The stuff of legends

After reading the Heroic Slave, I was a bit puzzled to why Douglass choose to write this novel, which was based on an actual event, as a ledged of sorts, rather than as a memoir. Writing this piece through Madison Washington’s perspective would have been much more meaningful and persuasive to me. Rather Douglass chooses to write Washington’s story as seen by Mr. Listwell and the First Mate. There are three possible reasons that I can think of as to why Douglass choose to do this. First, Douglass’ audience was white northerners, just like Mr. Listwell. Reading a story narrated by a man much like themselves, may have made Washington’s story much more relatable and reliable. Second, the heroes of legends never tell their own story. If Washington was a noble and true as Douglass described him to be, then he would have never told his own story and described him self with such valor. That would have been considered cocky. Lastly, providing two different views, the view of a white northern gentleman, like Mr. Listwell, and the view of a southern sailor, provides validity and truth to Washington’s immaculate story. Douglass even admits the three coincidental meetings between Washington and Listwell were immaculate and therefore, sought to qualify Washington’s story with two “unbiased” views.
P.S. I was unable to previously post my intro (I’m really bad with technology). So, I guess I will introduce my self now, and, again, I apologize that this is so late. So, Hi! I’m Rebekah. I am a freshman and I live in Ehringhaus down on South campus. I am from just outside of Charlotte and I live on a farm with cows and chickens back home. I have two brothers, Joseph, and Ben, and a sister, Sarah. My major is (hopefully!) nursing. I like running, cooking, and travel. And lastly, two interesting facts about me: I am deaf in one ear, and my lucky numbers are 5 and 8 because I am 5’8”, I was born on August 5th, and my shoe size is 8.5J

Heroic Slave

I found a few passages in Heroic Slave that relates to our questioning of the sea and its relevance in American literature, especially during this time period.

On p46...
"It is quite easy to talk of flogging niggers here on land, where you the sympathy of the community, and the whole physical force of the government...but sir, I deny that the negro is, naturally, a coward, or that you theory of managing slaves will stand the test of salt water...It is one thing to manage a company of slaves on a Virginia plantation, and quite another thing to quell an insurrection on the lonely billows of the Atlantic, where every breeze speaks of courage and liberty."

This quote was said by the first mate of the ship that Madison Washington and the other slaves on board took over. Reference to the sea in American literature was common, and I think that when it comes to literature concerning slavery, this quote pretty much explains why the sea is always included. It is basically explaining that when one is on the sea, the laws of the land don't apply. So, whereas slaves and even freed black men were very limited by law on US soil, moving off shore was a completely different scenario. This was especially so if the numbers of the enslaved was close to or higher than the whites trying to keep them in bondage. The sea offered to the oppressed an opportunity to pursue insurrection against such inequality. Without, as the first mate mentioned, societal support for such oppression, the potential power and potential success of insurrection rises greatly on the sea.
I enjoyed this work much more than Pym, and although the coincidental events in Heroic Slave did at times seem too lucky to be real, I could still appreciate the main issue behind this work, which was an abolitionist work exploring possibilities of a true event, revealing the brutality of the South's slave society, exposing the ridiculousness of many Southerner's ideas behind slavery (i. e. it's ridiculous to regard people as property, as the Nassau natives pointed out) and serving as propaganda for abolitionists.

epically believable

Douglass creates a story that has all the makings of a good epic story: a hero who is noble, educated, and seemingly perfect; a helper along the way to give him what he needs to succeed at all points in his journey; even a tragic love story that brings our hero into the heart of his problem. What Douglass has done is give us a noble representation of a slave to convince us of his purpose and to call us to come along. He appeals to our common love for liberty - a love that might just be at the core of the American dream, just as much for us now as to the abolitionists to whom this story was directed. Douglass justifies the use of force in this search for liberty... "we have done that which you applaud your fathers for doing, and if we are murderers, so were they!" (p.49) Aren't we struck by the similarities in their search for freedom? Shouldn't we applaud their principles... ones on which this Nation was built? The thing that holds us back is that white men "do not recognize [these principles'] application to one whom [they] deem inferior."

The fact that this story is unbelievable is beside the point. Where I find this story so much easier to support in contrast to Pym is in the presence of plot. We know what Douglass is trying to tell us, and he connects it well with good writing skills. We are involved in the story and the character, and the unbelievable elements of his path to freedom are necessary and support this folklore. Don't we always glorify the past? What makes us think we need to have a factually accurate account of everything? An epic reminds us of what we dream for - and what we are left with is a story that, at its core, is true, though not necessarily factual or literally believable. Take this story for what it is, and you will see that Douglass was trying to inspire, and I think he did a good job.

(emma refvem)

