Caroline Ouellette
Mr. Davis
English 10
5 October 2015
Eldorado Analysis
Edgar Allan Poe is known as a central figure of Gothic Romanticism. He is often associated with tales of the grotesque, horrible, and creepy. One poem, however, stands apart from the rest. Eldorado by Edgar Allan Poe recounts the life-long journey of a brave knight. Through this adventurous tale, Poe conveys to the reader that greed blinds one from reason.
Eldorado was published in a Boston newspaper in 1849, shortly before Poe’s death. This year also happened to mark the beginning of the California Gold Rush. In January of 1848, gold was discovered near Coloma, California, near present-day Sacramento. One year later, a huge migration of 300,000 people began flocking …show more content…
A brave knight dressed “gaily”, or brightly, is on a search for Eldorado, or a city of great wealth. Though Poe uses the word “shadow” here, its purpose is only to compliment the sunlight. To add to the stanza’s tone of optimism, the knight sings as if his long journey has yet to take a toll on him. In the second stanza, this optimism is replaced by threatening gloom. The knight is now old and “a shadow” has fallen over his heart. Note that, this time, the word “shadow” is used with a darker connotation; it represents despair and hopelessness. There is also much suspense in this stanza. Though the knight seems to be failing his mission, the reader still hopes that he will somehow achieve his goal. In the third stanza, the knight has officially failed due to his age and poor physical health. He decides to ask a “pilgrim shadow”, shadow now meaning “ghost”, where El Dorado could be. In the fourth and final stanza, the ghost tells the knight to “Ride, boldly ride” “Down the Valley of the Shadow” to find Eldorado. This “Valley of the Shadow” is a reference to the bible’s “Valley of the Shadow of Death”. One can therefore conclude that the ghost believes Eldorado does not exist in the mortal world. Rather, it is a state of happiness or self-satisfaction that can only be attained after death (in
Mr. Davis
English 10
5 October 2015
Eldorado Analysis
Edgar Allan Poe is known as a central figure of Gothic Romanticism. He is often associated with tales of the grotesque, horrible, and creepy. One poem, however, stands apart from the rest. Eldorado by Edgar Allan Poe recounts the life-long journey of a brave knight. Through this adventurous tale, Poe conveys to the reader that greed blinds one from reason.
Eldorado was published in a Boston newspaper in 1849, shortly before Poe’s death. This year also happened to mark the beginning of the California Gold Rush. In January of 1848, gold was discovered near Coloma, California, near present-day Sacramento. One year later, a huge migration of 300,000 people began flocking …show more content…
A brave knight dressed “gaily”, or brightly, is on a search for Eldorado, or a city of great wealth. Though Poe uses the word “shadow” here, its purpose is only to compliment the sunlight. To add to the stanza’s tone of optimism, the knight sings as if his long journey has yet to take a toll on him. In the second stanza, this optimism is replaced by threatening gloom. The knight is now old and “a shadow” has fallen over his heart. Note that, this time, the word “shadow” is used with a darker connotation; it represents despair and hopelessness. There is also much suspense in this stanza. Though the knight seems to be failing his mission, the reader still hopes that he will somehow achieve his goal. In the third stanza, the knight has officially failed due to his age and poor physical health. He decides to ask a “pilgrim shadow”, shadow now meaning “ghost”, where El Dorado could be. In the fourth and final stanza, the ghost tells the knight to “Ride, boldly ride” “Down the Valley of the Shadow” to find Eldorado. This “Valley of the Shadow” is a reference to the bible’s “Valley of the Shadow of Death”. One can therefore conclude that the ghost believes Eldorado does not exist in the mortal world. Rather, it is a state of happiness or self-satisfaction that can only be attained after death (in