyDelete2) I think that my favorite story so far was The Tell-Tale Heart because I like the way it was written. I liked the way the the author made it seem like the narrator was crazy by using hyphins and fast paced language.
3) There are many things that are similar in all of these stories. One of the main things is that the protagonist is always dealing with a heavy mental load. Some of them are dealing with the loss of a loved one or thing, and some of them are dealing with something about themselves that they don't like. And, in all the stories, the protagonist tries to repress these emotions by using some sort of escape. For example, in The Raven, the man isolates himself in attempt to repress the loss of his lover, Lenore. In The Masque of the Red Death, Prince Prospero tries to repress the fact of his mortality by closing himself off and having a party. Another similarity between all of them is that the antagonist represents the emotions that the protagonist is trying to repress. For example, in The Raven, the raven taunts the protagonist by continuosly saying, "nevermore." In The Black Cat, the second cat represents the guilt, anger, digust, and annoyance the man feels about himself. And, lastly, in all stories, the protagonist ends up "losing" to the antagonist. This means that in the end, the protagonist ends up breaking and being caught for their deeds or meeting their demise. For example, in The Black Cat, the man ends up being sentanced to the gallows because the police find the body in the wall. In The Tell-Tale heart, the man is also arrested because he is taunted by the sound of the old man's heart beating to the point where he admits his deed.
-Jack
Chisom Oraedu:
ReplyDelete1) Discuss who could be the protagonist and antagonist in The Black Cat; explain your logic and reasoning for why. Please remember to use details and specifics from the story to support your response.
• The narrator is the protagonist because he tells the story from his perspective. He doesn’t succumb to his madness right away. As he progress in his alcoholism, the good in him is suppressed and dominated by the evil: “But my disease grew upon me—for what disease is like Alcohol!...” (Black Cat 64). As the story goes on, the protagonist grows more and more mad to the point that he kills his wife.
• The second black cat is the antagonist because he reveals to the police that the corpse is in the wall. If it were not for the cat tripping the narrator, he wouldn’t have killed his wife. The narrator feels rage and hate when he’s around the cat. He wants to get rid of it and distance himself from it. That’s why he gets angry when it follows him into the cellar. He uses words like “shame” and “disgust” (Black Cat 67) when it’s around him. At the end, he calls it “monster” (Black Cat 70). The protagonist’s repressed emotion is the monster. The second cat taunts him the most; even when he goes down into the cellar, it weaves between his legs. The second cat is far more affectionate than the first one because it is trying to gain the protagonist’s trust to later betray him.
2) What Gothic Literature that we've read so far is your favorite, and explain why. (The Raven, The Masque of the Red Death, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Minister's Black Veil, or The Black Cat)
The Raven is my favorite because it was the first Gothic literature story that I have read. It really gave me a good basis for understanding the essential elements of all Gothic pieces. For example, the characteristic of the voluntary isolation of the protagonist was exemplified when the narrator shut himself behind his “chamber door” (Raven 754). Every time that I read a new Gothic literature piece, I can always think of this example when I’m searching for who the protagonist is because this is an essential characteristic of all protagonists. The elements of Gothic literature that I found in The Raven is my favorite because it was the first Gothic literature story that I read and will be used as a reference point for me when I read more Gothic literature pieces in the future.
3) What are some similarities between all the Gothic Literature stories we've read so far? Again, be specific and use details in your response.
There are major similarities between The Tell-Tale Heart and The Black Cat. In the Tell-Tale Heart, the protagonist tries to convince the audience that he is not mad. He then proceeds to progress deeper and deeper into his insanity, provoked by the Evil Eye, until he is driven to commit a heinous act: “…and so by degrees—very gradually—I made up my mind to take the life of the old man…” (Tell-Tale Heart 121). In The Black Cat, the protagonist is also driven to kill someone by his growing insanity, which is caused by the cat: “Goaded, by the interference, into a rage more than demonical, I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the axe in her brain” (Black Cat 68). Another similarity between the two stories is that both protagonists try to hide that they committed the act. Found in all five of the stories is a provoking factor that causes the protagonists to commit deeds that they grow to regret.
Chisom Oraedu:
ReplyDelete1) Discuss who could be the protagonist and antagonist in The Black Cat; explain your logic and reasoning for why. Please remember to use details and specifics from the story to support your response.
