the-cask-of-amontillado.ppt

1、Edgar Allan Poe 坡,(18091849),The inventor of the detective story. The father of the modern American short story. The architect who helped the world discover science fiction as a literary genre. A skillful poet. An important literary critic His work has been praised by some and condemned by others. H

2、owever, his poems and tales are an important part of American culture and American literature.,Edgar Allan Poe 坡,Poes mother, Elizabeth Arnold Poe, died in Richmond on December 8, 1811,John Allan,Virginal,Introduction His Life,a miserable childhood,was adopted by John Allan,an unhappy relationship,e

3、ntered the University but didnt finish went to West Point but was dismissed,at 27 he married his 13-year-old cousin,her death in 1847 left him a bitterer life,died in mysterious circumstances, in 1849,Success as an artist and editor but failure to satisfy his employers and to secure a livelihood It

4、wasnt until the 1845 publication of Poes famous poem The Raven that he achieved the true rise to fame that had been denied him until then. The publics reaction to the poem brought Poe to a new level of recognition and could be compared to that of some uproariously successful hit song today.,Never mo

5、re,The Raven,Never more,而我的灵魂， 会从那团在地板上 漂浮的阴影中 解脱么 永不复焉！,乌鸦叙述的是一位经受失亲之痛的男子在孤苦无奈，心灰意冷的深夜与一只乌鸦邂逅并叙述的故事。基调凄怆疑惧，源于不可逆转的绝望，随着乌鸦一声声“永不复生”而加深，直至绝望到无以复加的终行。 “永不复生”共重复了11次，它是乌鸦唯一的话语，既是它的名字，也是它对作者每一次询问的回答。听起来既答非所问，又觉得非常应景。它把一幕原本荒诞的对话推向了对生存价值的哲理叙述。人至爱的一切不正像乌鸦聒噪的那样，一旦逝去便永不复生吗？ 12月的一个深夜，又黑又冷，这是叙述者凄苦难耐的心理写照。正是这种心

6、境引来了乌鸦，它枯立在指挥女神的塑像上，一次次地传达着冥界的讯息，一次次地用沙哑刺耳的“永不复生”的字眼戳啄着叙述者业已破碎的心，使他的灵魂沉入低徊飘荡的阴影之中。,Introduction: Comment,a villain with no virtue,an evil genius,Emerson: the jingle man,Whitman: “its narrow range and unhealthy, lurid quality” (不丰富的选材和不健康、可怕的质量),Comment from critics and other writers in America.,Intr

7、oduction,Poe enjoyed respect and welcome in Europe,His reputation was first made in France,Today, his works are read with appreciation and understanding.,Poes influence was considerable in Spain, Italy, Germany and Russia.,Poes achievement,a critic, a poet， a short story writer,the greatest journali

8、stic critic of his time,his poetry is “exquisitely refined“(精致优雅),his tales are complete works of art,a great writer of fiction, a poet of the first rank, and a critic of insight,Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque 述异集,a collection of short stories,tales,two kinds,Horror,Ratiocination,“The Murders

9、in the Rue Morgue” 莫格街谋杀案,“The Gold Bug”金甲虫,“The Black Cat”,“The Cask of Amontillado”,“Ligeia”,“The Fall of the House of Usher”,“The Purloined Letter”被窃的信件,“The Mystery of Marie Roget”,The Cask of Amontillado (1846),Edgar Allan Poe published “The Cask of Amontillado” in 1846. Its a tale of revenge,

10、murder, torture, and addiction set in a vast underground Italian catacomb. Its also a journey into the dark and mysterious recesses of the human psyche.,Fortunato,Montresor,Revenge,Amontillado (n),Cask (n),Catacombs (n),Plot summary( TEAM 1),Brief Plot Overview The story is narrated by Montresor, wh

11、o carries a grudge against Fortunato for an offense that is never explained. Montresor leads a drunken Fortunato through a series of chambers beneath his house with the promise of a taste of Amontillado, a wine that Montresor has just purchased. When the two men reach the last underground chamber, M

12、ontresor chains Fortunato to the wall, builds a new wall to seal him in, and leaves him to die.,Selected readings,I must not only punish, but punish with impunity. A wrong is unredressed when retribution overtakes its redresser. It is equally unredressed when the avenger fails to make himself felt a

13、s such to him who has done the wrong. ,Lets learn More details about the story,The Father of the Modern Short Story The first writer to define the short story as a distinct literary form. In a review of Nathaniel Hawthornes anthology nld , Twice-Told Tales in Grahams Magazine, May 1842, he described

14、 his theory on how to construct a tale: 1. A story should try to achieve a single effect. 2. All incidents and events of a short story should help the author to establish this effect. 3. The very first sentence of the story should bring out this effect. 4. The whole composition should follow the aut

15、hors pre-established design. 5. A reader should feel a sense of full satisfaction from having read the story.,Symbolsobjects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.,“Fortunato” the Carnival setting the descent into the wine cellar The coat of arms,1. Fortunatos

16、name,Poe uses Fortunatos name symbolically, as an ironic device. Though his name means “the fortunate one” in Italian, Fortunato meets an unfortunate fate as the victim of Montresors revenge. Fortunato adds to the irony of his name by wearing the costume of a court jester. While Fortunato plays in j

17、est, Montresor sets out to fool him, with murderous results.,2. the Carnival setting,symbolizes the social liquidity and freedom from social restrictions the carnival season is considered the most carefree but can be murderously serious. Montresor chooses the setting of the carnival for its abandonm

18、ent of social order. While the carnival usually indicates joyful social interaction, Montresor distorts its merriment and uses it for murdering purpose.,3. the descent into the wine cellar,The two mens underground travels are symbolic of their trip to hell, or say, moral or physical descent. Fortuna

19、to-killed-physcial descent, go to hell, die Montresor-killer-moral decadence, to be punished and go to hell,4. The coat of arms,Explain how Montresors family motto is related to the story? To the actions of Montressor? a huge human foot crushing a rampant serpent whose fangs are imbedded in the heel

20、 the foot represents Fortunato the serpent represents Montresor.,5. masonry,Fortunato made a gesture known to all masons, the members of fraternal society, which Montresor does not recognize though admitting he is a mason. His understanding of mason is different from Fortunatos.,Themes: Revenge The

21、overwhelming intensity of revenge and how it can distort and destroy lives Men will go to extremes to get revenge. You can never kill a person without killing part of yourself.,A Poison Tree William Blake I was angry with my friend: /I told my wrath, my wrath did end. I was angry with my foe; /I tol

22、d it not, my wrath did grow. And I waterd it in fears, /Night And my foe beheld it shine, /And he knew that it was mine, And into my garden stole /When the night had veild the pole: In the morning glad I see /My foe outstretchd beneath the tree.,Revenge - Quotations on revenge Eye for eye, tooth for

23、 tooth- Leviticus 24:20, King James Bible James Bond in For Your Eyes Only: Melina, the Chinese have a saying: Before you set out on revenge, you first dig two graves. Revenge is best dealt with by forgetting it. - Buddhism But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you. -Matthew 5:44 If we practice an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth, soon the whole world will be blind and toothless. -Mahatma Gandhi,Edgar Al