'The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket' by Edgar Allan Poe is a novel that follows the adventures of Arthur Gordon Pym at sea, starting as a realistic narrative of life on the ocean but quickly turning into a horrific story of survival with elements of fantasy. The book is filled with perilous situations, mutinies, shipwrecks, encounters with cannibals, and exploring uncharted lands at the southern extremity of the world. The writing style is described as macabre, with a mix of fear, wonder, horror, and delight, creating a surreal and gripping atmosphere that keeps the reader hooked until the abrupt and senseless ending.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include graphic violence, cannibalism, and themes of racism, which may be disturbing to some readers.
From The Publisher:
After reading an 1836 newspaper account of a shipwreck and its two survivors, Edgar Allan Poe penned his only novel, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket, the story of a stowaway on a Nantucket whaleship who finds himself enmeshed in the dark side of life at sea: mutiny, cannibalism, savagery-even death. As Jeffrey Meyers writes in his Introduction: "[Poe] remains contemporary because he appeals to basic human feelings and expresses universal themes common to all men in all languages: dreams, love, loss; grief, mourning, alienation; terror, revenge, murder; insanity, disease, and death." Within the pages of this novel, we encounter nearly all of them.
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1 comment(s)
This book is somewhat like a study in hubris. The titular character is seemingly incapable of learning a lesson, or perhaps more interested in adventure than concerned about his life or the lives of those around him.
The writing itself is enjoyable, much of the book reads like an account of travels to an unusual land, like a paranormal and highly unfortunate version of the Voyage of the Beagle. This much is fun throughout, and Poe is in fact very creative with whatever unusual things Pym runs into.
The story however seems to peak in the first half (or perhaps more accurately around the 2/3rds mark). The first several accounts of misfortune are incredibly lifelike, reasonable but terrifying. The enormity and uncaring nature of the sea is the enemy, and survival the only goal, the later portion of the book is where things become more unusual, and while it remains creatively interesting and retains tension throughout, it loses that grounded feeling, that nagging sensation at the back of your mind that tells you "yeah, it's right to be a little afraid every time you get on a boat".
This book is enjoyable and worth reading, however you won't be alone if you find the beginning more engaging than the end
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The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket?
About the Author:
Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, USA, in 1809. Poe, short story writer, editor and critic, he is best known for his macabre tales and as the progenitor of the detective story. He died in 1849, in mysterious circumstances, at…
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