• The narrator is the protagonist. He has repressed emotions and is resisting the antagonist, the second black cat, throughout the story. He loses in the end by being sentenced to the gallows. This is the irony of the story. In the end, the villain prevailed over the protagonist, which is a characteristic of Gothic literature. In the beginning, he makes it clear that he will soon meet his demise: “But to-morrow I die, and to-day I would unburthen my soul” (Black Cat 63). The story starts with the narrator already sentenced to death; the rest of the story is just him telling the events that occurred.
• Pluto is the antagonist. Both cats are Pluto because when the narrator hangs the first cat in the beginning, it is reincarnated and comes back in the form of the second cat. It had a white mark on its breast to represent its rebirth. Pluto is the god of the underworld, and at the end the narrator says, “Upon its head, with red extended mouth and solitary eye of fire, sat the hideous beast…” (Black Cat 70). The entire time, Pluto’s reincarnation was acting so loving towards the narrator in order to gain his trust. As soon as the narrator begins to suspect something of the second cat, it exacted its revenge by revealing the narrator’s murder of his wife. Pluto was sent back to earth to sentence the narrator to the same fate of death that he was sentenced to by the narrator.
2) What Gothic Literature that we've read so far is your favorite, and explain why. (The Raven, The Masque of the Red Death, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Minister's Black Veil, or The Black Cat)
The Raven was my favorite because I’ve been hearing about this poem for years and about how insightful and well-written it is. I just never got the chance to read it. When we read it this year, I was excited to finally discover what everyone loved about it so much. What they were reveling over, I discovered, was the very relatable story. Many times in modern society, one hears about the death of a loved one and the grief that they feel. Though I have never lost someone, Poe’s exceptional really helped me to relate to the story. The protagonist articulates the line, “sorrow for the lost Lenore” (Raven 754). He feels great sadness and pain after her death and wants a “surcease of sorrow” (Raven 754). By describing in great detail the pain felt by the protagonist after the loss of Lenore, I considered how I would cope if I lost someone in my family. The emotions felt by the protagonist resonated through me, and I really sympathized with him.
3) What are some similarities between all the Gothic Literature stories we've read so far? Again, be specific and use details in your response.
In all 5 of the stories, the setting reflects the internal emotional world of the protagonist. In The Minister’s Black Veil, the setting is a small, church-oriented town where it is very quiet and ominous. Mr. Hooper is secluded from the congregation because they constantly avoid him and make him a topic of gossip. This results in him being very lonely and sad: “He could not walk the street with any peace of mind, so conscious was he that the gentle and timid would turn aside to avoid him, and that others would make it a point of hardihood to throw themselves in his way” (Black Veil 12). In all the stories, the setting around the protagonist reflects how he feels on the inside.
1. the protagonist is the narrator. it is him becuase in classic gothic literature writings the protagonist is normally the character that doesn't prevail and the antagonist is the character that is sucessful in the end. so since hte man in the end came to his demise that means that the cat is the protagonist and the narrator is hte protagonist. the antagonist is the second cat. it is the second cat becuase the cat is the emotions of hte narrator and those emotions are formed into the car making it against the narrator.
ReplyDelete2. if i were to pick on of my favorite's it would probably have to be the black cat. i liked this one becuase it was very easy to read and the way the cats are described was intresting. i also liked how throughout hte story you could believe that the antagonist was the narrator since he was shown as mean but at the very end of the story once you see how demonic the second cat really is. i thought that was intresting.
3. some of the similarities is the writing structure to me. all of the protagonist come to a demise in the end. also that in every story we've read the antagonist is always repressing hte emotions of the protagonist. so i htink that the stories that we have read have stuck to the original format of gothic literature.
deidre
deidre
ReplyDeletethe protagonist is the narrator because the narrator is volentarily isolating himself from his the second cat and the protagonist usually isloated either volentarily or involuntarily is a characteristic of the protagonist. another characteristics is the protagonist succumbing to the temptation from the villian. in the story the cat is not realy tempting the narrator into killing things but it is taunting which is the start of his killings. so in the end the narrator was lead to his demise by the cat, the antagonist.
2. at first i thouhght that my favorite piece would be the raven, becuase it was a classic gothic literature and the most well know but as we read more and i began to see the many other styles of writing that were used i began to like the black cat. however i liked the raven beucase i liked how it had the rhyming which made the words pop and gave more emphasis which made the story intresting. i also liked how the raven was such a small character only having one word but how that one word was the most important words spoke. and finally i thought the repitation of some pharses were good and kept the reader focused on the story
3. some of the similarities are how the protagonist and teh antagonist all have the same characterists. meaning how the antagonist is constantly representing the emotions of the protagonist and how the protaognist always fails in the end.