one theme in the Heroic Slave

In the Heroic Slave, it is clear that Douglass is carefully developing an argument. Something which, I believe, is not true of Poe in Pym. In this novella, Douglass builds up the character of Madison Washington, embellishes the true history of the man, in order to inspire other slaves to rise against their bondage. An important theme in Douglass’ work is that of the necessity of solidarity among the slaves. He uses Madison as a figure head. In each case that Madison attempts to gain his own freedom with the help of another or attempts to aid in freeing others, the plan does not reach completion without the others completely giving themselves to the cause and trusting Madison. The old woodcutter, for example, lost site of the big picture, and “betrayed” Madison. While there were extenuating circumstances which lead to him having to make a decision he did not want to, I believe that had Madison, or Douglass himself, been in the same place they would have chosen silence and taken the punishment so that Madison’s character could avoid being caught and reach freedom. Douglass would have seen the benefits of one slave’s freedom as greatly outweighing the costs of the confrontation with the slave catchers. Each escaped slave paved the path for more. Indeed once Douglass was ‘free’, he worked on the underground railroad and petitioned for civil rights, helping other slaves do what he did. On the other hand, the mutiny on the Creole is an exemplar of the success the slaves could have when they worked, unfailingly, toward a single goal. By faithfully following Madison, without question, the slaves on the Creole were able to successful overtake the ship and execute their plan for gaining freedom. It is important to note here, however, the significance behind Douglass writing that a group of black soldiers was sent to guard the ‘property’ on the ship. The fact that he felt the need to make these men black, displayed a continuing mistrust he had of many white folks. While abolitionists were fighting for the rights of black men, many of them were still racists and thought less of blacks; a man like Listwell was an anomaly. Well after the end of slavery and the Civil War, the civil rights of blacks were not as well protected in practice as those of whites. Even men like Garrison, whom Douglass held great respect for, limited Douglass’ influence, and many couldn’t believe that a former slave could be so well-spoken. In the Heroic Slave, Douglass develops the character of Madison and the events that happen around and involving him in order to portray a strong picture of the need for blacks to help one another in the fight against slavery, as well as to dispel the notion that a black man could not be great.

"Unbelievable" isn't applicable

Hi everyone - I joined the class late, so I never got to publish my introduction. My name is Nyssa Collins and I am a part-time student living in Hillsborough. My major is economics because I am intrigued by the growing field of Behavioral Economics, which means that you study people like they are chimps and try to figure out why they do the things they do. After I graduated high school, I took a year off to do AmeriCorps NCCC, a national community service program, and I built houses and planted trees in the Gulf Coast. After that I took time to travel in Canada and New England. Now, I very nearly a freshman in college. When I grow up, I want to be a vegetable farmer.

The argument that Douglass’ novella is unbelievable must be considered in perspective with his purpose for writing the piece. The most important thing to remember about a novella is that it is fundamentally deliberate: it is so short, there is no room for anything without a purpose. Parts I and II read more as a sermon than as a story, where Frederick Douglass seizes a historical legend, Madison Washington and the mutiny aboard Creole, and turns him into the mascot for the abolitionist movement. Taken in the context of time and purpose, it is asy to view the Listwells as models for human kindness and practical guides for progress. Washington is his inculpable eminence, politically humanized (see how he defies rationality and freedom to rescue his wife in the third section) just enough to inspire readers to his humanitarian cause. In an external speech, Douglass uses the same lyrical speech we find in The Heroic Slave to elevate Washington’s life (“the spirit that is in the black man”) to saintly heights. “While my wife is a slave I cannot be free. … I will go to Virginia and snatch my wife from the bloody hands of the oppressor!” he cries.

In this fashion Washington’s tale is used by Douglass in the long-standing theme of the author’s life: to incite abolitionists to action. The introduction confirms Douglass’ success with this particular iteration of the Madison Washington tale: “After the publication… Douglass achieved international fame as a spokesman for liberty and equality.” He enjoys a career of traveling a motivational speech circuit from the momentum of this piece. We cannot argue that The Heroic Slave is an unbelievable piece because the point is not valid. The novella has too noble a cause for the trivialities and restrains of reality.

Final Take on "The Heroic Slave"

The final statement at the end of the novel sums up the intended characterization of the protagonist: “they deliberately gathered up their baggage …under the triumphant leadership of their heroic chief and deliverer, MADISION WASHINGTON” (pg 51). What gives Madison Washington the air of an important figure is his effect on others. The other slaves view him as not only a leader but also as a means of achieving freedom, which was the overarching goal from the beginning. I don’t think the question is whether or not the story is believable as much as it is the symbolic representation of hope for others in the same situation, if however, they were lucky enough to hear of it or be able to read it. The reference to Washington as a deliverer also likens him to a god-like figure. The comparison makes him seem as if he alone was solely resposible for the events that led up to each man being able to walk free. It gives him an untouchable characteristic, which could contribute to the unrealistic aspect that others are reading from the story.
Washington’s status as well as his story seems to parallel that of Frederick Douglass’. They both are important figures to those they inspire and they both are working for freedom, although their methods may differ slightly. The coincidence that they both encounter the sea at some point in their life, Douglass when he travels to New York as a sailor and Washington when he takes over the ship, reinforces the idea of the sea being a common theme in antebellum literature about slavery. For both men, it was a means of achieving freedom.

A friendlier opinion of "The Heroic Slave"

Perhaps one of my weaknesses when I approach a book, movie, piece of art, or anything really is that I tend to not look at that thing through the eyes of a critic. While I think some literary works are horrible and a waste of my time, I don't typically read them doubting their credibility or thinking to myself "This could never happen in real life." In class, as well as throughout this blog, there seems to be a going trend of people not caring for the books we're reading because they aren't realistic and too ironic for a person to feel anything but annoyance towards them. I think and hope that we can all get past the fact that books are not always written to be realistic, nor predictable, and by spending so much time bashing them for their lack of realistic content, we're missing out on the opportunity to look at what the author did write and what it means, whether it's likely to happen in real life or not.
With this said, I would say that I have enjoyed The Heroic Slave very much. Douglass composes a story that closets meaning behind many of the far-fetched ideas that he presents. I love the fact that there is a sense of "destiny" guiding this story by putting two people together at different moments, places, and times. Douglass touches on so many pre-civil war issues including slavery and women within slavery. Beyond that, he does something even more powerful by adding the feelings of a white man towards slavery after hearing one speak of his tragedies. This idea, that a white man can make a complete 360 in his feelings towards a slave is surrounded by so much hope that, I think, represents much of Douglass' hope throughout his entire life. That, to me, is a big part of why I think Douglass wrote the novella. Sure, money was involved but who says selling something you write doesn't mean you didn't get some reward out of writing it?
Aside from all of that, I noticed the line at the end of the reading that blatantly links the ocean with slavery as we have been talking about. Washington says right out, "The ocean, if not the land, is free." giving an idea to how the ocean linked to slavery for a slave. That line just caught my attention so I decided to throw it in here.

