Pessimism In The Work Of Edgar Allan Poe

	Have you ever wondered why people look at the bad side of things instead of the good side? Well, this is called pessimism.

Pessimism is used greatly in society. One could find examples of it just about anywhere. Edgar Allan Poe could be recognized as the

king of pessimism. His dark and twisted stories are filled with pessimism. By using pessimism, one brings out a dark side from within

oneself. Poe was a person who had many troubling experiences throughout his life. It seemed that all the women he loved ended up

dying, and they all died from the same disease. Tuberculosis. To add to his misfortune, he was poor, didn’t have a stable job, and

was a alcoholic. To escape from his saddened world, Poe drank and wrote short stories or poems with a pessimistic outlook. Being a

pessimist is what made Poe such a great and creative writer. He brought out his dark side in his work. Poe had many pieces of work

published which gained him some creditability as a dark and twisted writer. Some of his more familiar pieces of work, such as, The

Tell-Tale Heart, or The Pit and the Pendulum, used great amounts of pessimism to sway the story along. In his piece, The Tell-Tale

Heart, he writes about a crazed manic who is tormented by the eyes of a old man. “One of his eyes resembled that of a vulture - a

pale blue eye, with a film over it ... I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye for ever.” This is

just an example of how pessimistic Poe was. It seems that all of his stories and poems are laced throughout with pessimism.

Pessimism was like Poe’s warm blanket. It allowed him to bring out his dark side. In today’s world, you can look almost anywhere

and find pessimism. In the movies, on TV, or in ones own life, pessimism is usually a big influence on how we see life, and other

people. I, myself, am very pessimistic at times. Things I can’t see the good side of will usually be looked at in a dark tone. Being

pessimistic isn’t something one wants to be if trying to lead a bright and cheerful life. Although sometimes comforting, soothing, and

like a warm blanket, pessimism generally, isn’t something good. It’s also not something bad, as long as one doesn’t use it for long

periods of time. It is sure to be said that pessimism will bring out a dark side in oneself. As one can see, pessimism is used and was

used greatly among society today, and society of ages ago. In both cases, pessimism brought out the dark side within oneself. So

next time there’s a chance you might become pessimistic, make sure to look at the bright side of everything before jumping into it.