The Murders in the Rue Morgue †a Story with Many Firsts Essay Example for Free

The Murders in the Rue Morgue – a Story with Many Firsts Essay â€Å"The Murders in the Rue Morgue† is unquestionably the first detective fiction story. This without a doubt makes Edgar Allan Poe the father of detective crime. Poe was gifted at writing the genre of horror, perhaps because as some say, his life had been â€Å"marred by tragedy from an early age†(online literature). He certainly did have a knack for telling interesting and imaginative tales, which was highlighted by his obsession with death and violence in his stories. Poe was able to keep his readers interested in his stories by not only writing of death and violence but also giving them mystery and a puzzle to solve. Besides being the first detective story, â€Å"The Rue Morgue† is a story full of firsts; it tells the first locked room mystery in which the crime takes place inside a room that has been locked from the inside with no other way in or out and the main character is the first fictional detective. These types of mysteries are certain to keep a reader’s interest because it seems that there is no logical explanation. â€Å"The Rue Morgue† uses both the locked room mystery aspect and keeping the answers until the very end as interest keepers and blends them together to make one fine mystery. This story is just as much about a mystery as it is about deductive reasoning. The characters of C. Auguste Dupin and the narrator, who is his housemate, live very secluded lives. It appears that they do not go out at all during the day but do go and entertain themselves by walking the streets of Paris at night. At an early point in the story the two men are walking when Dupin breaks the silence by a single sentence commenting on the very thoughts of his partner. This small mystery intrigues Dupin’s companion and the reader. Dupin makes his rationalization seem â€Å"so simple that we all feel that we are capable of it. †(Watt, â€Å"Overview†). The reader is compelled to believe that Dupin has an extraordinary power of insight the way he reasons his way to conclusions. He is not unlike Sherlock Holmes in this respect. Holmes is known for his rationalizations and reasoning as well as his eclectic lifestyle and odd habits just as Dupin is. As a matter of fact it is said that Sir Arthur Canon Doyle was inspired by Poe and his Sherlock Holmes character is based on his detective, C.  Auguste Dupin (Mansfield-Kelly, Marchino, 82) Unlike Holmes, Dupin is not a detective by profession; rather he is an amateur detective. He takes on the case of the murders in the Rue Morgue not for money but for his own amusement after reading about it in the paper. He feels that he is more competent than the police and that he can solve the crime before they can. He uses his analytical skills to deduce the solution, which we are enlightened by at the end of the story. He is keenly observant taking in every little detail of the house on the inside and outside. Upon examining the windows in the bedroom Dupin had reasoned that the means of the murderers escape had to have been through either of the windows. As he examined more closely he discovered that they were nailed shut, or where they? One window had in fact had a nail in it, which would limit its usefulness as an escape. The other window however had been â€Å"fixed† so that it could be opened by a spring and when closed again the spring would catch and the window would look as though it was nailed shut as well. Dupin comes to the conclusion that the murdered is an orangutan because of his obsession with literature and books. He is familiar with the description of the orangutan from Baron Georges Cuvier who describes the animal and it’s strength. By knowing these characteristics he is then able to compare the devastation of the two bodies with the â€Å"wild ferocity† (76) of the beast. This all of course is just a wild guess on Dupin’s part until he places an advertisement in a paper calling for the owner of an orangutan to come and claim his beast and a sailor (as he suspected) does indeed come for him. The sailor reluctantly confirms Dupin’s observations to be correct as he describes the heinousness of the crimes in which this orangutan committed, which was a result of being frightened by the sight of his master’s whip. Poe adds a little bit of the grotesque as well. To go along with our class discussion about gore, this could arguably be a first detective story including gore in its pages. There are numerous examples throughout the story that are very descriptive and horrific in nature, especially for that time period. Poe was quite explicit when describing the state of the bodies of the murdered, just as the scenes of the bodies and murders are in CSI. Illustrating the body of Madame L’Espanaye, Poe describes it as â€Å"her throat so entirely cut that, upon attempt to move to raise her, the head fell off. † (62). Poe also gives a telling description of the act of slicing her throat, which is on page 80 in The Longman Anthology of Detective Fiction, â€Å"With one determined sweep of its muscular arm it nearly severed her head from her body. Another prime example of gore in this story is the description Dupin gives the narrator of the hair that was found on the hearth, â€Å"Their roots (a hideous site! ) were clotted with fragments of the flesh of the scalp – sure token of the prodigious power which had been exerted in uprooting perhaps half a million of hairs at a time. † (74) These descriptions might not be something that we would consider to be gore by todayâ€℠¢s standards, but in 1841 when this story was written it very well could have made people faint just reading it. I may be simple in my analysis of this story, believing it to be about mystery and reasoning. I have read other people’s thoughts on the subject of this story, which include slavery. Though I don’t necessarily believe that Poe was disguising this story as an uprising against slavery, Edward Higgins White wrote a critical essay discussing that topic. His belief is that the true crime in this story is about slavery and that the orangutan is symbolic of this. He argues that the symbolism is mostly in the last section of the story in which the parallels to race and slavery are most notable. White states †Given the loaded connotations of key terms of the narrativeescaped, master, dreaded whip, fugitive, razor, and of course the Ourang-Outang itselfit would be nearly impossible to ignore the strong suggestions that the story is about slavery, and specifically about slave resistance. † Now I don’t totally disagree with those connotations but I don’t completely believe that Poe was trying to convey that particular message with this story. White questions why Poe feels the need to hide the slave rebel. I ask that same question. I just believe that he is reading too much into the story and is seeing things that are not really there. I do agree, however, that there are some strong parallels and that in reading his essay he makes a good argument. White also brings up the â€Å"Chantilly† passage. He summarizes the fifteen-minute walk in silence in which the detective and his companion take and how Dupin describes how he came to know what his friend was thinking about. He says, â€Å"The basic point of the Chantilly sequence concerns not Dupins intelligence but the narrators ignorance: he does not even understand his own thought processes, the associations made in his imagination. † It is this revelation that leads him to believe that Dupin’s subject is not necessarily the crime itself, but the process of assessing the crime, which reaffirms my belief that the story is about reasoning along with mystery. Edgar Allan Poe, the father of the American detective fiction story. Little did he know at the time the trend that he would be setting for all of literary fiction. The Murders in the Rue Morgue† set precedents for all detective fiction that would be written after it and it established the fundamentals of the detective story technique that are used today. Poe invented the locked room mystery and I believe the first to write descriptions that could be classified as gore. His unique writing style and characters keep readers coming back and keep authors on their toes trying to emulate his style of writing. After all, with out Dupin there would be no Sherlock Holmes and perhaps the genre of detective fiction would not be as we know it to be now.

