Morning on the Wissahiccon

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The Opal, 1844, edited by N.P. Willis. John C. Riker, New York. The Opal cover 1844.jpg
The Opal, 1844, edited by N.P. Willis. John C. Riker, New York.

"Morning on the Wissahiccon" (also called "The Elk") is an 1844 work by Edgar Allan Poe describing the natural beauty of Wissahickon Creek, which flows into the Schuylkill River in Philadelphia. It borders between being a short story and a travel essay.

Edgar Allan Poe 19th-century American author, poet, editor and literary critic

Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is widely regarded as a central figure of Romanticism in the United States and of American literature as a whole, and he was one of the country's earliest practitioners of the short story. He is generally considered the inventor of the detective fiction genre and is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. He was the first well-known American writer to earn a living through writing alone, resulting in a financially difficult life and career.

Wissahickon Creek creek in southeastern Pennsylvania, United States

Wissahickon Creek is a tributary of the Schuylkill River in Montgomery and Philadelphia Counties, Pennsylvania in the United States.

Schuylkill River River in eastern Pennsylvania, United States

The Schuylkill River is an important river running northwest to southeast in eastern Pennsylvania, which was improved by navigations into the Schuylkill Canal. Several of its tributaries drain major parts of the center-southern and easternmost Coal Regions in the state.

Contents

Overview

Poe criticizes tourists who focus on "the most beaten thoroughfares of the country" and do not look at the beauty of sites "far away from the track." He describes the area in detail and its wild beauty, in particular the Wissahiccon Creek itself. On one visit, he sees an elk on a cliff. The majesty of this "oldest and boldest" of elks is ruined when he realizes it was a domesticated pet, not a wild creature, belonging to "an English family occupying a villa in the vicinity."

Elk Large antlered species of deer from North America and east Asia

The elk or wapiti is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in North America and Northeast Asia. This animal should not be confused with the still larger moose to which the name "elk" applies in British English and in reference to populations in Eurasia.

Poe refers to the writing of actress Fanny Kemble in this essay, saying it was she who first brought the beautiful area to people's attention in her "droll book", Journal, in 1835.

Fanny Kemble English actress and writer

Frances Anne "Fanny" Kemble was a notable British actress from a theatre family in the early and mid-19th century. She was a well-known and popular writer, whose published works included plays, poetry, eleven volumes of memoirs, travel writing and works about the theatre.

Publication history

Illustration by John Gadsby Chapman in The Opal: A Pure Gift for the Holy Days, 1844. The Opal The Elk 1844.jpg
Illustration by John Gadsby Chapman in The Opal: A Pure Gift for the Holy Days, 1844.

The work was first published as "Morning on the Wissahiccon" in the annual The Opal: A Pure Gift for the Holy Days in 1844. [1] Like Poe's previous "The Island of the Fay," it was originally a "plate article," a work written specifically to accompany an engraving. The original engraving by John Gadsby Chapman depicted an elk in an idyllic nature setting. [2]

<i>The Opal</i> (annual)

The Opal: A Pure Gift for the Holy Days, was an annual gift book, founded by Rufus Wilmot Griswold and published in New York by John C. Riker, from 1844 to 1849. Content included short stories, illustrations and poems.

Engraving practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it

Engraving is the practice of incising a design onto a hard, usually flat surface by cutting grooves into it with a burin. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing images on paper as prints or illustrations; these images are also called "engravings". Engraving is one of the oldest and most important techniques in printmaking. Wood engraving is a form of relief printing and is not covered in this article.

John Gadsby Chapman American artist

John Gadsby Chapman was an American artist famous for Baptism of Pocahontas, which was commissioned by the United States Congress and hangs in the United States Capitol rotunda.

The Opal was an annual gift book edited by Nathaniel Parker Willis. Established by Rufus Wilmot Griswold, it was published in New York by John C. Riker.

Nathaniel Parker Willis

Nathaniel Parker Willis, also known as N. P. Willis, was an American author, poet and editor who worked with several notable American writers including Edgar Allan Poe and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. He became the highest-paid magazine writer of his day. For a time, he was the employer of former slave and future writer Harriet Jacobs. His brother was the composer Richard Storrs Willis and his sister Sara wrote under the name Fanny Fern.

Rufus Wilmot Griswold 19th-century American editor, literary critic, anthologist, and writer.

Rufus Wilmot Griswold was an American anthologist, editor, poet, and critic. Born in Vermont, Griswold left home when he was 15 years old. He worked as a journalist, editor, and critic in Philadelphia, New York City, and elsewhere. He built up a strong literary reputation, in part due to his 1842 collection The Poets and Poetry of America. This anthology, the most comprehensive of its time, included what he deemed the best examples of American poetry. He produced revised versions and similar anthologies for the remainder of his life, although many of the poets he promoted have since faded into obscurity. Many writers hoped to have their work included in one of these editions, although they commented harshly on Griswold's abrasive character. Griswold was married three times: his first wife died young, his second marriage ended in a public and controversial divorce, and his third wife left him after the previous divorce was almost repealed.

Analysis

"Morning on the Wissahiccon" represents Poe's quest for beauty. [3] He begins with a discussion of the "natural scenery" of North America as compared to the Old World, particularly Europe. He describes the beauty of the Wissahiccon brook outside of Philadelphia. He had come upon the scene during his excursions. He castigates both American and foreign travelers who focus on the popular natural sights but ignore the "Edens of the land"

Travelers miss many North American landscapes because they are difficult to access. This is different in England. In particular, he cites "the valley of Louisiana" which is "of all extensive areas of natural loveliness, this is perhaps the most lovely". To appreciate the natural scenery of North America, a traveler must go by foot.

He then notices an elk near a precipice. He assumes it is a wild animal. He later observes, however, that a man moves towards it with carrying salt and a halter. He is disappointed to discover the elk is a domesticated pet.

He concludes: "Thus ended my romance of the elk."

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References

  1. ↑ Sova, Dawn B. Edgar Allan Poe, A to Z. Checkmark Books, 2001. p. 79
  2. ↑ Renza, Louis A. "Ut Pictura Poe: Poetic Politics in 'The Island of the Fay' and 'Morning on the Wissahickon'," as collected in The American Face of Edgar Allan Poe, edited by Shawn Rosenheim and Stephen Rachman. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1995. p. 309 ISBN   0-8018-5025-8
  3. ↑ Quinn, Arthur Hobson. Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998. ISBN   0-8018-5730-9 p. 395
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