Classic Horror Tales: The Pit And The Pendulum, By Edgar Allan Poe
"The Pit and the Pendulum" is a short story written by Edgar Allan Poe and first published in 1842 in the literary annual The Gift: A Christmas and New Year's Present for 1843. The story is about the torments endured by a prisoner of the Spanish Inquisition, though Poe skews historical facts. The narrator of the story describes his experience of being tortured. The story is especially effective at inspiring fear in the reader because of its heavy focus on the senses, such as sound, emphasizing its reality, unlike many of Poe's stories which are aided by the supernatural. The traditional elements established in popular horror tales at the time are followed, but critical reception has been mixed. The tale has been adapted to film several times.
Classic Horror Poetry: The Intruder, By Carolyn Kizer
Carolyn Ashley Kizer (December 10, 1925 – October 9, 2014) was an American poet of the Pacific Northwest whose works reflect her feminism. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 1985.
Classic Horror Tales: William Wilson, By Edgar Allan Poe
An underrated classic and possibly Poe's best horror story, this is about a man named William Wilson, who describes a disturbing encounter with his own doppelganger.
Classic Horror Tales: The Pale Man, By Julius Long
A man living in a small country hotel becomes obsessed with the only other permanent resident — a a strange pale man who inexplicably moves from room to room.
Classic Horror Tales: The Outsider, By H.P. Lovecraft
The Outsider — a strange, beautifully written tale about a man who finally escapes a dank castle where he has spent his entire life in isolation. It's one of Lovecraft's shortest stories, but also one of his most effective.
Poetry Classics: The Haunted Palace, By Edgar Allan Poe
For today's classic poem, we have Edgar Allan Poe's The Haunted Palace.
Classic Horror Tales: The Body Snatcher, By Robert Louis Stevenson
Inspired by the Burke and Hare murders of 1828, ‘The Body Snatcher’ is a gothic tale that follows two med students, involved in crimes of grave robbing, in order to keep their anatomy professor supplied with instructional cadavers.
Classic Horror Tales: The Call of Cthulhu, By H.P. Lovecraft
For you classic horror story fans out there, we have for you one of the best: The Call of Cthulhu, by H.P. Lovecraft.
Poetry Classics: The Raven, By Edgar Allan Poe
As we close out National Poetry Month, we felt it a good idea to share one of the most famous poems of all time. This one will forever be labeled as a classic.