Non-Depletable Energy Resources Essay -- Fossil Fuels Environmental, R

Non-Depletable Energy Resources Today, much of the world’s energy comes from the processing of fossil fuels like oil, natural gas, and coal. These fossil fuels, however, will not last forever. Fossil fuel supplies are slowly but surely dwindling in numbers and one day we will run out. We need to find different ways to generate energy. Another reason to find different ways to generate energy is that the burning and processing of fossil fuels emit NOx, SOx, CO2, and other particulate matter that is harmful to our environment and our health. Some may argue that nuclear energy power plants is the way that our society should generate energy, however, the nuclear waste it produces and the extreme dangers that exist if a plant were to blow up emitting radioactive material across a large span of area make me question its benefits. I think that society should turn to non-depletable resources such as solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy and hydroelectric energy for our energy needs. Why turn to the non-depletable energy resources? The answer is simple. All of these energy resources depend on renewable resources to generate power. No matter what we will never run out of wind, sunlight, water, or the heat that is in the core of the earth. There is no need to worry about dwindling supplies. Also, people have been using non-depletable resources for years. Hydroelectricity dates back to the Greeks of the 1st BC who used hydroelectricity to grind wheat and flour. The Persians had there own form of a wind mill in 500- 900 AD. The Paleo- Indians of North America even used geysers which would later be used for geothermal energy as a spa like refuge. Although there are some social and environment... ...Grand Vent is â€Å"that the combination of consistent offshore wind, modern turbine technology, and unused oil platforms can produce clean, inexpensive power for Louisiana.† (Source 2) I am a person that is very concerned with the environment. I think that we should do whatever it takes to keep the world we live in safe and clean. We as a society need to study and fully develop these non-depletable resources. Their environmental and social implications are minor compared to the use of fossil fuels and to nuclear energy. The costs will be minimized once we fully develop them and put them into full use. Works Cited Class Notes http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/classactivities/energyarticles.html http://www.solar4power.com/ http://www.environment.sa.gov.au/reporting/human/energy/renewable.html

