Both Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne are regarded as some of the most influential American authors of the past, with Poe’s works inspiring those in the United States and abroad (687) and Hawthorne being viewed as “the most valuable example of American genius” (603) of his time. Their stories explore the tendencies of humans to sin and the descent of individuals into grief, sorrow, and madness. Although Poe and Hawthorne primarily explore the darker ideals such as outlining the thought processes of madmen, their method of approach to these topics is their greatest difference – which is readily apparent in The Minister’s Black Veil versus The Raven.
Hawthorne’s works center on the actions of an individual, such as the Minister in The …show more content…
In The Minister’s Black Veil, the Minister is heavily scrutinized by his patrons due to his sudden donning of the black veil across his face. One patron even goes as far as declaring that “Our parson has gone mad!” (637) before the Minister can offer any explanation for the change. The only explanations given are hypothetical as a representation of the answers society as a whole would produce. It is worth noting that the Minister has not necessarily committed a sin or any sort of bad deed, but society twists the meaning behind his black veil into something that it may or may not be. Poe’s works tend to change our perspective to an individual such as the one who deemed it necessary to declare the Minister a madman. The main character’s downfall is often his own madness and the realization of that madness. In The Raven, the narrator quickly draws his own conclusions as to the raven’s presence, with each conclusion becoming increasingly more insane. The narrator himself actually creates these terrible meanings behind the presence of a raven. The bird’s presence does not have to be a negative omen, but the narrator has chosen to interpret it as so. In his doing so, evil is created from nothing. This is opposed to Hawthorne’s representation of society as innately …show more content…
However, the similarities end when looking past the work’s textual content and determining how its content is actually presented to the reader. Hawthorne bases his works around the idea that society in its entirety is evil. A character such as the Minister is used as a scapegoat for society to unleash their wrath upon. Poe’s works by association change our perspective entirely to refute that claim and establish that evil is only created by certain individuals – likely those that assault Hawthorne’s
Hawthorne’s works center on the actions of an individual, such as the Minister in The …show more content…
In The Minister’s Black Veil, the Minister is heavily scrutinized by his patrons due to his sudden donning of the black veil across his face. One patron even goes as far as declaring that “Our parson has gone mad!” (637) before the Minister can offer any explanation for the change. The only explanations given are hypothetical as a representation of the answers society as a whole would produce. It is worth noting that the Minister has not necessarily committed a sin or any sort of bad deed, but society twists the meaning behind his black veil into something that it may or may not be. Poe’s works tend to change our perspective to an individual such as the one who deemed it necessary to declare the Minister a madman. The main character’s downfall is often his own madness and the realization of that madness. In The Raven, the narrator quickly draws his own conclusions as to the raven’s presence, with each conclusion becoming increasingly more insane. The narrator himself actually creates these terrible meanings behind the presence of a raven. The bird’s presence does not have to be a negative omen, but the narrator has chosen to interpret it as so. In his doing so, evil is created from nothing. This is opposed to Hawthorne’s representation of society as innately …show more content…
However, the similarities end when looking past the work’s textual content and determining how its content is actually presented to the reader. Hawthorne bases his works around the idea that society in its entirety is evil. A character such as the Minister is used as a scapegoat for society to unleash their wrath upon. Poe’s works by association change our perspective entirely to refute that claim and establish that evil is only created by certain individuals – likely those that assault Hawthorne’s