Entrapment In Gothic Literature Essay

In gothic literature, the elements used by the author depicts how the piece of work is going to unfold. Authors such as Edgar Allan Poe and Washington Irving depict the themes of psychological issues and entrapment through the short stories: “Black Cat”by Edgar Allan Poe, “The Raven”by Edgar Allan Poe, and “The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving. The gothic theme of entrapment is commonly used across various pieces of literature. Entrapment is the idea of being contained by something either physically, mentally, or emotionally. In the short story “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe, entrapment is depicted through the man becoming entrapped to the cat and even his own home. Describing his home as a “felon’s cell” (Poe 3), the man shows

Many authors or poets use this theme to depict how past experiences or events affects people mentally and can leave them demented in many cases. “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe encompasses this theme. While searching for answers from the raven, “respite the nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore” (Poe 439) the man cannot get over the loss of his wife causing psychological issues for the man such as trying to obtain info from a raven about his dead wife. Correspondingly, in “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe, the man becomes agitated with the cat and decides to hang it. He “hung it because (he) knew in doing so (he) was committing a sin” (Poe 2). In carrying out this action knowing it was a sin shows how the man's mind is unstable and not in good standing. No person in their right mind carries out an action and wanting to sin while doing so. Moreover the short story “The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving as well depicts the reoccurring theme of psychological issues. With is wife having been missing, “Tom Walker grew so anxious about the fate of his wife and property he set out to seek them” (Irving 327). This quote depicts the mental issues Tom is experiencing with a lost wife and property in