Good reads Voxopop group - Profesora Blanca Lara

Good reads- Voxopop group- Profesora Blanca Lara

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time- Reviewed by Yolanda González Nieto

Rebecca- Reviewed by Victoria Silva Soto

Dracula- Reviewed by Francisca Sánchez Martín- Sauceda

The Lord of the Flies- Reviewed by Francisco Javier Vinuesa Clavero

The Great Gatsby- Reviewed by Ana María Rus González- B2.2- EOI Málaga

The mask of the red death- Reviewed by Mayte- C1 EOI Málaga

Introduction for ‘The Masque of the Red Death’, by E. A. Poe An introductory commentary upon The Masque of the Red Death by Edgar Allan Poe Not only did his orphanhood, but also his struggle through life led the author to write such stories regarding existence: Was born, lived and passed away lamentably. When reading this story, the idea of retaliation comes into mind, not only in the traditional sense of ‘revenge’, but closer to the classic Greek style of hubris, i. e., the gods-coming punishment for pride. Apparently settled in the Italian Renaissance, the account traces how Prince Prospero and his opulent guests seal themselves off from the rest of the world in an attempt to protect themselves from an impending doom. But, can they elude the menace of the ‘Red Death’? The story is widely regarded as an allegory about the inevitability of death. Nevertheless, it is objected by many whether Edgar Allan Poe intended to indoctrinate his readers. What it is evident, is the close connection between Shakespeare’s The Tempest and this story. Both are based on the idea of isolation to escape an otherwise unavoidable fate, and there is also the coincidence of the main character’s name –Prospero. Another point that appears to be conveyed in Poe’s tale, is that the indifferent wealthy suffer the destiny they deserve. The aesthetics of the story possesses all the elements of Gothic: A surrounded castle by an unseen enemy, a luxurious world amidst the cataclysm, and also the boasting of having The Death himself tricked. Prospero’s seven rooms, each decorated in a different colour, seem to represent the seven decades of life. The first one is located in the eastern side of the corridor, a direction which has been associated with the Sun rising and therefore, with the beginning of life. The seventh room, decorated in black, and blood red, is located on the far west of the corridor, in the direction of death and of the setting Sun. The clock, intentionally placed in the room of death, tolls every hour, reminding the masqueraders not only of death, but also of the ephemeral passing of time. However, do not deceive yourselves: Precisely, the clock of death is something that never ever can be mocked. Group working in ‘The Masque of Red Death’, by E. A. Poe. English C1 – L10A

The man of the crowd- Reviewed by María C. & Nina Prado- C1 EOi Málaga

THE MAN OF THE CROWD
Recorded by Maria C. & Nina Prado

Speaker A: We welcome you to the EOI Malaga Radio Channel.
Today we have the pleasure of presenting you a review of one of the short stories written by the important and well known American poet and writer Edgar Allan Poe. Nina, could you tell our listeners what story we are talking about?

Speaker B: Yes, of course. It is “The Man of The Crowd”, an amazing short story, full of mystery, an ideal opportunity to enter Poe's complex and imaginary universe.

Speaker A: Edgar Allan Poe is a very important writer in the history of literature, I guess. He is recognized as the inventor of the modern detective story, isn't he?

Speaker B: Yes, in fact, “The Man of The Crowd”, which was published in 1840, is considered to be the prelude to the first detective story he wrote just one year later, called “The Murders in the Rue Morgue”.

Speaker A: Apparently, “The Man of The Crowd” is about a man who is sitting in a Coffe-House in London watching people go by.

Speaker B: Exactly. He is just recovering from a long illness and is enjoying outdoors life. London at that point of time was with great difference the biggest city of the world with a massive population which is classified and described by the man in the Coffe-House with such an extraordinary detail that you almost feel being part of the story, sitting next to him, and watching all these individuals with the same curiosity that he does.

Speaker A: So, you don't believe that Poe, being an American, choses Britain's capital city just by coincidence for this story.

Speaker B: I'm sure that he chooses London on purpose as it is the prototype of the modern city that emerges from industrial revolution.

Speaker A: I agree with you completely. So, there we have this main character, who is the narrator of the story, “The Coffee-House-Man” who let us see through his eyes the people go by during the afternoon. But Nina, is that all?

Speaker B: No, it isn’t Maria. Suddenly, out of the crowd, an old man arouses his interest so much, that he is compelled to follow him the whole night and the following day up until the afternoon without a pause, because he cannot give up to the necessity of finding out what his secret is.

Speaker A: I would rather say that the narrator not only follows the mysterious old man who wonders restless through London town, he much more chases him with an almost insane obsession. Don't you think so?

Speaker B: Well, as a matter of fact, we could divide the story in two parts. The first one consists merely in sitting and observing people, i.e. a psychological observation of them, whereas in the second part the action emerges as soon as the main character chases the old man who wanders all along the city.

Speaker A: And I think it is really exciting because the rhythm in the second part keeps changing constantly. When you believe that the persecution has reached its top point it gets even more frenetic, then it slows down, and so on.

Speaker B: That's right. It's exhausting. Edgar Allan Poe is a master. He uses a very rich vocabulary and links the ideas together brilliantly, so that the reader can live every single moment of the story just the same way as the main character.

Speaker A: But this is not all, is it? What makes this short story so special? What about the first paragraph? What would YOU say about it?