Premarital Sex and Euthanasia

Pros and Cons of Premarital Sex and Euthanasia Purpose: To Inform in debate form to the audience about the Pros and Cons of Sex before Marriage and the act of Euthanasia. Specific Purpose: To come to a better understanding about both topics and to sort out the main Pros and Cons of each topic individually. Thesis Statement: Sex before Marriage and Euthanasia have many fascinating facts and opinions to support one another. I will discuss the Pros and Cons, such as the advantages and disadvantages of each topic to better help my debate on each issue. Main Point 1 Pros of Premarital sex. a. The fulfillment of a sexual desire b. Beneficial to the relationship in a communcation level c. Acceptance from partner d. Fun and exciting Main Point 2 Cons of Premarital Sex a. Is morally incorrect b. The fear of pregnancy c. Guilt d. Lack of self-respect Main Point 3 Pros of Euthanasia a. Relieve extreme pain b. To terminate the feeling of a low life c. Frees up medical funds d. Freedom of Choice â€Å"The Right to Die† Main Point 4 Cons of Euthanasia a. Devalues human life and rights b. Medical degrees involved in causing death, rather then saving lives c. Mistakes can happen d. Lack of respect to religious beliefs Yes? No? Reading upon these two controversial topics statiscally the majority of society will come to agree on the rights of â€Å"Premarital Sex† and the â€Å"Right to Die† about 70% of opinions are based on the Pros and what this leads me to an unclouded understanding that society now a days main concern is receiving instant gratification. People are no longer patient and are loosing their cultural, social and self respect by agreeing to mainly the pros yet there is a bright understanding of it's Cons which supports the morally correct decision to make and the religious aspect of both topics. Contribute to this websites and help support your opinion, don't just let your idea and opinion go to waste!

Essay on Oedipus Rexs Moral Responsibility - 1095 Words

Conscience, in modern usage, term denoting various factors in moral experience. Thus, the recognition and acceptance of a principle of conduct as binding is called conscience. In theology and ethics, the term refers to the inner sense of right and wrong in moral choices, as well as to the satisfaction that follows action regarded as right and the dissatisfaction and remorse resulting from conduct that is considered wrong. In earlier ethical theories, conscience was regarded as a separate faculty of the mind having moral jurisdiction, either absolute or as a representative of God in the human soul. Various syntheses of traditional theology with the existential view that knowledge is more emotional than scientific have been developed in†¦show more content†¦Lonely and homeless, Oedipus arrived at Thebes, which was beset by a dreadful monster called the Sphinx. The frightful creature frequented the roads to the city, killing and devouring all travelers who could not answer the riddle that she put to them: What walks on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening? The answer was a human being, who in infancy crawls on all fours, in adulthood walks upright on two legs, and in old age uses a cane. When Oedipus solved her riddle, the Sphinx killed herself. Believing that King Laius had been slain by unknown robbers, and grateful to Oedipus for ridding them of the Sphinx, the Thebans rewarded Oedipus by making him their king and giving him Queen Jocasta as his wife. For many years the couple lived in happiness, not knowing that they were re ally mother and son. Then a terrible plague descended on the land, and the oracle proclaimed that Laiuss murderer must be punished. After he made king, Oedipus takes it upon himself to rid Thebes of the plague by finding Laius murder.(p311/ln.104) Oedipus soon discovered that he had unknowingly killed his father. In grief and despair at her incestuous life, Jocasta killed herself, and when Oedipus realized that she was dead and that their children were accursed, he put out his eyes and relinquished the throne. He lived in Thebes for