Literature and Individuality in Poe
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A recurring theme in American literature is the importance of the individual and of individuality. The American character is seen as unique in that the individual is able to tap inner resources allowing a singular view of the world and enabling the individual to overcome great obstacles. However, there is a duality to the image presented of what might be called the intuitive ability of the individual in fiction. Imagination is seen in some ways as empowering, as giving the individual greater capabilities than are possessed by others. At the same time, the imagination can be seen as inducing illusion so that the individual fails to see reality. These two aspects of the American imagination can be seen in the character of Auguste Dupin in Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Purloined Letter," in which the character uses imagination to achieve success. Poe shows one aspect of his own character and interests in his stories of detection, such as "The Purloined Letter." He may have lacked control in his own life, but through the detective character Dupin he is able to show a hero who is in control and who can understand the seemingly inexplicable in the world. In truth, Poe himself managed to show the same abilities when he brought his mind to bear on such problems, and in his story "The Mystery of Marie Roget" he provided the solution to a real-life crime that was probably the correct one. In addition to these two stories, his "Murders in the Rue Morgue" featured the
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ne except Dupin. Dupin's method is different from that of the police. Dupin does not bring to bear simply reason but something more, something less clearly explained. Dupin makes use of certain mental patterns and imaginative perceptions that Poe believes are essential in both science and art and that are in fact the link between science and art. These patterns form what might be called intuition, which selects among the many clues presented to the detective to set aside the trivia and fasten on a hidden structure that emerges from putting the essential facts together. The intelligence may then go to work in a more ordinary way, proving by deduction and induction that the solution thus arrived at is the true one--that the man apprehended is indeed the criminal in the case or that the solution to the mystery is indeed the correct one. Dupin's method is thus a combination of the imagination of the poet and the reasoning power of the mathematician, which is good at a certain point but limited. In this story, the thief is indeed a mathematician, and Dupin matches him intellectually both in degree and style so that he can imagine himself in the place of the other man and thus can think like him and find the missing letter.
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Approximate Word count = 1629
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page)
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