A Brief Comparison of American Classics:
Dexter & Hop-Frog
How far is to far when it comes to getting revenge? The modern TV show Dexter by John Goldwyn and the historic “Hop-frog” by Edgar Allan Poe are two stories separated in time by nearly 160 years, yet they share many similarities worth mentioning. In Dexter a psychopath uses being a police investigator as a front to exact his revenge on criminals, while in Hop-Frog a crippled dwarf who also happens to be a court jester exacts his revenge on a tyrannical king.. The theme of murder being used as a means of revenge is evident in both of these stories through their use of extrajudicial killings, criminals who feel as if they are above the law, and the ultimate inescapability of the protagonist’s …show more content…
This can be seen clearly in Hop Frog. It is especially evident because of the fact that Hop Frog’s “Last Jest” (Poe 5) is the climax of the book. At the time of his last jest hop frog physically chains the king and his men as part of what seems to be an elaborate joke. These chains symbolize the inescapability of the king’s impending doom. This is crucial to this story because it shows a great shift in power; likewise, the fact that the crippled court jester has the king in chains is extremely ironic. However, the inescapability of the protagonist’s wrath is much less literal in Dexter. Throughout 8 seasons of Dexter no criminal ever escapes Dexter’s clutches. This is impressive because he appears to most people as a family man and an IT guy for the local police station, and in no way does he seem to be a threat. This fact aside, in every situation Dexter has the utmost confidence that he will always get his kill. A quote that expresses this is, “Okay, two serial killers go for a ride…why do I get the feeling that this ends…with only one of them coming back” (Dexter). In this quote Dexter is implying to the audience that he plans to kill his competition. Because of situations like this throughout the series, the death of an antagonist is always implied as inevitable, and is an important aspect of every episode. Therefore, the inescapability of revenge is crucial to the themes of the two stories, and with the inclusion of this similarity the plots of these two stories are
Dexter & Hop-Frog
How far is to far when it comes to getting revenge? The modern TV show Dexter by John Goldwyn and the historic “Hop-frog” by Edgar Allan Poe are two stories separated in time by nearly 160 years, yet they share many similarities worth mentioning. In Dexter a psychopath uses being a police investigator as a front to exact his revenge on criminals, while in Hop-Frog a crippled dwarf who also happens to be a court jester exacts his revenge on a tyrannical king.. The theme of murder being used as a means of revenge is evident in both of these stories through their use of extrajudicial killings, criminals who feel as if they are above the law, and the ultimate inescapability of the protagonist’s …show more content…
This can be seen clearly in Hop Frog. It is especially evident because of the fact that Hop Frog’s “Last Jest” (Poe 5) is the climax of the book. At the time of his last jest hop frog physically chains the king and his men as part of what seems to be an elaborate joke. These chains symbolize the inescapability of the king’s impending doom. This is crucial to this story because it shows a great shift in power; likewise, the fact that the crippled court jester has the king in chains is extremely ironic. However, the inescapability of the protagonist’s wrath is much less literal in Dexter. Throughout 8 seasons of Dexter no criminal ever escapes Dexter’s clutches. This is impressive because he appears to most people as a family man and an IT guy for the local police station, and in no way does he seem to be a threat. This fact aside, in every situation Dexter has the utmost confidence that he will always get his kill. A quote that expresses this is, “Okay, two serial killers go for a ride…why do I get the feeling that this ends…with only one of them coming back” (Dexter). In this quote Dexter is implying to the audience that he plans to kill his competition. Because of situations like this throughout the series, the death of an antagonist is always implied as inevitable, and is an important aspect of every episode. Therefore, the inescapability of revenge is crucial to the themes of the two stories, and with the inclusion of this similarity the plots of these two stories are