Style and substance are both important elements in a short story. The style of a story can be just as important as the story itself. A well-written story with a poor style can be hard to read and may not be as enjoyable as a story with a good style. The substance of a story is what the story is actually about. A story with good substance can be enjoyable, even if the style is not perfect. The Mummy’s Foot and The Tell-Tale Heart are two short Gothic stories that are examples of great stories with both style and substance. According to Gautier & Ventura (1-2), “The Mummy’s Foot” is written in a beautiful, poetic style, making it a pleasure to read. The story is about a man who buys Princess Hermonthis’s 3,000-year-old foot in a Parisian curio shop. The Tell-Tale Heart is written more straightforwardly, but the story is no less enjoyable. The story is about a man who kills an old man and then tries to cover up the crime but eventually confesses because guilt keeps tormenting him. In both stories, the style and substance are equally important. Although both The Mummy’s Foot and The Tell-Tale Heart are Gothic horror stories, they differ in style and substance because of the stories’ differences in tone, setting, and fantasy as a literary device.
To begin with, The Mummy’s Foot has a light and humorous tone, while The Tell-Tale Heart has a dark and suspenseful tone. There are many instances that demonstrate this. In The Mummy’s Foot, for example, the narrator is light-hearted and joking, even when describing the Mummy’s foot: “…it was not a foot of metal, but in sooth a foot of flesh, an embalmed foot… Th great toe, slightly separated from the rest, afforded a happy contrast” (Gautier 2). In contrast, the narrator in The Tell-Tale Heart is disturbed and paranoid, describing the old man’s eye as “the vulture eye” that “became more horrid” as he stared at it (Poe 3). The different tones in the two stories create different styles and substances. In The Mummy’s Foot, the light and humorous tone create a style that is more whimsical and less serious. The story is also less suspenseful, as the reader is not left wondering whether the narrator will be caught. On the other hand, The Tell-Tale Heart has a dark and suspenseful tone that creates a more foreboding and intense style. The story is also more suspenseful, as the reader is left wondering whether the narrator will be caught.
In addition, the two short stories have completely different settings. The Mummy’s Foot, published in 1827, is set in Egypt (Gautier 3). The Tell-Tale Heart, published in 1843, is set in the United States. Though they are separated by 16 years, they both take place in unspecified times in the past. This is likely because both stories are meant to be timeless, classic horror stories. They both take place in dark, dreary settings and feature horrifying, suspenseful plots. The setting of The Mummy’s Foot contributes to the story’s atmosphere of mystery and suspense. The story is set in an unspecified period, and the reader gets the impression that the characters live in an ancient, crumbling world. The setting also contributes to the story’s theme of the fear of the unknown. The characters in The Mummy’s Foot constantly encounter things they do not understand, leading to paranoia and fear. The setting of The Tell-Tale Heart, on the other hand, contributes to the story’s atmosphere of terror and madness. The story is set in a small, isolated house, and this creates a feeling of claustrophobia and isolation. The setting also contributes to the story’s theme of madness and paranoia. The protagonist of The Tell-Tale Heart is driven to madness by his fear of the old man’s eye, echoed in the story’s setting. The different settings of the two stories contribute to their different atmospheres and themes. The setting of The Mummy’s Foot creates an atmosphere of mystery and suspense, while The Tell-Tale Heart creates an atmosphere of terror and madness. The different settings also contribute to the different themes of the two stories. The Mummy’s Foot is about the fear of the unknown, while The Tell-Tale Heart is about madness and paranoia.
Moreover, the two stories are vastly different in their approach to fantasy and realism. In The Mummy’s Foot, fantasy is an integral part of the story, as it is used to drive the plot forward. In contrast, The Tell-Tale Heart does not mention fantasy, instead grounding its horror in the more realistic fears of the human psyche. The Mummy’s Foot is much more fanciful than The Tell-Tale Heart. It relies heavily on the supernatural, using it to create a sense of dread and foreboding. The story is about a man who buys a mummy’s foot, which he then uses to request a hand in marriage with the Princess. This is close to nothing that happens in a human’s typical day-to-day life, especially in the present day. The fantastical events in the story create a sense of unease and heighten the suspense. The Tell-Tale Heart, on the other hand, is a much more realistic story. It is about a man who kills an old man and hides the body under the floorboards. The man becomes increasingly paranoid and obsessed with the old man’s eye, which he believes is staring at him from the darkness. The story is more about the man’s mental state than anything else. As Witherington (471), in his own words, implies, there are no supernatural elements, making the story more relatable and, therefore, horrifying. Despite these differences, the two short stories are similar in more than one way.
First and foremost, The Mummy’s Foot and The Tell-Tale Heart are two classic examples of gothic horror stories set in dark, foreboding locations and feature characters struggling with mental or emotional issues. In both stories, the main characters are driven to commit acts which ultimately lead to their undoing. One of the most striking similarities between these two stories is how they build suspense. In both cases, the reader is kept in the dark about the character’s true nature and motivations. This creates a sense of unease and dread, further amplified by the dark, atmospheric settings. Both stories also use foreshadowing to hint at the impending doom that awaits the characters. Another similarity between these stories is how they explore the theme of madness. In both cases, the main characters are driven to commit acts due to their mental or emotional states. The Tell-Tale Heart focuses specifically on the issue of sanity and how the main character slowly loses his grip on reality. The Mummy’s Foot, on the other hand, deals with the issue of obsession and how the main character becomes fixated on the idea of getting married to the Princess. The narrator in The Mummy’s Foot says, “I thought this proposition natural enough… and hurriedly informed the Princess Hermonthis that I was ready to follow her” (Gautier 7).
On top of that, the two short stories are similar in that they employ stylistic devices that create a sense of suspense and horror. In The Mummy’s Foot, the author uses short sentences and descriptive language to create a sense of unease. The Tell-Tale Heart also uses short sentences, but the author uses a more formal, old-fashioned writing style. This creates a sense of dread and foreboding. Both authors also use repetition to create a sense of unease. In The Mummy’s Foot, the word “the dead” is repeated several times. In The Tell-Tale Heart, the heart is repeated throughout the story. This creates a sense of paranoia and fear in the reader. Over and above that, the authors of both use symbols to create a sense of horror. In The Mummy’s Foot, the Mummy’s foot is a symbol of death and decay. In The Tell-Tale Heart, the eye is a symbol of evil and sinister forces. These symbols create a sense of fear and dread in the reader.
In conclusion, style and substance are important elements in a short story. The Mummy’s Foot and The Tell-Tale Heart are two examples of great stories with both style and substance. Although both stories are Gothic horror stories, they differ in style and substance because of the stories’ differences in tone, setting, and narration in fantasy as a literary device. The Mummy’s Foot has a light and humorous tone, while The Tell-Tale Heart has a dark and suspenseful tone. The setting of The Mummy’s Foot contributes to the atmosphere of mystery and suspense in the story, while The Tell-Tale Heart contributes to the story’s atmosphere of terror and madness. Although they are different in many ways, the two stories are similar in more than one way. They are examples of how a well-written story with an outstanding style can be just as enjoyable as a story with a good style but less substance.
Works Cited
Gautier, T. The Mummy’s foot. The Floating Press, 2012.
Gautier, Théophile, and Varla Ventura. The Mummy’s Foot: Magical Creatures, A Weiser Books Collection. Weiser Books, 2012.
Poe, Edgar Allan. The tell-tale heart. Penguin UK, 2015.
Witherington, Paul. “The Accomplice in” The Tell-Tale Heart”.” Studies in Short Fiction 22.4 (1985): 471.
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