A Greek Hero?

I completely agree that the story of Madison Washington is one about a Heroic and
symbolic character. This can been seen through the conversion experiences of every man who comes into contact with Madison Washington. First Listwell, and later with the shipmate who had dealt with him on the Creole, but ends his speech by saying: “I confess gentleman that I was in the presence of superior man; one who, had he been a white man I could have followed willingly and gladly in any honorable enterprise” (Page 50). These conversions show Washington to be more than a man, he is a great superior figure, whom men from all aspects of life (farm, sailor etc.) will “follow willingly.”
Douglass further paints Madison Washington as a hero, through his reports of the action. There was never one point in the story in which we, as the reader, directly read about action in the story. This is seen in Washington’s explanation of how he ended up on Listwell’s farm, his escape from slavery, he re-capturing and finally through the discussion of the ship hands we are shown the mutiny on the Creole. This narration of action gives the story an air of myth because we as readers are separated from the greatness of Washington, which places him on a pedestal of heroism, above the common reader. This reported action is also like a Greek play, in which the action is never seen on stage. I think that Douglass was utilizing this in order to create this air of mysticism around the great figure of Madison Washington, as well as proving himself as a highly intelligent man and writer.
Furthermore in this story, Douglass really creates a distance between the reader and Washington’s character because he is supposed to be a symbol, a beacon of hope and greatness, not a tragic or flawed hero to which we as people can relate. On the contrary through this narration technique that mirrors Greek plays, Madison Washington is placed in the same category as ancient Greek heroes – the first before the American forefathers- creators of liberty, equality and democracy.

( I couldn't figure out how to change my name? so... Emma Thorne)

you, too, can do what's morally correct!

In general, I find Douglass’ The Heroic Slave even more difficult to believe than Poe’s Pym. Although the situations in which Madison Washington finds himself are certainly more plausible than Pym’s ridiculous encounters with ghosts and mysterious-appearing Newfoundlands, I am certain that Poe wrote Pym expecting an air of ludicrousness to surround the novel. Douglass, on the other hand, seems to have a more direct purpose to his novella. The coincidences that Madison Washington finds himself lucky enough to come across, as well as the flawless characters of Mr. and Mrs. Listwell, leave me frowning and thinking, “Really, Fred, really?”
Nevertheless, the coincidences in no way detract from the purpose and theme of The Heroic Slave. On the contrary, with the lack of information the novella’s readers likely had on just how aiding and abetting fugitive slaves worked, the luck that Washington and Listwell encounter may even seem probably to its intended audience. With Douglass’ flowery descriptions of just how morally-conscious and courageous the Listwells are, as well as how easy it seems to get a slave to freedom without getting caught, the novella probably acted to some of its initial readers as a push in the right direction. Surely if he can do the right thing, we can too, right?

....Frederick D...is awesome

I thought the first two parts of “Heroic Slave” were extremely intriguing. As many classmates brought up in Tuesday’s lecture, Douglas’s fantastical scenarios did not seem to hinder the text at all for me. Not once did I stop and think about how ridiculous the scenes were, where everything seemed to happen just perfectly. Although, Linnie and others did bring up some very good points about the reality of it all. As I read the last parts, I was more conscious of how things did appear to happen so coincidentally, and it really affected my overall admiration for the text. How ironic is it, that among all else, Listwell would run into Washington yet again? This reoccurring and unrealistic idea started to get on my nerves a bit towards the end. Though Parts III and IV were not as interesting to read as the first two, I really admired the work by Douglas. He kept me entertained for the most part and not once did I really want to put the book down. (But why did Washington’s wife have to die? I was pulling for them both!) He was so intelligent and insightful and truly portrayed the figure of Washington in a light that was well inspiring to other slaves, and even today encouraging to countless others.

Heroic Slave- Unbelievable but I don't care...

In class on Tuesday, several people commented on the fact that events in The Heroic Slave were unbelievable. For example, Mr. Listwell transforms his rascist views after he hears Madison’s speech in the woods. Also, probably not very likely is that Madison delivered his speech with extreme eloquence and intelligence. Since he probably did not know how to read or write, sounding as educated as he did would have been impossible. Throughout Madison’s long road to escape, he was forced to hide in a swamp for five years, which is another element of the story that seems questionable. How would he have been able to live in a swamp for five years and wouldn’t his masters have been looking for them?
Though there are many instances in the story that seem hard to believe and it frustrates some readers, it does not bother me in the least. In fact, I have every reason to believe Madison’s story and am very intrigued in his adventures and encounters. The “unreal” element enhances the story and, unlike in NAGP, the story does not seem completely made up. Even though the story may be slightly enhanced for the reader’s pleasure, I find that the impossibility factor is easy to get over and does not distract.

Okay, Frederick Douglass...

So, I have a beef with this book. You probably heard it in class, but let me elaborate (also, for the record, I wouldn't say this novella is any better than Pym. That will probably get me a few virtual chastisings, but oh well).

First off, I have a lot of trouble accepting that there can't be a union (read: a better union that Douglass has rendered) between a propagandaist document and fiction. There are so many books that stand alone as both effective propaganda and GOOD FICTION. Invisible Man is a prime example, but also look at other books-- in Slaughterhouse Five, Vonnegut isn't necessarily pushing an agenda as important as Douglass's (I read a lot of Vonnegut as promoting pacifism, but that's an interpretation) but he manages to write a coherent and cohesive novel without sacrificing his message. Basically, I'm asking why Douglass made the choice to have so many coincidences and improbable events in the plot when the story of Madison Washington, which I find interesting in itself, could have been interesting without them.

