Saturday, January 18, 2014

Edgar Allan Poe and a Series of Unfortunate Events

Edgar Allan Poe. Basically the writeriest writer out there. I mean seriously, once I understood "The Raven" I realized it was pretty cool. And "The Tell-Tale Heart"? Dang. He knows what's up. And then there's the Series of Unfortunate Events books by Lemony Snicket. (And Daniel Handler is a COMPLETE genius because he made his pen name a character in his stories with like a story of his own. Dang, that is AWESOME.) If you've read those books, you may have noticed a few Edgar Allan Poe references, probably because Edgar Allan Poe is known for writing some pretty grim things. So if you haven't noticed them, then here are a few things that you should know. (Spoilers for A Series of Unfortunate Events.)
Let's start with the Poe reference in our main characters, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny Baudelaire. I had to do a school assignment on Edgar Allan Poe once, and so that's how I learned this. But there was someone that Poe knew named Baudelaire. I can't remember exactly how he was associated with Poe, but I do remember seeing his existence. When I read it, I just thought, "A man named Baudelaire had something to do with Edgar Allan Poe? Oh my gosh! Another reference!" So that was pretty cool.
Then of course there is Mr. Poe, the banker. His name is Poe. So that's an obvious enough reference. But there's also his two sons named Edgar and Allan. Aha! Well played, Daniel Handler. Well played.
Then there's another reference specifically in The Vile Village. Our orphan friends go to live in the town of V.F.D. in the hopes of uncovering a mystery. But what do they find instead? Crow-obsessed villagers. Now, crows are black birds. So what? Well, ravens are also black birds. You might think I'm stretching this one, because it sure sounds like I am. But then you have to remember the tree they find the notes in. What is that tree called? Nevermore Tree. And what does a pretty famous raven like to say? "Nevermore." I'm pretty sure that wasn't an accident.
If there are any other Poe references that I've missed, tell me. I want to know. Dang, they are pretty clever guys.

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