Quoth the Deconstructionist

When pedagogues get a hold of popular authors, the latter’s reading public may no longer recognize their favorite men of letters. In Edgar Allan Poe’s Mystery of the Man Who Was Already There, Duke University’s Talia Argondezzi notes a possible “metaphor for British colonialism.”

For example, the mountain hike could symbolize “Euro-American incursions on Native American land,” she told an audience at the Modern Language Association’s (MLA) 2013 meeting. Thousands of English professors from around the world gather there, along with graduate students and adjuncts.

As well, “People want to read race and politics into Poe,” Argondezzi said. “In the end of the story, Templeton puts leeches on Bedloe’s head and says, ‘the black leeches are the deadliest.’” Wait until these analysts tackle The Raven.

Malcolm A. Kline is the Executive Director of Accuracy in Academia.
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