Could he have made an enthralling story that was also more believable? My biggest problem with this book is that these improbable occurrences seem so unnecessary. Why not have Madison Washington drawn out of the woods by slave catchers (which could have happened) instead of a forest fire that resembles something Dante would've written (could have happened, likely wouldn't have). Anyway, maybe this argument is irrelevant to literature, because the author made the choice and instead of analyzing what it could be, perhaps I should be looking at what it actually IS. 

Let me know what you think. Is it fair to even ask these questions when there's always potential for a book to get better? Could Douglass have made his book more believable, probably and thusly more relatable?

Intro and Alternate Opinion on Poe's Novel

Alright, this is waaay late but I just got access to the blog. My name is Adam Porritt, and I'm a sophomore double majoring in Political Science and International Affairs with a minor in Spanish. I'm from Fayetteville but my father's in the military, so I've pretty much moved around my whole life. I love to play soccer, snowboard, and just about any other sport where I can compete against other people. I'm a complete goofball and I like having fun doing just about anything. I really like to travel and try new things/meet new people so feel free to facebook me. I was somewhat dismayed by the fact that I seemed to be the only one who was not overly critical or analytical of Poe's novel. I very much enjoyed reading the piece because of the overwhelming amount of action and adventure. I do concede that the novel jumped around a bit and seemed to be more like a patchwork of short stories, but I did not feel that it detracted from the novel at all. We know that Poe wrote the novel because of financial woes, and I think that may have caused the lack of a cohesive flow. I feel like the novel, being an action/adventure story, completely served it's purpose though. I thought that the only hinderance to the read was Poe's tendency to venture into long descriptions of less interesting topics, such as the water-bags in large tortoises. This however, was still necessary in order for some parts of the novel to make sense. If the description of these bags of water were not explained then several men surviving off of one tortoise for several days would have been even more farfetched. Also, there were some instances in the novel that were a bit incredulous such as when Pym pulls out a pen and paper when he's being chased on Tsalal. I think that knowing Poe's motives for writing the novel and a certain amount of suspension made me less critical and enabled me to fully enjoy the novel.

I'm glad I wasn't expecting much from Poe.

From the beginning of this novel, if you'd like to even call it that, I recognized that there would be issues regarding interpretation and reliability on the narrator, Arthur Gordon Pym. Arguably the tale follows the cliché agenda of sea voyagers; ship wreck, mutiny, savage natives and such, but the mere idea that Pym and Poe try to pass the novel off as an autobiography is absurd. The issues mainly rely in how much we can trust Pym as he retells his tale, even though he is dead. Personally I feel deceived in initially believing that this quest was fact while in truth it was merely a descriptive imagination I did not enjoy. Half the time I was reading the book, I literally had my mouth open in shock that certain events or meals happened for which Pym, Peters, and Augustus felt no remorse.

Poe’s great depth into how a corpse ship would look, or how it would feel in picking a mate to eat after starving for a week furthered the acknowledgment that his imagination was not a place one would want to spend a lot of time in. Because his life was so filled with death and abandonment it would seem plausible that his books and creativity could be an escape, but ultimately they were a way in which to funnel his cruel and gruesome feelings into something everyone could share, regrettably. I personally hated the fact that Augustus died. He was the only character I felt I could trust in the entire book. The rest remained deceitful in every single action. Peters was once the leader of a mutiny, Pym is half drunk or crazy of which his vivid and unlikely imagination was born. And the remaining characters such as the natives of Tsalala and the smiling face on the corpse boat that passes by prove this fact; there are two faces to every character, none of which seemed trustworthy. Thus, I believe that Poe could have possibly been making a statement regarding all those who did not fulfill his life, but he had hoped could have done so. Certain people may seem as if they are helpful or trustworthy or lifesavers, but in fact they have another side to show, such as a murderer, a mutineer, or a dead face with an eerie smile.

Perhaps There's More to It?...I don't even know.

The general consensus seems to be that the novel seems to be more tedious of a read compared to other classics written by Poe. Indeed more most part of the book, I also felt the very same thing towards the work. The random tangents by Pym as well as the sometimes incomprehensible and improbable situations he and the mates find themselves in do tend to make the story more chaotic than it needs to be. I agree with others who suggest that this novel should have instead been published as a collection of short stories and also written with a better plot. I do believe breaking up the scenes into a series rather than a definitive work would ease the reader's mind and provide a necessary pause from all the action taking place at once.

However, it is perhaps in the character of Edgar Allen Poe to choose such a cliche literary concept and completely present the unexpected. Writing a story about mutiny, ship wreck, and a relatively improbable sea adventure I would assume follows a certain path that we would readily accept when published. However, Poe defies all forms of conventional writing in this style and presents the work in a chaotic manner. Also because we fail to recognize that a man of Poe's circumstances sees and comprehends the world and its nuances differently than we do we may be reading the book from a wrong point of view. His mind was never settled and perhaps it too went of tangents just as The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym does.

Homework for Tuesday

1. Group B: comment on one of the response posts to Pym.
2. Read p. 1-14 (stop at the end of the Douglass section, before you get to the Melville section) and 21-36 of Two Slave Rebellions at Sea. That includes the introduction, which usefully explains the historical Creole mutiny, as well as Parts 1 and 2 of "The Heroic Slave."

By the way, the name I was trying to think of when I spazzed out at the end of class was Joel Chandler Harris, who wrote a series of Uncle Remus stories.

