Poe's Negotiation And Self-fashioning

Edgar Poe is a famous American writer. His works are famous for his deep philosophic thoughts, his concern with death, beauty, and horror .The death is in his list of favorite themes. This study intends to analyze Poe's negotiation and self-fashioning consciousness embodied in his works from the perspective of New Historicism.This thesis is composed of six parts.The first part is the introduction. This part introduces the researches on him and his works both at home and abroad, the main problems, the research angle, and the purpose of the research.Chapter Two gives an elucidation of the New Historicism and its newness. And its literary function and the concept of"negotiation"and"self-fashioning"claimed by Stephen Greenblatt are also introduced in this part. New Historicism stresses the subject's motile ability. The writer, who serves as a negotiator, will negotiate everything through literature. Negotiation is realized through two dynamic social functions: subversion and containment.Chapter Three tries to prove that the Poe's death theme is a way of negotiation with society from four respects: the negotiation on social moral standards: people'attitudes towards the crime; the negotiation on religious belief: people's belief change because of cultural crisis in society; the negotiation on artistic creation: Poe adopts death as his theme; the negotiation on life and death: the image of Death change and he considers life after death.Chapter Four explains the developing process of Poe's self-fashioning. It starts with the reconstruction of the self and the other, followed by the intrusion of heterogeneous culture in social life. Poe's pursuit of lost love in personal life will be illustrated by writing the death and beauty.Chapter Five tries to prove that Poe's negotiation and self-fashioning is a process of pursuing his individual existence. It is a reflection of humanistic idea.Chapter Six is the conclusion, the author of this paper points out that the negotiation and self-fashioning consciousness, which are pervasive in Poe's death theme, are just connected with Stephen Greenblatt's point of views. Negotiation is not a way of compromise but a means of self-fashioning to embody Poe's responsibility and personality. An outstanding writer is able to reflect social and personal complexity from various respects, not by single judgment. Poe breaks the traditional way of writing, and presents us a unique way of telling story.