Response 9: Motif Analysis

       Egdar Allan Poe uses motifs extensively in his works. One motif that is in all works that we've read by him is the night. In The Raven, the story is taking place at midnight. In The Tell-Tale Heart, the narrator kills the old man at night. All settings in Poe's poem The Bells take place at night. This shows that nighttime is a recurring topic in Poe's works.

       Nighttime is a symbolism for many things. At night, obviously, the sky is black as pitch. The color black is associated with death and the occult, as in black metal. The night is also associated with obscurity, since in the dark, you cannot see anything and anything terrible could be lurking in the obscurity. This implies that Poe uses this motif to show that he has a negative outlook on life, that life is like the dark and there could be anything terrible in it.