I consider this story the most grotesque so far. A central motif is the recursive past. Skeptic Delapore ignores the past of Exham Priory and his family, thus he is cursed to repeat it. The description of the building’s architecture, a combination of Romanesque, Druidic, and Saxon styles, helps to understand the historical setting of Exham Priory. Exam Priory is restored during different periods influenced by different civilizations’ styles; also religions, probably by Celtic mythology. The building has a religious peculiarity; therefore, there is evidence of ancient rituals involving cannibalism as a common practice presented in de la Poer family. Villagers think this family were werewolves culprits of the mysteriously and occasional disappearances of villagers. I think that the protagonist comes from a family of humans with taste for human flesh as werewolves or vampires do. Thus we find the idea of hereditary or family curse at the end of the story when Delapoer becomes insane. He feels something repressed inside of him; as Freud theory of personalities, the repression of the Id: the primitive and instinctive component of personality biologically inherited. However, the strange dreams could be link with demons, that in my opinion might be connected to the religion and rituals practiced in Exham Priory and or his ancestors spirits. Consequently, he eats Captain Norrys which is also suggested his ancestors did with villagers and an unknown early human race. According to the story, it was probably the “Pitdown man,” used as cattle to satisfy their desire for human flesh. Furthermore, I read an interesting interpretation that says cannibalism was the effects of a bacteria or virus that affected the brain, thus people would cannibalize others. It points out that the microorganisms were transmitted through cannibalism, particularly the eating of infected brains, as it happened with some cannibal, isolated tribes in Papua New Guine, which people got the bacteria by eating the brain of others. Thus, those microorganism live in Exham Priory form where visitors get infected. However, I rather think that, despite the rats are never seen, the role of the rats, in this case, is to spread the viral disease that causes humans to get taste for human flesh. Finally, I do not understand why the rats does not appear at any moment of the main story, thus I expect a good possible reason for that.
I consider Joaquín’s comment very interesting since he mentions a variety of possibilities to the fact of eating human flesh. I believe that in some way the protagonist was linked to the curse of his family, as Joaquintxo mentions. The fact of going back to the house for its restoration seems to be a call from his family. In the story, Lovecraft writes a relevant phrase about the family issue, he says that “there was no evil report, but something strange must have happened then” (565). As in many gothic stories, a dark secret in the family is portrayed. Moreover, the fact that only Delapore and his cats could listen to the rats represent the mental confusion of the protagonist, but it could only mean his family’s call.
Diana mentions a family issue: the insanity or curse through heritage: the rats that might only exist in his head. I would think that cannibalism is a decadent behavior. This behavior along with straight religious traditions or rituals could be the reason of the de la Poer family downfall. It could also be a satire to religions somehow. I like the idea that the rats have the need for looking for protection in a house as we humans do. We hide.
Regarding Joaquintxo's question, the rats are a red herring. According to wikipedia, a red herring is " is something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important issue.[1] It may be either a logical fallacy or a literary device that leads readers or audiences towards a false conclusion. A red herring might be intentionally used, such as in mystery fiction or as part of rhetorical strategies (e.g. in politics), or it could be inadvertently used during argumentation."
I believe that Lovecraft used the rats in order to give the stories' plot twist a more shocking effect. The reader throughout the story thinks that the rats are going to have a more important role; for example, killing the protagonist, as he dreamed. The reader might have believed that the dream was a foreshadowing, but everything was a red herring to the fact that there was a twilit grotto in which the ancestors of the protagonist practiced cannibalism for centuries.
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ReplyDeleteI consider this story the most grotesque so far. A central motif is the recursive past. Skeptic Delapore ignores the past of Exham Priory and his family, thus he is cursed to repeat it. The description of the building’s architecture, a combination of Romanesque, Druidic, and Saxon styles, helps to understand the historical setting of Exham Priory. Exam Priory is restored during different periods influenced by different civilizations’ styles; also religions, probably by Celtic mythology. The building has a religious peculiarity; therefore, there is evidence of ancient rituals involving cannibalism as a common practice presented in de la Poer family.
Villagers think this family were werewolves culprits of the mysteriously and occasional disappearances of villagers. I think that the protagonist comes from a family of humans with taste for human flesh as werewolves or vampires do. Thus we find the idea of hereditary or family curse at the end of the story when Delapoer becomes insane.
He feels something repressed inside of him; as Freud theory of personalities, the repression of the Id: the primitive and instinctive component of personality biologically inherited. However, the strange dreams could be link with demons, that in my opinion might be connected to the religion and rituals practiced in Exham Priory and or his ancestors spirits. Consequently, he eats Captain Norrys which is also suggested his ancestors did with villagers and an unknown early human race. According to the story, it was probably the “Pitdown man,” used as cattle to satisfy their desire for human flesh.
Furthermore, I read an interesting interpretation that says cannibalism was the effects of a bacteria or virus that affected the brain, thus people would cannibalize others. It points out that the microorganisms were transmitted through cannibalism, particularly the eating of infected brains, as it happened with some cannibal, isolated tribes in Papua New Guine, which people got the bacteria by eating the brain of others. Thus, those microorganism live in Exham Priory form where visitors get infected. However, I rather think that, despite the rats are never seen, the role of the rats, in this case, is to spread the viral disease that causes humans to get taste for human flesh.
Finally, I do not understand why the rats does not appear at any moment of the main story, thus I expect a good possible reason for that.
I consider Joaquín’s comment very interesting since he mentions a variety of possibilities to the fact of eating human flesh. I believe that in some way the protagonist was linked to the curse of his family, as Joaquintxo mentions. The fact of going back to the house for its restoration seems to be a call from his family. In the story, Lovecraft writes a relevant phrase about the family issue, he says that “there was no evil report, but something strange must have happened then” (565). As in many gothic stories, a dark secret in the family is portrayed. Moreover, the fact that only Delapore and his cats could listen to the rats represent the mental confusion of the protagonist, but it could only mean his family’s call.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDiana mentions a family issue: the insanity or curse through heritage: the rats that might only exist in his head. I would think that cannibalism is a decadent behavior. This behavior along with straight religious traditions or rituals could be the reason of the de la Poer family downfall. It could also be a satire to religions somehow. I like the idea that the rats have the need for looking for protection in a house as we humans do. We hide.
ReplyDeleteRegarding Joaquintxo's question, the rats are a red herring. According to wikipedia, a red herring is
ReplyDelete" is something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important issue.[1] It may be either a logical fallacy or a literary device that leads readers or audiences towards a false conclusion. A red herring might be intentionally used, such as in mystery fiction or as part of rhetorical strategies (e.g. in politics), or it could be inadvertently used during argumentation."
I believe that Lovecraft used the rats in order to give the stories' plot twist a more shocking effect. The reader throughout the story thinks that the rats are going to have a more important role; for example, killing the protagonist, as he dreamed. The reader might have believed that the dream was a foreshadowing, but everything was a red herring to the fact that there was a twilit grotto in which the ancestors of the protagonist practiced cannibalism for centuries.
Awesome answer!
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