Murder In The Rue Morgue Literary Analysis

Introduction
The story is about a man with amazing detective skills, called August
Dupin, and he is also the man who solves the murder of two women, whose
deaths were too inhumane and extreme to have been done by a man. Witnesses
at the crime scene heard a suspect speak, but no one could understand its
language. August later found out and solved the case when he identified the
murderer as an orangutan.

Setting
The story was set in Paris, in the summer of 1840. The main setting, the
crime scene, was set in the street of Rue Morgue. The quiet and secluded street
of Rue Morgue makes it more surprising that a murder happened there. Not only
that but this adds to the overall atmosphere of mystery and suspense. The
murder had happened on the fourth floor of the two women’s apartment, making
it all the more intriguing how the murderer got in.

The apartment, where the murder had happened, is crucial because it

gives us an idea of how the women were murdered and the horridness of the
case. The apartment was described as having one locked door and two locked
windows, giving no way out for the murderer and making the case all the more
puzzling. The room was described as having broken chairs and tables lying
around. There was only one bed from which everything was taken and thrown to
the floor. Blood was everywhere–the bed, the floor, and the walls. A sharp knife
covered in blood lay on the floor along with gold bars and grey hair. The
daughter’s body was in the fireplace and the old woman’s body was thrown out
the window and was discovered on the ground floor. The entire setting is what
most contributes to the eerie and mysterious atmosphere.

Characters
The protagonist of this murder story is August Dupin, who has exceptional
deductive and analytical skills that assisted in helping him solve the baffling
mystery of the murder. The narrator is the nameless friend of Dupin, and
although he may not contribute much to the solving of this mystery, he is the
friend or confidant of the protagonist, Dupin. One of the victims of the murder is
the old lady who was a widowed mother to a daughter and was rich and owned
quite a lot of money and the apartment she stayed at. She was described as
having almost had her head cut off and was discovered on the ground floor of the
building, making the case even harder to solve. The other victim of the murder is
the old woman’s daughter. By the big hand mark on her throat, it was confirmed
that her death was caused by strangling from an enormous force, hinting us on
who the culprit may be. The other character is the sailor who had originally
owned the orangutan that had caused the murder. The sailor was described to be
strong and able to climb up the lightning pole. He was also described to be
scared and careless seeing as how he had accidentally let the orangutan escape
causing the horrendous murder of the two women. The final character is the
orangutan who is the antagonist in this story and the culprit of the murder. It was
told to have escaped the sailor’s captive with a knife in his hand and had climbed
up the window of the two women using the lightning pole, which was located near
the window. After climbing into the window of the two women, the orangutan was
frightened by the sudden scream of the women and in a frenzy killed them and in
an attempt to hide their bodies, shoved the daughter up the fireplace and threw
the old woman out the window and flee the scene.

Conflict
There are a total of three conflicts that are identified in this story–Man vs
Man, Man vs Self, and Man vs Society. The story mainly focuses on The external
conflict, man vs man, where Dupin is tasked to solve the perplexing case and
has to go into many observations to find the culprit. The second conflict, Man vs
Self, is found when Dupin has to go through self-doubt and bias. He must battle
his thoughts and emotions to find the true malefactor. Man vs Society is
portrayed in the last scene where the police are not happy about how Dupin, a
mere individual, had solved such a perplexing situation that even the police
couldn’t. The murder in the Rue Morgue portrays many types of conflict in its
story making it a more deep and thorough piece.

Point of view

The point of view in the short story “Murder in the Rue Morgue” is told from a
first-person perspective and is first-person in the sense that he tells the story
using “I” and only describes what he knows directly or hears in the conversation.
The unnamed narrator is a friend of the main character August Dupin who can
read people’s minds. The narrator illuminates the brilliant side of Dupin, how the
conflict happened, and how Dupin finds the murderer in the crime. although they
may seem to use the first person narrative, in reality they are using third person
limited to tell the perspective of August in a much more peculiar way.

Theme

The theme in the story "The Murder in the Rue Morgue" by Edgar Allan Poe is
cleverness in detecting a murder. Although Dupin is not a professional detective he
decided to investigate the murder in the Rue Morgue. He also has the desire to for truth
and to falsely accuse man of innocence. His interests are not financial and he even
declines a reward from the owner of the orangutan.

Plot

In the story "The Murder in the Rue Morgue" by Edgar Allan Poe, the main focus is
on trying to solve a very puzzling and horrible crime where two people, Madame
L'Espanaye and her daughter, are found dead in a locked room. The authorities are very
confused because both victims were killed in a gruesome way, and the room was closed
from the inside with no way for anyone to come in or go out. It was a bit strange
because all the windows were shut tight, and the room was in a place where it was
impossible for anyone to climb in or out. But then, August Dupin, a really smart
detective, becomes interested in the case and works together with someone telling the
story to figure out what happened. By carefully looking at everything and using his
logical thinking, Dupin starts to understand what really happened. He thinks about
different ideas, examines clues, and puts together the events that led to the terrible
murders. In the end, Dupin figures out that the murders weren't done by a person, but
by an orangutan that had escaped and somehow got into the house through a window.
The animal got very violent and ended up killing the women before running away. Its
strength and wild behavior explain why the crime scene seemed impossible to
understand at first. Finally, Dupin explains everything to the authorities, and they find
out that the orangutan responsible for the murders has been caught. This shows how
smart Dupin is, solving a crime that seemed really confusing and impossible to solve.

Language used

In "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" by Edgar Allan Poe, the way people talk is proper
and fancy, just like how they spoke in the past. Poe's writing is really fancy and detailed,
using big words to make the story sound formal. The characters speak in a fancy and
educated way without using casual or modern words. Their conversations are smart and
polished, making the story feel like a serious and smart detective mystery.
Literary devices

Poe uses different writing tricks like symbols and imaginative language to make the
story feel spooky and interesting. In the story, the Rue Morgue street seems old and
strange, making it a symbol of darkness and mystery. Poe uses figurative languages
such as metaphor and personification to describe the setting and characters. He uses
the metaphor “thick and miasmatic atmosphere” to describe the creepy feeling in the
story, making it feel scary and mysterious. Personification is used to things like the
candle seem alive, saying it "trembled and flared" like it was afraid, making the story
even scarier. These literary devices help to create a scary and exciting story that keeps
the reader interested and a little bit scared.

Conclusion

To sum it all up “The Murder in The Rue Morgue” is a story set in the nineteenth century,
in a quiet and secluded street, the Rue Morgue. The protagonist, Dupin, and his
confidant is tasked to find the culprit of the murders of the two women. The story also
features many conflicts—Man vs Man, Man vs Self, and Man vs Society. The point of
view of this story may seem first person at first glance but it is third person limited,
explaining each and every action of Dupin more clearly. The entire plot of the story is
basically about a murder of two women and Dupin investigating it in order to find the
culprit, who ended up being an orangutan. The language is really polished and fancy
giving the aura of a serious and good detective story. The writer, Poe, uses symbols,
such as Rue morgue being a secluded place as a symbol of darkness. He also uses
other literary devices such as imagery, metaphor and personification to help the reader
get more invested into the story. Overall, Poe uses many different attributes to create
this masterpiece and get readers to be invested and anticipating the end of the story.