NAGP: A Collection of Short Stories

I do not think that I find this book quite as detestable as everyone else seems to. Don't get me wrong, "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket" will never make my favorite book list but its not on my least favorite either. I found that aside from the lengthy, unnecessary, vivid descriptions the book was captivating and almost thrilling at times. Nonetheless, the book leaves much to be desired in the areas of writing style and continuity.

I felt as though this book would have done much better sold as a collection of short stories rather than one novel. The pages of description that tend to loose the attention of the audience entirely and cause them to resort to skimming look as though they are filler pages intended to break up the action such that the entire books does not go from Pym having one near-death experience right into another. Should each event that Pym goes through be separated into its own story and the ceaseless descriptions taken out I think I would have enjoyed this book even more. Furthermore, the changes in writing style which have drawn much criticism would no longer be an issue if the book was broken up into individual short stories. One change in writing style that particularly bothered me was towards the end when Poe randomly writes journal entry style by having the date and then a description of the events, or lack there of, of the day.

Moreover, the book did become increasingly more difficult to read as it progressed. The narrative was lucid at the beginning but as it continued I often found myself lost and having to re-read and decipher what was being said. As I write this, however, it comes to me that perhaps this was Poe’s intention. Perhaps the changing writing style is symbolic of the progression of Pym’s journey and the deterioration of his health. Also it could symbolize how something that starts of as relatively innocent or at least naive, such as bringing Africans over to the New World to work, can progress into something much worse and the reality of the situation can be distorted. 

Unimpressed.

When I saw we would be reading a novel by Poe I was somewhat excited, as I previously enjoyed reading his other works. This novel, as much as I wish otherwise, was nothing short of a disappointment. It is filled with unnecessary descriptions of the Pym's surroundings, nautical positions, and history of sea voyages to the Antarctic. Throughout my reading of the story, I found myself skimming ahead, trying to find the plot through all of the confusing and long descriptions and background stories. The plot of the story is also weak on its own accord, it seemed to be largely unbelievable and cumbersome. Poe’s style of writing reminds me of one that is influenced by an author who is being paid by the word or by the page. One manner by which I personally judge a work of fiction is if I can picture it easily in my head. Poe did not succeed in doing so because of all the extra information included, which reminded me of a student who adds large amounts of background information that is not necessary to gain a certain number of words or pages while writing a paper. I would go as far as to speculate that the only reason this novel is noteworthy in any way is because of the fame of its author.

Good riddance.

This novel certainly does not at all make my favourites list. To begin with, I really don’t like “sea adventure” novels because they seem to have a tendancy to just drone on with details that I cannot at all relate to. However, this is not why I did not like the work.
I am willing to suffer through some boring passages if the novel/work is ultimately really well-written. I just don’t feel like this one is. It seemed to me that the novel was written in a hurried manner (maybe I’m biased because I know he just wrote it so it would get published and because I’m just not a Poe fan, really) and things didn’t really fit; one minute he was protesting the eating of a human being and the next they had olives and were without a care in the world.
However, I will say that this hurried manner might have been Poe’s intention. He set the novel up so that people would believe that it was a true story and writing the story as though he is excited about the material rather than the actual content furthers this purpose. His long explanations of the islands and penguins, etc. also aid in this effect. However, with the details of the story, it seems evident to me that Poe is trying to let us know that it is not actually a true story and that it is being written for the sake of being fatastical and absurd.
All that said, I genuinely detested the book. I thought it was poorly written, ridiculous, over the top and tiresome. It is now (for me) on the same level as Robinson Crusoe (which was formerly my number one least favourite book of all time). As my final statement: how on earth did Pym live…? He was starving way before any of them were!

Simple Opinion

Let's be real people. I must say that this book was not one of my favorites of all time. I would not go so far as the worst book I have ever read but if I was not reading this for class I would have most surely returned it back to the store. If it were not for its adventurous points and its totally awesome gruesomeness, I definitely would have stopped reading it. I also have to point out that the ending was horrible, just horrible.

I have a problem with us analyzing this book. I guess it is the fact that I don't understand why we are studying it. It goes back to the argument of whether it is a book just for money and a quick read, or is it an artistic book meant for over analyzing. That's my take on it.

extreme of consciousness

So, like most everyone else it seems, i too was bothered by these god awful tangents that Pym indulges in every few pages. In the beginning of the novel i found these tangents to be informative (albeit tedious to read). They helped the reader to get oriented around this fictional boat and even legitimized cracking a tortoise open for fluids. However, towards the end of the novel, his tangents are unbearable. It seems strange to me that for someone who has such an interesting story to tell it would be necessary to trouble the reader with other individuals' adventures (i.e. Cook et al. making their way around the arctic). Towards the end i found myself looking forward to his diary entries which i could always count on to be brief and to the point... especially if someone he was close to died... then you know for sure that it will be summed up in a maximum of six sentences.

Pym's tendancy to talk endlessly about unnecessary details makes me think a couple of things may be going on. There seems to be a changing of voice between the two styles of writing throughout the book. It could be that these awful and inpersonal lists of trivia could be where Poe as a writer of Pym's story is coming through. As Pym mentioned in the introduction, Poe co-authored his narrative, so maybe Poe (as the actual author, not the fictional co-author) is exagerating the tedium of these parts as a means to juxtapose Pym's (the fictional author) own writing style.

The other possibility, which is only a suposition on my part, is that these long meandering parts are just a mean to fill pages. Who knows, maybe Poe was getting paid by the page and just wanted to fluff the novel out. The writing throughout just reminded me of freshman year when we all discovered ways to take a six page paper and stretch it out to ten pages. Maybe someone should tell Poe that it is far better to adjust font and margin sizes to increase page number than it is to go on a three page discussion on the anatomy of a tortoise. But hey, who hasn't made that mistake before.

murder, cannabalism, and adventure.... when's the sequel?? just kidding.

