... appreciating required-Poe...

“Oh, outcast of all outcasts most abandoned!

—to the earth art thou not forever dead?”

~Poe

Preparing to kiss the Poe statue in 2009-- which I didn't actually do because I don't want to ruin art with my lipstick!

As I’ve been discussing the *fun reads* that I have been catching up on prior to the semester, I started thinking that perhaps I’m giving the impression that what I teach isn’t so fun. That isn’t the case at all; it’s just not new-to-me.

As a professor, I tell my students that my syllabi are completely biased because I select the pieces that I want them to read; and, I love to re-read my favorite works. I think it’s important to have a great deal of enthusiasm about the pieces that I select. How else can I encourage others to love literature?!? 

Teaching the introduction to literature course is one of my favorites because not only do I get to teach Dracula by Stoker but I also get to select some of my favorite prose including the short story that I have my class read.

"William Wilson" is probably my favorite short story by Edgar Allan Poe. If you haven’t read it, you can read it here. It isn’t the most popular but even Poe believed it was “[his] best effort”, or at least when he wrote to Washington Irving asking for endorsement, he specifically requested a response to this short story.  

First published in The Gift, Christmas 1839, “William Wilson” is certainly one of his masterpieces even if it is not the most popular. It isn't a Christmas story! I just noted the publication date because, well, I'm still focusing on the Christmas season.

“William Wilson” is a first-person narrative narrated by a character for whom death is imminent and who is distinctly interested in controlling the impression he makes upon the reader.  The basic premise of the story is that the narrator who calls himself William Wilson begins school with another boy with the same name, the same birthday, the same appearance. In fact, they’re exactly the same except that the double appears to be good while our narrator does some pretty awful acts beyond the card-sharking, drinking and lusting that are noted within the piece. And, the double can only whisper.

While the story focuses on the doppelgänger, or the supernatural double, the motif of light and dark are throughout the piece. William Wilson sneaks into his double’s dorm room and takes a close look at his features while at Dr. Bransby’s school. “When the bright rays fell vividly upon the sleeper, and my eyes, at the same moment, upon his countenance. I looked;—and a numbness, an iciness of feeling instantly pervaded my frame.” This is the last time our narrator gets a good look at his double’s features. For the rest of the text, the double lurks in the shadows or hides his face. But I don’t want to discount the length that Poe goes to add obvious doubles. The character uses the name William Wilson (W-W… doubling) and if you sound out the name in English, the first letter W (double-you). Yeah, Poe was a smart, intentional fellow.

There are three German films based on this short story. All of the films are called The Student of Prague. I have my students watch the 1926 version even though the film isn’t that similar to “William Wilson”. The point is to compare the double in the story and in the film. The portrayal is quite different. You can actually view the film in its entirety, albeit you have to watch nine separate YouTube posts. They begin here and you should be prompted to the next clip in order. 

For audiobook fans, I'm including this version below: