A comparative study of the criminal psychology in Poe & Doyle’s works
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Date
2019
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UMT, Lahore
Abstract
Crime fiction has been the genre of literature existing for centuries for constructive reasons of the society as well as for entertainment. The psyche behind the crime is so dark and devilish that the criminal ends up into a realm of no-return. The major driving forces to take these extreme steps have always astonished the man as these forces had always been hidden in the subconscious of a man. The unattended wishes and desires of a man during his childhood and adulthood lead him to a reactive personality and shallow morals. The person tries to fulfill his desires and wishes whenever he gets a chance and an opportunity. The characters of Poe and Doyle are the honest representation of criminal psychology revealing the inner-most feeling and desires of the people who do not hesitate to commit a crime and demolish the set moral and legal codes of the society. Characters of Poe and Doyle which are the major points of focus do not possess the devilish qualities as they have been shown very naïve and sensitive but overwhelmed by the criminal activities and immoral mind hidden in their mirrored personalities. This psyche is quite vivid in all of the works of Poe and Doyle especially in “The Tell-tale Heart” where the protagonist himself is the victim of unfulfilled desires of his childhood as well as adulthood. Similarly, The Masque of the Red Death by Poe show political criminals driven by strong id and hidden forces of their psyche. Psychoanalysis of a story (or any other work) helps to reveal the logic and reasoning behind the actions and discourse of a character as well as the author. The sufferings and problems faced by a character his during life and specially childhood is of great importance. Comparatively, both of the authors represent different criminal minds to better show that they’ve produced the works to decode the social ills and eradicate them from the society to make it a better place to live in.