Poe's NAGP can be described as one of the most unusual stories I have ever read. Mostly, it has a relatively boring plot mainly consisting of cumbersome passages relaying trivial information to the reader, but surprisingly Poe manages to mitigate the story's vapidity by spicing the text with preposterous adventures and situations that ultimately save the reader from falling asleep. It is evident that Poe's novelette has a remarkable semblance of truth because Pym, the narrator, is able to recall his extraordinary ventures with uncanny clarity. The description of Pym's emotions is especially poignant, as are the immaculate details of every setting in the book. However, once the reader truly grasps how completely ridiculous Pym's claims are, it is an irrefutable fact that the novel is entirely fictitious. Truth and fiction are truly having a head to head battle in this text.


I think that Poe's excessive exaggeration definitely leads to a better story, especially in the case of NAGP. We all know that Poe is fond of writing horror stories that inspire the most gruesome fears within the reader-- e.g. being buried alive ("Cask of Amontillado")--- and as it relates to NAGP--- being shipwrecked at sea, cannabalism, murder, etc. Not only is death a strong theme throughout the plot, but so too is deception. Beginning at the onstart of the story when Pym deceived his parents with a forged letter, as well as hiding secretly on board the Grampus, and even when the savages tricked the Jane Guy's crew and murdered them.

Cut this tension with a knife

With the turn of each page it gets exponentially harder to trust in the validity of each "fact" Pym tells in his tale. From exaggerated details to discontinued accounts (Grandpa can't see you because its foggy? really? and are poor Pym's parents still wondering where he is?) the tension between fiction and truth becomes pretty strong and obvious. But, I guess my main question is why do people tend to not believe stories when people, especially complete strangers like Pym (though after you know a person well you tend to know if its a tendency of them to lie), tell them? Certain things are hard to believe due to common knowledge; come on Pym, you can't have a water supply that barely lasts four days and make it another 14 days. But who's to say a mutiny, barbaric savages, cannibalism, and drunk sailing could not all happen in a couple years of one person's life? All this to say, don't jump the gun when calling something the truth or a lie (unless its common sense) especially dealing with Poe, as he was a tad eccentric ;-).

Yet Pym even tells us (the audience) in his introduction that everyone is suscepbtible to exaggeration and Pym's exaggeration makes it difficult to percieve the difference between reality and appereance. Were Pym's conditions really as bad as he made them appear? At first he calls his living quarters on the ship a "vacation", which in a couple pages and a little less food turns into an "Incarceration". Another example is his hideout in the island's hill which was first described as a "penthouse" and later called a "cell". Pym's exaggeration makes it hard to believe and discern reality and validity to his facts, which is why it's probably hard to believe someone's story because once one fact is exaggerated, it gets harder to listen to each one told after that.

Oh look! I found some olives!

Wouldn't Parker have loved to be here for this moment?

In glancing over other bloggers' posts, I sense a bit of disgruntlement with the book, its gruesomeness, its rather flat ending, and, in general, its apparently blatant dishonesty. The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym forces us deal with some fairly weighty questions: was NAGP intended to be read as a literal adventure story or a dramatic satire? was Edgar Allan Poe an unpolished adventure writer or a compromising impoverished genius? should we eat the unethically survivalist shipmate or the unbelievable preserved olives first?

I think yes to all the latter responses. The more I scrutinized this novelette I found a sort of tongue in cheek narration. Pym is knowledgeable on every possible narration although he left home as a rather uneducated imp. His plethora of encyclopedic jargon on every topic makes him seem bombastic rather than likeable. While this could be read as Poe's attempt at making Pym the seasoned traveler, I feel like Poe is satirizing the typical omniscient protagonists of contemporary literature, showing that all the knowledge in the world won't keep you from sailing off into murky white oblivion. By including extravagant peril scenes, Poe was able to point out deeper themes, such as the lines between honesty and sensationalism, boldness and stupidity (if such a line exists there!). Lastly, definitely eat the olives first.... because the alternative just puts you in a Poe horror story.

In much agreement...

I agree with Megan that Poe has an unbelievably nonchalant attitude toward death. Not only does Poe show this when Pym and Peters rid the boat of Augustus’ body, but more disturbingly when the three of them kill and eat Parker. After killing Parker, Pym finds olives and wine to eat, but there is never any remorse about the death of Parker. This “whatever” attitude also makes for a dark story what with all the death and gruesome details.
I also think that Alexis makes a great point in the theme of reality vs. appearance in NAGP. Perhaps the best example in the novel is the seemingly friendly nature of the Indians who later turn against the “white men.” Another example that sticks out for me is the dark and disgusting reality of the approaching ship with dead people.
After reading this novel, I am reminded of Poe’s outrageously dark way of writing that is evident in the way he presents death and can be seen through the reality vs. appearance theme.

Truth vs. Fiction

Poe closely walked the line between truth and fiction throughout Pym. However by the end of the novel it seemed like Poe had completely forsaken the truth in order to create a more “adventurous” story. It also amazes me that somehow Pym knew everything about everything but kept ending up in horrible situations. He could not help but feel distrust for the natives when walking along the path yet he still continued acting like they were friendly. It was also astounding to me that both Peters and Pym were buried alive under a landslide (more or less) and yet came out unscathed, while Allen died. (It should be noted here that Pym and Peters have exceptionally good luck with avoiding death.) One cannot even believe Pym’s simplest, descriptive sentences do not match up. He states him and Peters are “the only living white men on the island” when earlier he had described Peters as Indian and hybrid but never as white.
The ending proved to me that ultimately Poe was not quite sure what “really happened” to Pym. It was almost as if there was no way to halfway truthfully end this ridiculous exhibition in fifty-seven degree Antarctic weather. So instead of concluding the story Pym just died.

