Page 42 - Revista Noastra Nr.53-54 (2020)

Pe magistralele pe care le re-
prezintă marile idei, miturile poetice,
ESEU naționale sau universale, Eminescu
folosește structuri mai mici ca întin-
dere, dar care, potențând poliseman-
tismul, într-un mod paradoxal,
măresc viteza de înțelegere, dar în
același timp fac imersia în universul
său poetico-ideatic mai ușoară, fide-
lizându-te ca vizitator al unei lumi
fascinante și perene. Experiența lec-
turii operei sale este a unui râu care
nu-și uită albia, dar în același timp
descoperă mereu alte ținuturi, deși,
cumva, mereu familiare.
A vedea opera geniului nos-
tru național ca pe un sistem care dăi-
nuie prin facilitarea curenților
interiori, conform definiției lui
Bejan, a urmări câteva din structurile
arhitecturilor de curgere precum toposul reflectare/ refractare/ trăire sau multistratificarea sensurilor, ca și
rolul elementelor de intensificare ca baterea, zbaterea, tremurul, cutremurul ca elemente de facilitare a
înțelegerii, dar și ca noduri de semnificații poate părea un demers cam prea postmodernist, dar, cred eu, are
menirea de a vedea încă o dată structura măiastră și puterea magică a operei lui Mihai Eminescu.

prof. Irina BICESCU

Gothic Mood

Mood represents a literary device that evokes with anxiety, and then asks the reader whether they
certain feelings or vibes in readers through precise might consider him to be mad. He then becomes even
choice of words and description, it is the atmosphere more wildly eccentric when he addresses the reader,
that creates an emotional response, engaging the rea- saying, „Oh, you would have laughed to see how cun-
der and contributing to a better understanding of the ningly I thrust it in!” (referring to the light he uses to
literary piece. There are several ways to portray the illuminate the old man’s bed chamber), which only
mood throughout the literary work, some of these adds to the sense of the already pervading bad omen
being the setting, tone, diction and theme of the story. of what is to come.
Edgar Allan Poe, considered the apex of American Got- “The Raven” contains several clues that tell the
hic literature, was a master at producing specific reader about the setting of the poem. The Gothic,
moods in his writings, most of which are gloomy, hair- mysterious, even morbid mood pervades the poem
rising and eerie. Let us consider two of his masterpie- also, from the very beginning. It starts with an unfat-
ces, the poem “The Raven” and the short story “The homable rapping at his “chamber door” “once upon a
Tell-Tale Heart”, both of which undoubtedly bear tes- midnight dreary” “in bleak December” but when the
timony. man goes to the door, expecting to find a visitor, only
The setting is known as the physical location in „silence” and „stillness” greet him. In the third stanza,
a story that provides the background against which the one additional small description is given: “the silken,
events of the narrative take place. A particular setting sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain” - one of
not only provides support to the contents of the story the few descriptions from the chamber itself. The flut-
or its characters but also sets the overall mood of the ter of the curtain is likely an eerie occurrence that is
readers. The setting in “The Tell-Tale Heart”, although meant to increase the speaker’s „terror.” The rapping
rather equivocal, plays a valuable role, even though continues and he realizes it is now at the window and
the old man`s house is not described in detail. Never- on opening it “in there stepped a stately raven” whose
theless, the reader can get an idea of the character`s name is “Nevermore”, a cruel mantra for the lovesick
surroundings as Poe depicts his room as being “as man who is finally driven mad by his own mind’s inabi-
black as pitch with the thick darkness”. The first sen- lity to find peace in its agony. The last description of
tence in “The Tell-Tale Heart”: „True! – nervous - very, the speaker’s room comes in stanza seven where the
very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why Raven perches “upon a bust of Pallas (the Greek god-
will you say that I am mad?”, introduces an arrestingly dess of wisdom) just above (the speaker’s) chamber
strange narrator who states that he has been troubled door.”

38 grafica: Adrian Nicolae Taban REVISTA NOASTRĂ nr. 53/54