''Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque'' is a collection of previously published

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...

, first published in

1840 Events January–March * January 3 – One of the predecessor papers of the ''Herald Sun'' of Melbourne, Australia, ''The Port Phillip Herald'', is founded. * January 10 – Uniform Penny Post is introduced in the United Kingdom. * Janu ...

Publication

It was published by the

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

firm Lea & Blanchard and released in two volumes. The publisher was willing to print the collection based on the recent success of Poe's story " The Fall of the House of Usher". Even so, Lea & Blanchard would not pay Poe any

royalties A royalty payment is a payment made by one party to another that owns a particular asset, for the right to ongoing use of that asset. Royalties are typically agreed upon as a percentage of gross or net revenues derived from the use of an asset or ...

; his only payment was 20 free copies. Poe had sought

Washington Irving Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He wrote the short stories "Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and "The Legend of Sleepy ...

to endorse the book, writing to him, "If I could be permitted to add ''even a word or two'' from yourself... ''my fortune would be made''". In his

preface __NOTOC__ A preface () or proem () is an introduction to a book or other literature, literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a ''foreword'' and precedes an author's preface. The preface o ...

, Poe wrote the now-famous quote defending himself from the criticism that his tales were part of "Germanism". He wrote, "If in many of my productions terror has been the thesis, I maintain that terror is not of

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

but of the

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

". The collection was dedicated to Colonel

William Drayton William Drayton (December 30, 1776May 24, 1846) was an American politician, banker, and writer who grew up in Charleston, South Carolina. He was the son of William Drayton Sr., who served as justice of the Province of East Florida (1765–1780 ...

, anonymous author of ''The South Vindicated from the Treason and Fanaticism of the Northern Abolitionists'' (Philadelphia: H. Manly, 1836), whom Poe likely met while stationed in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

; when Drayton moved to

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Poe continued to correspond with him. Drayton was a former

member of Congress A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...

turned

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

and may have subsidized the book's publication.

Critical response

Contemporary reviews were mixed. The anonymous critic in the ''Boston Notion'' suggested that Poe's work was better suited for readers of the future; people of the time should consider it "below the average of newspaper trash... wild, unmeaning, pointless, aimless... without anything of elevated fancy or fine humor". ''Alexander's Weekly Messenger'', on the other hand, remarked that the stories were the "playful effusion of a remarkable and powerful intellect". Likewise, the ''New York Mirror'' complimented the author's intellectual capacity, his vivid descriptions, and his opulent imagination. Even with those positive reviews, the edition did not sell well. When Poe requested a second release in 1841 with eight additional tales included, the publisher declined.

"Grotesque" and "Arabesque"

When its publication was announced in ''

Burton's Gentleman's Magazine ''Burton's Gentleman's Magazine and American Monthly Review'' (sometimes ''...and Monthly American Review'' or, more simply, ''Burton's Magazine''), was a literary publication published in Philadelphia from 1837 to 1840. Its founder was William ...

'', its one-line description said that its title "pretty well indicates their tories'character". There has been some debate, however, over the meaning of Poe's terms "

Grotesque Since at least the 18th century (in French and German, as well as English), grotesque has come to be used as a general adjective for the strange, mysterious, magnificent, fantastic, hideous, ugly, incongruous, unpleasant, or disgusting, and thus ...

" and "

Arabesque The arabesque is a form of artistic decoration consisting of "surface decorations based on rhythmic linear patterns of scrolling and interlacing foliage, tendrils" or plain lines, often combined with other elements. Another definition is "Foliate ...

". Poe probably had seen the terms used by Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

in his essay "On the Supernatural in Fictitious Composition". Both terms refer to a type of

Islamic art Islamic art is a part of Islamic culture and encompasses the visual arts produced since the 7th century CE by people who lived within territories inhabited or ruled by Muslims, Muslim populations. Referring to characteristic traditions across ...

used to decorate walls, especially in

mosque A mosque ( ), also called a masjid ( ), is a place of worship for Muslims. The term usually refers to a covered building, but can be any place where Salah, Islamic prayers are performed; such as an outdoor courtyard. Originally, mosques were si ...

s. These art styles are known for their complex nature. Poe had used the term "arabesque" in this sense in his essay " The Philosophy of Furniture". Poe may have been using these terms as subdivisions of

Gothic art Gothic art was a style of medieval art that developed in Northern France out of Romanesque art in the 12th century, led by the concurrent development of Gothic architecture. It spread to all of Western Europe, and much of Northern Europe, Norther ...

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...

in an attempt to establish similar subdivisions in

Gothic fiction Gothic fiction, sometimes referred to as Gothic horror (primarily in the 20th century), is a literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name of the genre is derived from the Renaissance era use of the word "gothic", as a pejorative to mean me ...

. For example, the "grotesque" stories are those where the character becomes a

caricature A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings (compare to: cartoon). Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, ...

satire Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of exposin ...

, as in " The Man That Was Used Up". The "arabesque" stories focus on a single aspect of a character, often

psychological Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

, such as " The Fall of the House of Usher". A distant relative of Poe, modern scholar Harry Lee Poe, wrote that "grotesque" means "horror", which is gory and often disgusting, and "arabesque" means "terror", which forsakes the blood and gore for the sake of frightening the reader.Poe, Harry Lee. ''Edgar Allan Poe: An Illustrated Companion to His Tell-Tale Stories''. New York: Metro Books, 2008: 65–66. Even so, accurately defining Poe's intentions for the terms is difficult and subdividing his tales into one category or another is even more difficult.

Vol. I *" Morella" *" Lionizing" *" William Wilson" *" The Man That Was Used Up: A Tale of the Late Bugaboo and Kickapoo Campaign" *" The Fall of the House of Usher" *" The Duc de L'Omelette" *" MS. Found in a Bottle" *" Bon-Bon" *" Shadow: A Parable" *" The Devil in the Belfry" *" Ligeia" *" King Pest: A Tale Containing an Allegory" *" The Signora Zenobia" *" The Scythe of Time" Vol. II *" Epimanes" *" Siope" *" The Unparalleled Adventure of One Hans Pfaall" *" A Tale of Jerusalem" *" Von Jung" *" Loss of Breath" *" Metzengerstein" *" Berenice" *" Why the Little Frenchman Wears His Hand in a Sling" *"The Visionary" *"

The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion "The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion" is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe, an apocalyptic science fiction story first published in '' Burton's Gentleman's Magazine'' in December 1839. Plot summary Two people, who have been renamed Eiros and ...

" *"Appendix" (to be appended to the "Hans Pfaall" story) Poe later revised several of these tales and republished them under new titles: :"The Visionary" as "The Assignation" :"Siope: A Fable" as "Silence: A Fable" :"Von Jung" as "Mystification" :"The Signora Zenobia" as "How to Write a Blackwood Article" :"The Scythe of Time" as "A Predicament" :"Epimanes" as "Four Beasts in One: The Homo-Cameleopard" :"Shadow: A Fable" as "Shadow: A Parable"

References

External links

''Tales of the grotesque and arabesque'' V1V2
at Internet Archive {{Authority control Short stories by Edgar Allan Poe 1840 short story collections American short story collections Horror short story collections

Publication

Critical response

"Grotesque" and "Arabesque"

Contents

References

External links