Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how, in some of the works of Edgar Allen Poe, the eye represents an all-encompassing, all-powerful force of spherical mysticism and how in others, the eye denotes beauty, strength, passion, and enchantment. The paper also shows how, alternately, the eye can represent frailty, malice, evil and horror and how this is, assuredly, not an exhaustive list of Poe's development of the eye as symbolism, but it does assist in illustrating the plurality of meaning in Poe's writings specifically in "Ligeia," "The Tell-Tale Heart," and "The Black Cat."

From the Paper:

"Often referred to as windows to the soul, the eyes become a focal point of emotional conveyance. In other words, the essence of identity is absorbed and released through this medium, a more effective means of communication than words alone, at times, can represent. Nevertheless, Poe utilizes language more precisely than most to depict symbolic imagery with vivid clarity. "Ligeia," is a good example of how Poe manipulates language and an unnamed narrator to explain the inexplicable, the "strange mystery" (65) of his wife's "divine orbs" (65). This "strangeness" (64) merged with the narrator's lack of recollection of when he first met Ligeia, suggests the paranormal. The narrator admits that he cannot explain what lies behind the "expression of the eyes of Ligeia" (64) but goes on to anthologize nature as a means to enlighten the incomprehension. "

Sample of Sources Used:

• Basler, Roy. "The Interpretation of "Ligeia"." JSTOR 51944 363-372. 5 Dec 2008 <http://www.jstor.org.libproxy.txstate.edu>.
• McDevitt, April. "Eye of Horus ." Ancient Egypt: the mythology. 2007. 5 Dec 2008 <03/25/2008 http://www.egyptianmyths.net/udjat.htm>.
• Poe, Edgar. "Ligeia." The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Writings. Ed. David Galloway. London: Penguin Books, 2003.
• Poe, Edgar. "The Black Cat." The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Writings. Ed. David Galloway. London: Penguin Books, 2003
• Poe, Edgar. "The Tell-Tale Heart." The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Writings. Ed. David Galloway. London: Penguin Books, 2003.

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