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Will Bodron
Mrs. Pritchard
English II
October 9, 2015
Crazy about Dark Romanticism
Avarice, revenge, and love can drive the minds of men to insanity. Dark Romanticism
analyzes, reacts to, and defines how the human mind functions and functions in specific
situations. "The Cask of Amontillado" specifically describes the effect of revenge on the
mind; "Eldorado" by Edgar Allen Poe focuses on failure; "Graves and Goblins" by Nathaniel
Hawthorne speaks of the inspirations of authors.
Edgar Allen Poe's poem, "Eldorado", briefly details a knight's attempt at
accomplishing something great. Accomplishing his goal takes his whole life, and he is
quickly discouraged by his underwhelming success. Poe writes, "Fell as he found / no spot of
ground / that looked like Eldorado" (Poe 10-12) to describe the knight's loss of hope. As the
knight loses hope and grows old, he meets a "shadow" which the reader can infer to be either
a personification of Death or the man's inner mind. The knight asks the shadow why he
failed, and what he should have done differently. The shadow replies wisely that it was
impossible to begin with, and that he will find all of his goals in death. Eldorado, the knight's
life goal, acts as a symbol of glory, riches, and happiness. Not coincidentally, Eldorado is
also the mythical Native South American city of gold that has been the object of many
people's conquests. The theme of this poem is directly connected to the words of the shadow
in lines 21-24, "Down the Valley of the Shadow / Ride, boldly ride,' / The shade replied- / If

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you seek Eldorado '(Poe 1: Eldorado)". The shade tells the knight that, although he may not
have succeeded in finding earthly happiness, he will achieve true glory in heaven after his
death. The tone of "Eldorado" begins on a youthful, enthusiastic note, but it quickly turns
dark and discouraged as the knight gives up hope. Poe uses numerous examples of figurative
language as well as tone to embellish his poem and to further the effect of the theme on the
reader. He utilizes juxtaposition relating to light, metaphors involving death, and alliteration
to make the whole work easier and more fun to read. He also uses a uniform rhyme scheme,
number of syllables per line, and stanza length. In conclusion, when the knight begins to give
up his unconscious mind takes over and sends him spiraling down into despair. "Eldorado"
gives readers a very Christian outlook on success, saying that the reader should not strive for
earthly happiness, and that the only true way to happiness is through death. Eldorado
shows how the mind breaks down because of repeated failure. In this poem, the reader sees
the knight falling into darkness as he continues to waste his life on otherworldly goals.
The main theme of the "Cask of Amontillado" by Edgar Allen Poe, revolves around
the drastic measures that a man takes to exact revenge and how revenge can bring out every
mans inner murderer. Immediately, the reader sees the deception and cunning that people
who have been hurt by others are capable of. In order to further the plot, Edgar Allen Poe
writes his piece in the first person to allow the reader experience the story from the eyes of
the murderer. Poe implores the reader to feel the same anger and hatred towards Fortunato as
Montresor, without ever telling the reader how Fortunato transgressed Montresor. He
accomplishes this by degrading Fortunato and by giving him distasteful characteristics such
as stubbornness, alcoholism, and ignorance as well as dehumanizing him later on by rarely
referring to him by name. Montresor foreshadows Fortunato's death by saying, "Come,' I
said, with decision, we will go back; your health is precious You are a man to be missed.
For me it is no matter. We will go back; you are ill, and I cannot be responsible. Besides,

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there is Luschresi"' (Poe "Amontillado":3). With these words, Poe begins making Fortunato
into an enemy, helping the reader rationalize with Montresor's deranged thought process. Poe
also uses imagery to enhance the overall theme and the reader's understanding of the
situation. Specifically, Poe writes, "He accosted me with excessive warmth, for he had been
drinking much. The man wore motley. He had on a tight-fitting parti-striped dress, and his
head was surmounted by the conical cap and bells. (Poe "Amontillado":1) to further the
dehumanization of Fortunato. Through imagery and foreshadowing, Edgar Allen Poe
dehumanizes Fortunato just enough for the reader to understand the homicidal thought
process of the main character. Poes main goal in writing this short story was to cause the
reader to think that he/she could have acted the same way as Montresor. Similarly, Nathaniel
Hawthorne tries to make the reader question, even for a moment, his/her beliefs about the
supernatural.
"Graves and Goblins" by Nathaniel Hawthorne also examines the inner workings,
limitations, and inspirations of the human mind, specifically the mind of Nathaniel
Hawthorne himself. Hawthorne writes, "They may be gross, indeed, with the earthly
pollution contracted from the brain, through which they pass; and heavy with the burden of
mortal language, that crushes all finer intelligences of the soul" (1) to support his idea that the
inspirations of an author are both supernatural and limited by language. Furthermore, the
reader can assume that the narrator, a ghost, is a metaphor for Nathaniel Hawthorne's
imagination and potential as an author, and that his ideas can't be fully represented by a
limited English language. Hawthorne also writes about a supernatural element that
contributes to his writing: "I steal into his sleep, and play my part among the figures of his
dreamswhichhe writes down as his own" (Hawthorne 8). Hawthorne uses circular logic
to support this claim, making it impossible to both prove and disprove. In doing this,
Hawthorne gives the reader ability to believe in ghosts for a moment and read the story as it

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is meant to be read. Hawthorne also uses archetypes to warn the reader what lies ahead if
he/she carries on with his/her current lifestyle. Hawthorne describes the fates and
characteristics of several ghosts, some with positive reinforcement, and others with negative.
Overall, the reader is asked to wonder whether or not Hawthorne actually was influenced by a
ghost to write this work.
The mind is a vast, confusing, and spectacular thing, capable of love, hate, and beauty,
but when stretched beyond its boundaries, augmented beyond its limits, it becomes something
more devious. It becomes self-detrimental, cunning, and homicidal. Dark Romanticism
plays at every reader's morbid curiosity to pull them in and make them think about
themselves and the things around them. Each of these works, by Edgar Allan Poe or by
Nathaniel Hawthorne, challenges the reader to think inwardly, to analyze his/her own mind.

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Works Cited
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "Graves and Goblins." ElderichPress.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 6
Oct. 2015. <http://www.eldritchpress.org/nh/gg.html>.
Copied and pasted into a word document
Poe, Edgar Allan. "The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe (1885."
PoeStories.com. 215, n.d. Web. 6 Oct. 2015.
<http://poestories.com/read/amontillado>.
Copied and pasted into a word document
- - -. "Eldorado by Edgar Allan Poe (published 1849)." PoeStories.com. 215, n.d.
Web. 6 Oct. 2015. <http://poestories.com/read/eldorado>.