truth vs. fiction + appearence vs. reality

In The Narrative of Nathan Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, I understand how one could believe that it really was a completely outrageous, yet nonfiction, nautical story. Poe, in the voice of Pym, does mention how he doesn’t remember certain details, or is writing everything from memory since he didn’t keep a journal as a sort of excuse for the ridiculousness of the story. This premise is not an impossibility. However, it is not completely convincing to me because he miraculously remembers SOME unimportant details, such as the dates he did certain things. When experiencing some of the adventures that are written about, I’m sure that the dates would be the least likely things to occupy any room in Pym’s memory, especially (supposedly) writing this years later. Thus, if I had not known that it was a fiction story, I believe that I would be torn between believing that the story was true based on Poe’s introduction and explanation, or not believing that it was true based on the inconsistency of what is remembered and how absurd the story is.

I also see the possible theme of the difference between reality and appearance comes through with the interactions between the people called “savages” and the men of the ship. The “savages” appear to be peaceful and kind, but turn out to be completely the opposite and plunder nearly the entire crew. It seems that the outcome of that situation was included in the novel to create yet another area of rising action and climax to make it more exciting.

tangents vs. sufficient descriptions

Arthur knows (or thinks he knows) a little bit about every subject, and sometimes the book reads like an encyclopedia because Poe will spend two pages describing history, nesting habits, or the setting. His knowledge about ships inevitably leads him on tangents about how some aspect of the ship is inadequate or unsafe. An example of a tangent includes where he goes into great depth about penguins when the Jane Guy visits Kerguelen’s Islands. The crew is there to hunt seal, but he starts talking about penguins and albatross’ nesting habits for two pages. Another example of Poe’s attention to detailed background information is his description of Galapagos turtles after the men find one in the storeroom. After eating Parker and then discovering a logical way to find normal food, Arthur is excited at the prospect of a turtle. He goes on to talk about its walking habits, its build, and the meaning of it’s name. Instead of a logical a-ha moment of “Oops! We shouldn’t have eaten Parker”, the history of a turtle makes more sense. Poe writes like the reader wants to know every minute background detail of a place or creature. While explanations and references are helpful at times, other times I am struck by how random or unneeded some pages seem to be.

Comment on Poe & Arthur Gordon Pym!

Upon finishing this novel, I couldn’t help but conclude that Poe seems to write a majority of his material for no other reason than the shock value of it. In an effort to keep his readers interested amidst the long-winded descriptions, he throws in sentences such as, “In going over the bows, his foot slipped, and he fell between two cakes of ice, never rising again” (p 109). This nonchalant attitude towards death (evident also in the unceremonious death and disposal of his good friend Augustus) is something I find very interesting in Poe’s writing. He is similarly casual about human life in his short story, “The Tell-Tale Heart,” when he murders a man for no apparent reason. Poe also seems to have a talent for capturing the feeling of utter hopelessness and despair. On page 127, he writes about “the blackness of darkness which envelops the victim, the terrific oppression of lungs…to carry into the human heart a degree of appalling awe and horror not to be tolerated.”
Poe’s ability to craft a story which so well reflects the true inner feelings humans experience could be the reason why some people thought this novel was a work of non-fiction (the note at the end about the loss of a few final chapters was a nice touch), but I believe that throughout the novel Poe hints at the falsity of it. Aside from the outrageous creatures and situations, Poe continually mentions that he is merely relating his perceptions of this supposed journey. The book reminded me somewhat of Gulliver’s Travels in the sense that it was a detailed description of an implausible voyage. Like Gulliver’s Travels called attention to current issues of the times, Poe seems to try to do the same in this pieced-together novel which evokes images of the middle passage and echoes the feelings of desperation and suffering that slaves must have felt.

Homework for Thursday

1. Finish reading NAGP. Think about the tension between truth and fiction, reality and appearance that we've been discussing. Also think about the dangers of interpretation and the inversion of the racial dynamics of the antebellum US.

2. Group A: post a response to NAGP to the blog by 9am Thursday (earlier if possible!). Group B: comment on one of those response posts by midnight Friday.

Author Presentation Groups

If you haven't signed up for a group yet, please email me or talk to me as soon as possible. You can sign up for any of the groups that have only 3 members (except Poe because they're presenting on Thursday).

Poe (1/22):
Emma R.
Julia H.
Ariel

Douglass (1/29):
Austin
Jaclyn
Isaac

Melville (2/5):
Paige
Megan
Nyssa

Dickinson (2/19):
Elizabeth
Otha
Mark
Emma T.

Adams (3/17):
Alexis R.
Mattie
Martha Lee
Rebekah

Stein (3/26):
Alexis G.
Porshia
Emily
Lauren

Ellison (4/7):
Leah
Sarah
Adam
Linnie

Ellison (4/14):
Ashlee
Katherine
Carly
Jeff

Blog posting groups

Here are the groups for your blog posts. Please refer to the syllabus for the blog post assignment.

