Danse Macabre/Poe Project

By now you have likely read several Poe stories/poems and have
some understanding of the Danse Macabre. I would like to take our
understanding of these topics further and develop projects.
Your Task: Develop a Project on an APP of your choice (Google
Slides, Prezi, PowerPoint, etc.) on a topic you find interesting or
unique within Poe or Danse Macabre. Topics may include
Masque of Red Death
1. How does social-economic status affect if one survives or falls
victim to the Red
Death?
2. There is no allusion to where or how the Red Death originally
began, only to how it
spreads. Why?
3. What do you make of the colors of the chambers? Furthermore,
there is an emphasis
on the most eastern chamber being blue and the most western
being black velvet and red.
Why might this be?
4. Since time is referenced so often, what is its importance to the
story? And what is the
meaning behind the hourly striking of the clock?
5. How do the prince and his guests act like a disease in a body?
6. How do you think the Red Death enter

The Tell Tale Heart

1. The narrator insists from the very beginning of the story that he
is not insane. What characteristics does he say prove his sanity?
What characteristics suggest his madness instead?
2. Look carefully at the narrator's discussion of his motivation for
the crime. Why does he assure the reader that he loves the old man
and has no reasonable cause to kill him?

3. Notice how cautiously the narrator sets up the murder of the old
man? How does he do this? Why does he take so long before killing
him?

4. Notice all those places in the story when the narrator identifies
with the old man. Discuss the nature of this identification.

5. Discuss all the references to time in the storywatches, clocks,

time passing, etc. Why is the narrator so concerned with time?

6. Notice the narrator's insistence that what is mistaken for

madness is actually...

The Cask of Amontillado

How does the setting of "The Cask of Amontillado" change as the
story progresses?
Why do you think Poe chose to bring together in this story the
dreariness of the catacombs and the festival atmosphere of the
carnival?
What elements of the setting in this story would you consider
typical of a horror story? What elements seem unusual?

The Raven
1. Discuss the use of symbols in Poe's "The Raven."

This essay should identify the major symbols used in the poem, and
discuss what effect each has. The most important symbol is the
raven itself, with its dark and gloomy appearance lending a sense of
inevitability. Other symbols include the Bust of Pallas, who is the
Goddess of Wisdom, and the beautiful chamber, which is
reminiscent of the beauty of the lost Lenore.

2. Explore the parallels between "The Raven" and Poe's own life.

This essay should focus on Poe's life circumstances at the time of

writing, particularly the decline in his wife, Virginia's, health, and
the deaths of other women in his life. The sense of doom in the
poem should be related to Poes pessimism about his own life.

3. The Raven has an undeniable atmosphere of doom. Discuss how

this atmosphere is created.

This essay should explore how the different elements of the poem
combine to create this atmosphere of doom. Elements which should
be discussed include the poems subject matter, rhyme and meter,
symbolism and word choice.

4. In his essay "The Philosophy of Composition" Poe explored the

process he used to write "The Raven." How well does his poem meet
the requirements set out in his essay?

This essay should detail the main elements of a good poem, as

enunciated by Poe namely a single effect, brevity, an impression of
beauty and a tone of sadness. Each element should be applied to
the poem in question.

5. Analyze the mood and tone of Poe's "The Raven."

This essay should focus on the melancholy and dreary mood of the
poem. This is created by the choice of words (Gaunt, dreary. . .), the
chain of events and the foreboding of the repeated word
"Nevermore."
6. Is "The Raven" just a tale of a talking bird? What deeper themes
does it explore?

Reminders

This is a literary analysis paper. You are

to conduct literary analysis and develop
an interesting and intriguing topic to
analyze further. You are not to simply
give me a summary---if you do, you will
receive a maximum score of 50%.

Projects should include:

8 slides minimum
Appropriate digital design
Text References when applicable
Appropriate LITERARY ANALYSIS
Your project rubrics will be distributed tomorrow. Good luck.