The Female figure in Edgar Allan Poe’s tales: “Berenice” and “Ligeia”

Abstract

This work aims to analyze the female figure in two tales written by the writer Edgar Allan Poe, entitled Berenice and Ligeia. These tales were chosen due to the presence of two very significant female characters, which have an impact and strangeness both on the other characters in the short story and on the readers themselves. Thus, this work presents as theoretical basis the life of the writer and the role of women in the nineteenth century, period of production and publication of the stories analyzed. This theoretical basis helps us understand the similar and contrastive aspects of the characters compared to the women represented in the nineteenth century, thus allowing us to perceive their real roles in the works. Thus, based on our analyzes we noticed that the female figures created in the tales represented an important motivation for the feelings of the male figures. Moreover, they are highly valued characters within the stories, allowing us, as readers, to understand them as different women from the century in which they were created.