Group A:
Isaac
Paige
Megan
Alexis G.
Otha
Katherine
Elizabeth
Leah
Jeffrey
Sarah
Mark
Alexis R.
Austin
Emily
Carly
Adam

Group B:
Ariel
Nyssa
Martha Lee
Linnie
Rebekah
Julia
Emma R.
Ashlee
Jaclyn
Emma T.
Porshia
Mattie
Lauren

Ashlee Suttle

Hey everyone. My name is Ashlee Suttle and I apparently have no idea how to use a blog. When I thought I had posted to it, I found later that my post did not exist. So, here I am again trying to tell you a little bit about myself. I'm a freshman here at UNC and I live in Granville Towers. I am in the sorority Pi Beta Phi and have a great suite of girls that I live with. I'm majoring in Political Science and Journalism but plan to go to Law School after I graduate. I grew up in Lexington, North Carolina but moved to Durham (kind of) in 2006 to attend the North Carolina School of Science and Math. I love to run and drink coffee. I have worked at Starbucks for two years. I love to travel and plan to spend the majority of my life traveling around the world. Thus far, I've only been to Switzerland and Italy and even that trip was only for a short time period of two weeks. My second trip abroad is planned for this summer through the UNC Summer Abroad Program in Greece. I am taking this class because I absolutely love to read. I've considered minoring in English or just anything within the humanities realm so I figured that taking a class like this one could not hurt at all and that I may even enjoy it. So far, the class seems great!

Snow day!

This may be a complete abuse of the blog... BUT:

Is there any chance that class will be canceled tomorrow due to inclement (read: totally awesome) weather? I just wanted to check in since MAA's is my first class of the day (and probably most other people's) and having class canceled would majorly impact how my day starts (at least an hour longer in bed/an hour longer in the snow).


In other news, i hope everyone had a great long weekend and that everyone will have a chance to catch the inauguration/ play in the snow/ stays warm!

Julia Marie Hartsell & Emma Jane Refvem

We are Emma Refvem and Julia Hartsell. We are roommates who live at 121 North Street. We decided to do our blog post together since we live together and have class together, and you will see us walk to and from class together. Julia will be writing Emma's info and vice versa.

Emma Jane Refvem spent 7 years being raised in Vacaville, CA. Finally, her parents wised up and moved the Refvem family to the sweet, beautiful land of the South. They moved to Mt. Airy, NC, which is also known as Mayberry, Andy Griffith's hometown. She is the third and most favored child of 5. Emma is a senior Environmental Studies major and Geology minor. She once made 100 on her geology lab test and showed up all those geology majors trying to study rocks. Emma is a Young Life leader, so she spends most of her time hanging out with some awesome, crazy high school girls that go to Cedar Ridge High School in Hillsborough, NC, three of which are sitting here with us telling us a crazy story about getting pulled on Airport Road. Emma aspires to be a high school Science teacher and is applying to do the MAT grad program here at UNC. She lives in a house with 8 other girls, including me!, and lives in the basement of our house. She serves the role of handyman at our house because she always fixes everything and replaces all the lightbulbs. Any of y'all are welcome to come on over and sit a spell if you like. Emma is a vegetarian and recently found the best recipe for Sweet Potato Black Bean quesadillas, which is our new favorite. Emma loves to watch the Office and owns many of the seasons. She drives a Prius so her gas mileage is AWESOME, but it also volunteers her to drive on all of our roadtrips, one being a tour of Civil War battlefield sites last fallbreak ( a birthday surprise for me! how sweet are my friends!) Emma is slightly granola, takes naps like a champ, enjoys indie movies and music but can also kick back and appreciate popular culture, she is a superorganizer, loves to wear sweatpants, I can talk to her through my floor (my room is above her, the floor is her ceiling), has a hilarious alter ego named Miss Amurkuh (ask her about it), and once had a song written about her.



Julia Marie Hartsell is a 22-year-old native of Rowan County, NC. Staying true to her roots, Julia revels in all thing southern. She wrote the previous paragraphs on a desk next to a miniature bust of Robert E. Lee. Every day, Julia Marie wakes up and thanks God to be an American!!! She came to Carolina with grand ambitions of being a doctor, and proceeded to take every Biology class known to man. However, in 2007, after contracting the only case of West Nile Virus in North Carolina, and with plenty of hospital time to think, she saw the light and switched her major to American Studies. Julia spends all of her time loving and hanging out with girls at Orange High School as a Young Life leader. She plans on going on full-time Young Life staff after graduation. She was born for this! Hanging out in rural Orange County fits her perfectly! Don't be surprised to see her in cowboy boots talking about how amazing this country really is. (seriously, she's opened my eyes). She is a balla by nature, with some mad ball-handling skills on the court. Don't be fooled! Despite this seemingly tough exterior, Julia is a sucker for "The Bachelor," but don't ask her about the current bachelor, Jason. He is not up to par. She is taking this class as an elective in her Senior year because they changed the underload policies. She looks forward to telling you exactly how she feels about these American authors.

So, in conclusion, sufistucadid ladys saing oosh osh.

Salutations.

It goes without saying that this is incredibly late, and on that note I'm very sorry...

My name is Linnie Greene and I'm an (unsure) philosophy and french double major. I'm still open to the possibility of replacing french with english or american studies... Anyway, I'm taking this course because I love reading and it seemed like a pretty practical way to integrate what I enjoy doing with a subject I might want to further pursue. My favorite authors are Kurt Vonnegut, Jack Kerouac, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, and I'm really fascinated with both the Beats and the Lost Generation. I write for The Daily Tarheel where I recently switched to the Diversions desk to do music reviews. I'm a humanities person (math freaks me out, but props if that's your thing) and almost anything artistic or cultural will interest me. I love going to shows when I feel like going out or reading or knitting when I feel more inclined to chill. I'm from Durham-- don't worry, no allegiance to Duke. And Durham isn't that scary, to anyone who's heard otherwise. It's actually a pretty cool place. 

I'm looking forward to the rest of the readings. Poe is a good start, if you ask me.

Happy Birthday, Mr. Poe

It's Poe's 200th birthday today! Here are a few links if you want to see how people are celebrating:

History Channel (thanks, Elizabeth!)

NPR (who spelled his name wrong!)

Philadelphia Daily News: Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore battle over Poe's legacy

But Richmond has the legitimate claim to Poe: Richmond.com