Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Bells” is a lyrical work of art that is both haunting and mesmerizing. It follows the narrator as he reflects on the sound of bells in different situations and the emotions they evoke. The poem is divided into four distinct stanzas, each one focusing on a different type of bell and the emotions associated with it. But, which phrase from “The Bells” best conveys the mood of lines 70-94?
Descriptive Analysis of "The Bells"
Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Bells” is a lyrical work of art that is both haunting and mesmerizing. It follows the narrator as he reflects on the sound of bells in different situations and the emotions they evoke. The poem is divided into four distinct stanzas, each one focusing on a different type of bell and the emotions associated with it.
The first stanza is about the sound of silver bells, which the narrator associates with youth, joy, and the merriment of the holiday season. The second stanza focuses on the sound of golden bells, which the narrator considers to be more solemn and reflective, as they are associated with marriage and the end of innocence. The third stanza is about the sound of iron bells, which the narrator considers to be the most sinister and disturbing. The fourth and final stanza is about the sound of brass bells, which the narrator associates with the funeral processions and the finality of death.
Throughout the poem, the narrator waxes poetic about the emotions that the different bells evoke in him. He reflects on the beauty and joy of silver bells, the solemnity of golden bells, the dread of iron bells, and the finality of brass bells.
Uncovering the Mood of Lines 70-94
The phrase from “The Bells” that best conveys the mood of lines 70-94 is “the melancholy menace of their tone”. In these lines, the narrator is reflecting on the sound of iron bells, which he finds to be the most sinister and disturbing. He describes the sound of the bells as a “melancholy menace”, as it fills him with dread and unease.
The phrase “melancholy menace” is a perfect description of the mood of these lines, as it captures the sense of dread and unease that the narrator feels when he hears the sound of the iron bells. The phrase also conveys
“The bells, the bells, the madding bells,” by Edgar Allan Poe has become a classic in the literary world, for its extraordinary imagery and its unique yet familiar tone. In this poem, the bells symbolize a sense of dread, warning, and despair with language that evokes a sense of unease in the reader.
The phrase that best conveys the mood of lines 70-94 in “The Bells” is “their endless tale of terror,” which Poe utilizes to draw the reader into understanding the kind of unbearable fear and confusion that the bells seem to evoke. Through this phrase, Poe intensifies the fateful and despairing tone of the poem.
In lines 70-73, Poe begins by using a bell like sound to symbolize the movement and the intensity of the sound of the bells themselves “from morn to night, their mournful tone.” Then, in lines 73-76, he further intensifies the tone of the poem by providing an example of the sound of the bells; “clang, clang, clang”, which causes a feeling of how the sound never seems to end or dissipate.
This image is then further developed by the phrase, “their endless tale of terror,” in lines 77-79. This phrase makes the bells seem like they have an ominous and chilling narrative, even if no one is able to hear and interpret it. It also hints at the fact the bells seem to be warning or foretelling bad news to come. This foreboding feeling is then further intensified in lines 80-94 by describing how the bells’ sound becomes more and more intense and engrossing, and how even animals freeze and tremble “at their shrieking strain”.
Overall, Poe’s language in describing the bells builds up to a crescendo of terror and fear that is best conveyed through the phrase, “their endless tale of terror.” Through this phrase, readers are able to experience a greater understanding of the mood of the poem, and how dire the warning of the bells appears.