OtherWor(l)ds

Poe and Plotting

By Victor Sweetser

There has long been a debate over how much of Edgar Allan Poe’s commentary on aesthetic is meant to be taken seriously. Critics like Charles Baudelaire, a contemporary of Poe’s, have viewed some of what Poe was doing to allow his readers to “take a peep behind the scenes” (“The Philosophy of Composition” 1374) as a “hoax” or “practical joke” meant as entertainment and satire, similar to what Poe was trying to accomplish in the more obvious “Literary Life of Thingum Bob Esq” (Polonsky 46). Further muddying things is Poe’s oscillation between supporting a precise mechanical technique and relying instead on intuitive spontaneous growth (Polonsky 43-44). Regardless of his sincerity and intent, Poe’s commentary on aesthetic in his reviews and essays, in particular what he has written about brevity and effect, can be very useful to writers when it comes to plotting a story or chapter.

For Poe, the briefness of a story—which makes it easier to view the story as a whole—goes hand in hand with the “single effect” or “unity of effect.” Some critics viewed the effect as synonymous with the climax of the story, while others saw it more as “an undercurrent of significance” impressed upon the reader (Marler 171-172). In “The Philosophy of Composition,” Poe describes the effect as an impression made upon the heart, intellect, or soul that can be accomplished through novel or original manipulation of the events and tone of the story (1373-1374). Though Poe does not himself acknowledge that the effect is synonymous with the climax, he stresses the importance of keeping the dénouement—the final part of the story after the climax but sometimes seen as including the climax—always in mind: “It is only with the dénouement constantly in view that we can give a plot its indescribable air of consequence, or causation, by making the incidents, and especially the tone at all points, tend to the development of the intention” (“The Philosophy of Composition” 1373). However we view the effect, whether synonymous with climax or something less rigid, the effect can be seen as linked with plot.

In his review of Night and Morning: A Novel, Poe dispenses with the idea that plot is simply complexity. A true plot, he argues, is “that which no part can be displaced without ruin to the whole” (“Poe on Short Fiction” 65). He goes on to describe plot as a building with important, carefully placed bricks. Moving or taking out even one of those bricks will result in the entire structure crumbling. While Poe admits that such perfection, in which every word and sentence are just enough and in just the right place, is impossible to attain, it is “wise” for the artist to believe in and strive towards such a goal (“Poe on Short Fiction” 65-66). As he writes in his review of Hawthorne’s Twice-Told Tales, a wise literary artist “has not fashioned his thoughts to accommodate his incidents; but having conceived, with deliberate care, a certain unique or single effect to be wrought out, he then invents such incidents—he then combines such events as may best aid him in establishing this preconceived effect” (“Poe on Short Fiction” 61). Similar to his brick and building analogy in the Night and Morning review is Poe’s statement here: “If his very initial sentence tend not to the outbringing of this effect, then he has failed in his first step. In the whole composition there should be no word written, of which the tendency, direct or indirect, is not to be the one preestablished design” (“Poe on Short Fiction” 61).

Poe thus advises making the effect top priority, and organizing the incidents in one’s plot around that effect. Such a strategy is similar to another strategy writers sometimes use for plotting short stories or chapters or even entire novels—they come up with a climax or most important point for the piece, then think backwards and determine what led up to that climax. Alternatively, during revision one could think about which words, sentences, and paragraphs support and revolve around the effect, and take out or revise those that do not. This is similar to what is done for an academic essay’s thesis, though creative writers will point out it can also be done for the climax of a story or chapter. Coming close to this ideal where every word and sentence fits and supports the effect strengthens the unity or totality of the piece. Regarding brevity, Poe is concerned with the length of a piece for two reasons. A story may be too long because there are sentences that shouldn’t be there and should be skimmed away. The second point concerns novel writers less, but is still an important one to consider—when stories can’t be read in one sitting they may lose some of their unity or totality in the reader’s mind (“Poe on Short Fiction” 61). If novel writers think of their effects and supporting incidents for individual chapters, however, this second point may cease to be an issue.

While focusing on craft, writers of fiction can suspend arguments on Poe’s sincerity and intent when it came to aesthetic. What is perhaps most useful for the writer is considering the effect of their piece, the overall impression made on the reader rendered by their story’s events and tone. For the sake of visualization, one could place the climax, along with the dénouement, on a line parallel to the one with the effect on it. Climax and effect needn’t be synonymous to both help a writer construct a chapter or story. Considering effect can help us trim down our pieces, making them briefer and more unified. A writer can think of an effect and work backwards to determine the events and tone that accomplish it, or they can think about their effect more during revision. Probably a combination of the two is best. As tends to be the case for each writer—whatever works, use it.

Works Cited

Marler, Robert F. “From Tale to Short Story.” The New Short Story Theories. Ed. Charles E. May. Athens: Ohio University Press, 1994. 165-181.

Poe, Edgar Allan. “Poe on Short Fiction.” The New Short Story Theories. Ed. Charles E. May. Athens: Ohio University Press, 1994. 59-72.

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Philosophy of Composition.” Edgar Allan Poe: Poetry, Tales, and   Selected Essays. New York: Literary Classics of the United States, Inc., 1996. 1373-1385.

Polonsky, Rachel. “Poe’s Aesthetic Theory.” The Cambridge Companion to Edgar Allan     Poe. Ed. Kevin J. Hayes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. 42-56.