Edgar Allan Poe is a name that looms large in literature as a slightly obnoxious and horrible writer. Her short stories and poems are sure to make any reader shiver with their vivid images. But if you take the time to read his sixty-nine stories, you will find many common elements that become slightly monotonous. Although he uses similar ideas, this is what differentiates his work from “Poe”. After dissecting each of his stories, it's fascinating to discover which elements he tends to repeat. The most striking character in Poe's stories is the anonymous narrator. There are only a few of his works in which he actually names the speaker: "The Cask of Amontillado", "Berenice", and "The Facts in the Case of Mr. Valdemar" are a few examples. Almost everyone else fails to name the person telling the story. In the twisted tale "William Wilson", the narrator explains that the reason he does not speak his name is that "the beautiful page which now lies before me need not be sullied by my true appellation" ( Poe par. 1), but other than this, Poe generally does not give a reason behind this characteristic. This is not the only commonality a reader encounters early in Poe's frightening fiction. It is usual to see a confession of the narrator's state of mind at the beginning of these short stories. You can find this kind of intro in “Manuscript Found in a Bottle” and “The Black Cat”. One of his works begins: “Very, very terribly nervous, I was and am; but why do you say I'm crazy? Illness had sharpened my senses -- not destroyed -- not dulled them” (Poe “A Tell-Tale Heart” par. 1). In "A Tell-Tale Heart", the reason he proclaims his sanity is because he has just killed a man, ...... middle of paper ...... Poe, Edgar A." The Mask of the Red Death." Poems. Np, and Web. April 30, 2014. .Poe, Edgar A. “The Rue Morgue Murders.” Poems. Np, and Web. April 30, 2014. .Poe, Edgar A. “The Pit and the Pendulum.” Poems. Np, and Web. April 30, 2014. .Poe, Edgar A. “The Tell-Tale Heart.” Poems. Np, and Web. April 30, 2014. .Poe, Edgar A. “William Wilson.” Poems. Np, and Web. April 30, 2014. .Stevenson, Robert Louis. "Literature: 'The Works of Edgar Allan Poe'." The Academy 7.139 (January 2, 1879): 1-2. Rep. in 19th century literary criticism. Ed. Laurie Lanzen Harris. Flight. 1. Detroit: Gale Research, 1981. Information Resource Center. Internet. April 27. 2014.