ABSTRACT

Edgar Allan Poe was one of the most unique writers in the literary history of America. His major achievements lie in his inheritance and innovation of the Gothic stories, and the development of aesthetics of terror. In Poe’s aesthetic system, beauty is regarded as the core. This is a kind of idealized beauty which is detached from the reality and is even against social morality in reality. The aesthetics of terror in Poe’s short stories is embodied mainly in three aspects: the choice of the theme, characterization and settings. This paper is aimed to have an ethical reading of the aesthetics of terror in Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories to shed light on his profound ethical reflection. 

Keywords：Allen Poe; Aesthetics of Terror; Gothic; Ethics

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ABSTRACT

摘要

Chapter One INTRODUCTION-1

Chapter Two LITERATURE REVIEW.2

Chapter Three AESTHETICS OF TERROR IN POE’S SHORT STORIES-3

3.1 The Aesthetics of Terror and the Gothic Tradition-3

3.2 Aesthetics of Terror as Reflected in Poe’s Theme of Death-3

3.3 Aesthetics of Terror as Reflected in Poe’s Characterization4

3.4 Aesthetics of Terror as Reflected in Poe’s Settings.5

Chapter Four THE ETHICS IN POE’S SHORT STORIES-6

4.1 Theoretical Studies of Ethics in Literary Works-6

4.2 Incest-6

4.3 Distorted Human Relations. 7

Chapter Five CAUSES OF POE’S AESTHETIC AND ETHICAL BELIEFS-10

5.1 The Background and Experience of Allan Poe-10

5.2 The Ethics and Inner World of Allan Poe-10

Chapter Six CONCLUSION-11

WORKS CITED-12