Taylor Smith

Mary Warner

Unit of Study: Supernatural

I: Overview: My unit of study is going to focus on Edgar Allen Poe, and especially the supernatural elements within a few of his short stories, and one poem. In particular, the symbolic elements of “The Telltale Heart”, “The Black Cat”, “The Masque of Red Death”, and “The Raven”. After exploring the works of Poe, the class will move towards more mainstreamed works, specifically focusing on the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, and on the supernatural elements present within the novels.

Rationale: In the recent years, the supernatural has become a driving force in many Young Adult works, often being used metaphorically for issues that teens face in everyday life. Examples of these works are series such as Cirque De Freak and Harry Potter, which manage to present the supernatural in plausible situations. However, what is there to learn from such works? How can students take anything beneficial from a world revolving around make-believe and superstition? I believe that this line of questioning stems from a lack of knowledge about what the supernatural represents within the novels. In regards to Edgar Allen Poe, supernatural elements exist to personify very human emotions such as those of grief, fear, guilt, and sorrow. I believe that through examining the works of Edgar Allen Poe, and by transitioning into more modern works, people in my class can more fully appreciate the effect of the supernatural upon their novels, and explore what they represent more in depth.

Objectives: The reason for studying the supernatural, especially in Poe’s work is to show how each and every supernatural element are symbolic of human thoughts and emotions, and to show how the supernatural fits into mainstream literature. After studying Poe, the class can move to more mainstream works, to examine the effects of the supernatural and what lessons or ideas they are trying to impart. Specifically however, the unit is not to focus upon the power of the short story or of poetry. It is to focus upon the power and allure that the supernatural holds.

II: Launching the Unit: My unit will start off with the works of Poe as he obviously had mastery with the supernatural, and relating the supernatural to human emotions. Starting off with Poe, students will examine the use of supernatural in his works

“The Telltale Heart”: Very easy, obvious introduction into Poe, with a rather dark and ominous setting. Introduces students into Poe’s writing style without becoming too confusing, and the metaphors introduced are all simple and easy to understand.

Beating of the Heart = Guilt.

“The Black Cat”: Introducing a more complicated theme, The Black Cat explores Poe’s ideas of animalistic urges, and the dehumanizing of characters. Rational beasts versus irrational humans.

Cat = Rational. Human = Irrational.

“Masque of Red Death”: The final short story of the unit would be The Masque of Red Death, exploring the concept of the power that the dead holds over the living, as well as the hubris of man and how it leads to downfall.

The Masquerade: Meant to keep death out. Prospero: Hubris personified.

After each short story, give the students a worksheet to take home that tests their understanding of the texts.

Sample:

1. What is the lesson that the story is trying to impart.

2. In which ways do the supernatural reinforce this lesson? Make sure to list specific examples.

3. List an example from another text that imparts a similar lesson through supernatural means.

III: Centerpiece – For the centerpiece of my unit, I believe that the Raven fully ties in all of the abovementioned concepts found within Poe’s work, and can help students test their understanding of the reason for supernatural elements within short stories and poems.

“The Raven”: Finally, in “The Raven”, all of these concepts are re-introduced and re-explored to give a more solid understanding. The guilt of Lenore’s death, the humanization of the raven, and finally, the power that a dead person holds over the narrator.

After reading the text and analyzing the themes presented within, the class could wind down from the discussion with a listening to the Alan Parson’s Project version of “The Raven”, just as a way to see how Poe’s works have been adapted.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fSQz_LQ6Kak)

Similarly, to garner a response about Poe before moving into further texts, the class could look at one of the Simpson’s Treehouse of Horror episode about “The Raven”. Using the Simpson’s, the class could be given a more visual understanding of the emotions contained within “The Raven”, especially in regards to the frustrations and despair felt, albeit in a more humorous context.

(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1NRtUsbQrM)

IV: Other texts: The Harry Potter Series – J.K. Rowling

To bring the unit to an end, I feel that the class would benefit from returning to modernized texts, in this case those of the Harry Potter series, mostly in hope that most young adults would have read these texts before. Instead of focusing on the texts solely for enjoyment however, this time the focus would be on the supernatural elements in Harry Potter, and the ideas that they emphasize.

IE: Ghosts = Regret. Unicorns = Purity. Sorcerer’s Stone = Immortality Dementors = depression.

After reading one of the Harry Potter novels, another

V: Extending the Unit – Cirque De Freak – Darren Shan

If the unit needs extending or it passes too quickly, another modern text that could be explored is that of the Cirque De Freak series by Darren Shan. While not as widely known as Harry Potter, the Cirque De Freak books all manage to capture the same allure of supernatural allure that both Poe and Rowling use within their novels.

Hush Hush – Becca Fitzpatrick

Another novel which focuses upon the supernatural, this novel seems similar to that of the Twilight series, though I would hope with a more varied vocabulary and more skilled writing, which is why I suggest this above Twilight.

Final Project: Break into groups to discuss one of the above concepts, and find another example of these within more mainstream media. After a week or so of work, present your findings to the class, including the connection and how it expresses the same lessons that Poe emphasized.

Overall: Takes about 2 weeks for the texts + Presentations.

Works Cited

Poe, Edgar. "Edgar Allen Poe." The Literature Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2011. <http://www.online-literature.com/poe/>.