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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 3 pages essay that discusses the short story "The Business Man" by Edgar Allan Poe, who was known for his macabre horror stories, but here offers a satirical comment on one of the defining factors of modern life--business. Poe recounts the defining philosophy of business by quoting an "old saying" at the onset of his narrative, which is that "Method is the soul of business." He then has his protagonist emphasize the importance of this philosophical perspective and how "Method is the thing" (Poe). However, while his protagonist, Peter Proffit, assumes the air of a highly successful businessman, and speaks knowledgeably about the importance of methodical business practices, as the story unfolds to reveal him as severely unbalanced and out of touch with reality. By having Proffit, a raving lunatic, espouse the standard business philosophy of the day, Poe underscores that modern business is overly concerned with practice and stifles ingenuity and creativity, that is, the men whom Proffit disparaging labels as "geniuses." Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Page Count:
3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khpoebm.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
life--business. Poe recounts the defining philosophy of business by quoting an "old saying" at the onset of his narrative, which is that "Method is the soul of business." He then
has his protagonist emphasize the importance of this philosophical perspective and how "Method is the thing" (Poe). However, while his protagonist, Peter Proffit, assumes the air of a highly successful
businessman, and speaks knowledgeably about the importance of methodical business practices, as the story unfolds to reveal him as severely unbalanced and out of touch with reality. By having Proffit,
a raving lunatic, espouse the standard business philosophy of the day, Poe underscores that modern business is overly concerned with practice and stifles ingenuity and creativity, that is, the men
whom Proffit disparaging labels as "geniuses." Proffit begins by introducing himself as a "business man," a "methodical man" (Poe). He prizes method above all else, but also despises
those who use method without "understanding it" (Poe). He attributes his love of method to being knocked in the head as a small boy. He says that the bump that
arose on his head turned out to be as "pretty an organ of order as one shall see on a summers day" (Poe). In fact, Proffit loves order so much
that he despises genius, "the greater the genius the greater the ass" (Poe). At this point, Proffit sounds like a particularly pompous and methodical business man. One can easily image
that Poe heard businessmen of his era voicing such sentiments. Men, who having no shred of genius in their own makeup, delight in castigating anyone with innovative vision. However, almost
immediately, Poe begins to indicate that there is something not quite right in the head of his narrator, as Proffit indicates that his disdain applies to lawyers, blacksmith, physicians, "anything
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