31 pages • 1 hour read
Edgar Allan PoeThe Oval Portrait
Fiction | Short Story | Adult | Published in 1842A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Essay Topics
Critics see “The Oval Portrait,” at least in part, as a meditation on the potential death of Poe’s wife, Virginia. Where else in Poe’s stories and poems does he describe the death of young women? Which of these works can reasonably be linked to Virginia’s illness? Are there other works where this link cannot be made? What else might account for Poe’s fascination with this topic?
“The Oval Portrait” is an example of Gothic Romanticism. What are the characteristics of this genre, and how are they manifested in his work and the works of other popular authors of his time? In what ways is “The Oval Portrait” typical of these works, and in what ways is it atypical?
One of the notable features of this story is its lyrical language. Where are the story’s most lyrical passages? Why might this musical, poetic language be concentrated in these particular parts of the story? What is the intended effect and overall function of this language?
There are two separate narrators in “The Oval Portrait.” How would you characterize the personalities of these two narrators? How do their language and detail choices contribute to this characterization? How would you compare and contrast the voices of these narrators, and what would you say is the purpose of the similarities and differences between them?
Consider the popularized “uncanny valley” concept in modern media, and connect it to “The Oval Portrait” and other literature. What descriptions allude to this effect in this short story, and what other classic stories and novels potentially allude to the same effect?
Three prominent themes in “The Oval Portrait” are The Dangers of Obsession, The Relationship Between Art and Life, and The Nature of Romantic Relationships. How does the idea of “relationship” function as a thread that unites all of these themes? Is it possible to sum up all three thematic areas in a larger statement that focuses on the idea of relationships?
Critics have noted that this story is likely partially inspired by a Coleridge work that contained an allegorical story-within-a-story, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner (1798). Can an argument be made for “The Oval Portrait” as an allegory? If so, what would the allegory be, and how strong of a case do you think can be made for this allegory?
From one perspective, the death of the painter’s wife is her own fault, and from another perspective, her death is the fault of her husband—or even the fault of art itself. Also consider how many others came to see the progress of the work and did not find fault in the painter’s process. What does this say about the social system and the patriarchy during this time period, if anything?
The frame narrator describes the oval portrait at length, and the reader learns in detail about his reactions to the portrait. After the frame narrator reads about the portrait in the little book, why does Poe not return to the frame narrator’s story and clarify how he reacts to reading the story? The frame narrator is clearly telling the reader about something that happened in his past—are there clues in his language and detail choices that hint at his reaction to the story?
Related Titles
By Edgar Allan Poe
