Meaning & Symbolic of personal names

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Could some body help me?

I’m studying the meanings (real and symbolic) of the personal names appearing in Poe’s tales and poetry

A for Al Aaraaf, Angel of the Odd

B for Berenice, Bon-Bon,

The purloined letter mentions a certain Dupin and Minister D

I found in The Lighthouse De Grät; Who is he?

M for Monos, Montresor

Etc…

Did they really exist? And what about their signification.

Is there a certain sequence in Poe's use of names?

While searching I become more and more puzzled by some strange coincidence?

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2003

Answers

I found the following book very interesting & helpful: Edgar Allan Poe A to Z: The Essential Reference to His Life and Work (The Literary A to Z Series, by Dawn B. Sova Publisher: Checkmark, 2001.

Good re. quick reference. But not meant to give "the whole story" on some of Poe's more complex relationships with colleagues, friends, etc.

-- Anonymous, October 07, 2003


Also, regarding:

1) Lenore, Eleonora. In his essay "The Philosophy of Composition," Poe states that the most pleasing sound to the ear is "oor," & he gives reasons why. 2)Favorite heroines of Poe often have names derived from Greek for "flame." Examples: Helen, Eleonora and Lenore.

3)Poe also seemed to like names signifiying "light": Ulalume, and the name of his favorite tale, Ligeia. And the unseen Luchesi in "Cask of Amontillado"---appropriate, that the darkness-enshrouded main characters never see someone whose name means "light."

4)Some pairs of characters have names that hint at duality, by having the same meaning. Example: Fortunato and Montressor ("my treasure"). Re. Dupin and Minister D-- see the post 2 posts down from yours, about "The Purloined Letter," for a very interesting explanation.

5)Sometimes Poe used names of people he, or his parents, knew when growing up. Ex.: The schoolmaster in "William Wilson" has the same name as did Poe's old childhood schoolmaster. And Mr. Usher was a theatre colleague of Poe's parents.

6)Al Araaf, Amontillado, Annabel Lee---perhaps Poe simply liked the sounds of those names. His biographer Kenneth Silverman suggests that Poe is encoding the name Allan into these works.

-- Anonymous, October 09, 2003


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