First Things First…
I just reviewed my first Poe story last week, and now I’m about to get to my second. It’s another one I’ve never heard of, so I have no idea what it’s about. I didn’t love “Metzengerstein” last week. And looking ahead at the Table of Contents in my Poe complete collection, it’s going to be a little while before I get to any of his famous works. So hopefully some of these more obscure ones—like this—are enjoyable.
2 Things I Like
2. Playing Cards with the Devil
The premise is solid. A nobleman dies, goes to Hell, and plays cards with the Devil to win his soul back.
So far, so good…
1. No Fear
“’Sir!’ replied the Duc, ‘I am not to be insulted with impunity!—Sir! I shall take the earliest opportunity of avenging this insult!—Sir! You shall hear from me! In the meantime au revoir!’”
The Duc De L’Omelette
When the Duc first discovers where he is and who he’s talking to, it doesn’t seem to intimidate him. He’s still arrogant enough to talk shit to the Devil.
Granted, he becomes more fearful when he looks out the window and sees the hellscape beyond. And he hears melodies that he realizes are really “the wailings and the howlings of the hopeless and the damned!”
But none of it scares him away from cheating at cards and escaping damnation.
0 Things I’m Mixed On
1 Thing I Don’t Like
1. Footnotes & French
This story is only three pages, but it has close to 10 French phrases I had to look up, not to mention even more allusions to art, history, and other works of his day that required footnotes. And even once I was able to fill in the blanks, the references didn’t resonate with me.
Tim Matassa