Speaker B: I must admit it is kind of weird. There you have the obvious plot, which is what we have been talking about, but if you take into consideration the introduction, the story acquires multiple possible readings and so, the mystery is served. But then, of course, we could not expect less from Poe, could we?

Speaker A: Yes indeed, Poe, the master of mystery has served us in “The Man of the Crowd” with an enigma. Will we be able to find it out?

Speaker B: At the beginning of the story Poe quotes La Bruyere, who is a French writer, “Ce grand malheur de en pouvour etre seul”. What do you think it means, Maria?

Speaker A: With this Poe refers to the constant search of companion the 19th century men experienced, men who want to know everything, even the unknown, even that knowledge that does not permit itself to be unveiled.

Speaker B: But still this is not enough to solve the enigma. If you want to find out, dear listener, you will have to read the whole story.

Speaker A: Oh, Nina. I believe it is going to be a very nice challenge. Enjoy!

The Cask of Amontillado- Reviewed by Eli- C1 EOI Málaga

The Cask of Amontillado by Edgar Allan Poe
Review written by Mª José Pérez Mezquita Beatriz Becerra Vera Elisa Villalón Castaño Emilio López López
Read by Elisa Villalón Castaño (group ING6L12A)

Darkness, revenge, punishment, cruelty and a thrilling twisted sense of humour come together in this classic horror story. Edgar Allan Poe sets its plot during the carnival season in a crowded nameless Italian city. Like in many other Poe's tales the main character's intentions are revealed at the very beginning of the story. Montresor, the narrator, vows revenge upon Fortunato, who had previously insulted and offended him by unexplained reasons. He also states that this revenge has to take place without placing himself at risk. One night Montresor comes across Fortunato and appealing to his ego (as he prides himself on being a considerable connoisseur in wine), attracts him to his vaults in order to verify the authenticity of a pipe of Amontillado he had recently acquired. This premise is just an excuse to fulfil his inner, long-before, and planned-to-the-detail revenge. 

Poe leads the readers into the damp and claustrophobic corridors of Montresor's subterranean vaults, accompanying the characters between casks of wine and skeletons of the catacombs, to a surprising ending. One of the keys of the story is that Montresor does not reveal why he wants to take revenge on Fortunato. This fact offers readers the liberty of choosing whether the punishment inflicted to Fortunato is adequate to the affront or not, or if Montresor is just an insane, despicable and cruel person. The text is also full of ironic puns: Fortunato is not so fortunate after all, and Montresor reminds us of a monster. 

The Cask of Amontillado, despite being written in 1846, is an appealing horror story that conserves all its validity, force and freshness. Its sinister atmosphere, irony, dark sense of humour, dialogued duel and, what is more important, feelings of sympathy for the villain are clearly present in TV series and movies like Dexter or Hannibal. Poe uses a very visual narrative technique: the flashback, as he is confessing what he did 50 years before. In many aspects Poe himself led a difficult life and this fact probably had a great influence in his horror stories. Hardly could he imagine that his tales written in the 19th century would be republished many times and even adapted to the screen. 

 So... do you fancy being scared with The Cask of Amontillado?

Eleonora- Reviewed by Silvia- C1 EOI Málaga

TITLE: Eleonora 
AUTHOR: Edgar Ellan Poe 
PUBLISHED IN: 1850 
REVIEW FROM: Felix Lopez, Rocio Hermana, Silvia Parra, Carmen de Miguel (group ING6L10A). Read by Silvia Parra 

To start with, we are going to summarize the story “Eleonora” written by Edgar Allan Poe. The story is set in a very perfect and heavenly valley called the “Valley of the Many-Colored Grass” where the characters settled their home. After years living isolated they fell deeply in love. This situation didn’t last long since she, Eleonora, was touched “by the finger of death”. 

However, before she died, she wanted him to make a vow, which consisted in neither marrying another woman nor leaving the valley. She accepted the vow and passed away calmly promising him to be by his side in the “form of censers of the angels and sighs” in order to help him keep his promise. 

After a while, having mourned her death, the pain was so unbearable that he decided to leave the valley and join “the vanities and turbulent triumphs of the world”. In this story, Poe, reflects two opposite worlds corresponding to different epochs of his life. On the one hand, the world of innocence, goodness, spirituality, and lucid reason. On the other hand, the world of evil, shadow and doubt. 

By the time he wrote the story, his “childwife”, as he used to refer to her, who was also his cousin, had just got sick and he was having an affair. That is why critics believe that this is an autobiographical story. It sounds as if the whole story were a desperate plea for forgiveness. The author describes the story by using elements of nature. He reflects his feelings comparing them with the Valley where they live. When he is enjoying his first love, everything (nature and his feelings) seem to be springing up, blooming, arousing as if proclaiming the birth and beauty of it, however, a paramount change will take place in this ideal landscape when his young lover dies. And hence, all the surroundings lost their splendor, and the valley got darker as the flowers faded away and a voluminous cloud hung over the valley. “Life departed from our paths”, writes Poe. 

It is the language he uses what is really remarkable, you can find a wide variety of adjectives, literature figures and old-fashion words in it. If you like romantic stories and Poe, we strongly recommend you to read this one as you will be surprised. Contrary to other Poe’s work, this one has a happy ending and will leave you a positive sensation.