Similarities Between Edgar Allan Poe and Alfred Hitchcock Fear, terror and suspense are the most vivid emotions created by
Poe's stories and by Hitchcock's films. Several themes are common to
both:
the madness that exists in the world, the paranoia caused by isolation
which guides people's actions, the conflict between appearance and
reality
along with the double aspect of the human nature, and the power of the
dead
over the living. Not only the themes are similar in both men's work
but
also the details through which a story is written or shown. The
similar
themes and narrative techniques can be seen clearly in "The Fall of
the
House of Usher" and in Psycho.
For both Poe and Hitchcock, madness exists in the world. "The Fall
of the House of Usher" and Psycho are two very similar studies in
madness.
Roderick Usher and Norman Bates are both insane. They have many common
traits although they are also quite different. They are victims of
their
fears and their obsessions. Norman who seems agreeable and shy is, in
reality, a homicidal maniac who has committed matricide. He suffers
from
schizophrenia - he acts as both himself and his dead mother. Roderick
Usher appears strange from the beginning, almost ghost-like, with his
"cadaverousness of complexion" - however, he is not a murderer. He
suffers
from a mental disorder which makes him obsessed with fear: fear of the
past, of the house, of the dead. He finally dies, "victim...
... middle of paper ...
... for one week
to
achieve the perfect balance of suspense and terror in the "shower
scene" of
Psycho. They leave the viewer in suspense until the very end when the
stories unfold. It is not until then that the audience understands
fully
the disturbed state of the main characters and the twisted plot of
their
stories.
There are many similarities between Edgar Allan Poe and Alfred
Hitchcock, in their themes, their methods for reaching the reader or
spectator, and their fascination with the human mind and its
complexities -
their view of the world. The semblance of two of the most well known
masters of terror and suspense is striking - as seen in Poe's "The
Fall of
the House of Usher" and Hitchcock's Psycho. Both men are fascinated by
mystery, by horror, by madness, by death.
Poe's stories and by Hitchcock's films. Several themes are common to
both:
the madness that exists in the world, the paranoia caused by isolation
which guides people's actions, the conflict between appearance and
reality
along with the double aspect of the human nature, and the power of the
dead
over the living. Not only the themes are similar in both men's work
but
also the details through which a story is written or shown. The
similar
themes and narrative techniques can be seen clearly in "The Fall of
the
House of Usher" and in Psycho.
For both Poe and Hitchcock, madness exists in the world. "The Fall
of the House of Usher" and Psycho are two very similar studies in
madness.
Roderick Usher and Norman Bates are both insane. They have many common
traits although they are also quite different. They are victims of
their
fears and their obsessions. Norman who seems agreeable and shy is, in
reality, a homicidal maniac who has committed matricide. He suffers
from
schizophrenia - he acts as both himself and his dead mother. Roderick
Usher appears strange from the beginning, almost ghost-like, with his
"cadaverousness of complexion" - however, he is not a murderer. He
suffers
from a mental disorder which makes him obsessed with fear: fear of the
past, of the house, of the dead. He finally dies, "victim...
... middle of paper ...
... for one week
to
achieve the perfect balance of suspense and terror in the "shower
scene" of
Psycho. They leave the viewer in suspense until the very end when the
stories unfold. It is not until then that the audience understands
fully
the disturbed state of the main characters and the twisted plot of
their
stories.
There are many similarities between Edgar Allan Poe and Alfred
Hitchcock, in their themes, their methods for reaching the reader or
spectator, and their fascination with the human mind and its
complexities -
their view of the world. The semblance of two of the most well known
masters of terror and suspense is striking - as seen in Poe's "The
Fall of
the House of Usher" and Hitchcock's Psycho. Both men are fascinated by
mystery, by horror, by madness, by death.