The Oval Portrait

by Edgar Allan Poe

Genres: Classics

Synopsis

The Oval Portrait by Edgar Allan Poe is a horror short story by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, involving the disturbing circumstances of a portrait in a château. It is one of his shortest stories, filling only two pages in its initial publication in 1842.

Plot summary:

The tale begins with an injured narrator (the story offers no further explanation of his impairment) seeking refuge in an abandoned mansion in the Apennines. The narrator spends his time admiring the paintings that decorate the strangely shaped room and perusing a volume, found upon a pillow, that describes them.

Upon moving the candle closer to the book, the narrator immediately discovers a before-unnoticed painting depicting the head and shoulders of a young girl. The picture inexplicably enthralls the narrator ""for an hour perhaps"". After steady reflection, he realizes that the painting's ""absolute life-likeliness"" of expression is the captivating feature. The narrator eagerly consults the book for an explanation of the picture. The remainder of the story henceforth is a quote from this book – a story within a story.

The book describes a tragic story involving a young maiden of ""the rarest beauty"". She loved and wedded an eccentric painter who cared more about his work than anything else in the world, including his wife. The painter eventually asked his wife to sit for him, and she obediently consented, sitting ""meekly for many weeks"" in his turret chamber.

Release date: February 16, 2017

Publisher: HarperPerennial Classics

Print pages: 25