Reading beyond the text: Edgar Allan Poe´s conflict in the soul in “Silence”
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22297/2316-17952026v15e02605Keywords:
Intertextuality, Verbal Art, Reader, Reading ExperiencesAbstract
This study analyses the semiotic elements that make up Edgar Allan Poe's short story "Silence," so as to stir up a discussion about the place of the reader as the one who will construct meaning by bringing to the text his intertextuality and his reality. The study draws on Hasan's (1989) theory of Verbal Art and Halliday's (2004) Systemic-Functional Grammar (SFG). This choice stems from understanding language as an expression of social activity and as a representation of the meanings produced in that context. The results highlight that the text's architecture develops through choices on its expression plane towards the content plane. At a deeper level, by incorporating intertextuality into the analysis process, the textual architecture of the short story alludes to that of the biblical narrative, portraying the drama of a self, confronted with emotional and spiritual dilemmas.
Downloads
References
AL-KAMAL, S. K. The Orientalism of Edgar Allan Poe: The Allure of the Middle East in Al-Aaraaf. MSU Graduate Theses. 1145, 2015. Available at: https://bearworks.missouristate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2146&context=theses. Accessed on: January 20, 2025.
BIBLE. King James Bible. Cambridge, 1903. Available at: https://archive.org/details/KJBPCE13/KJB-PCE13/. Accessed on: January 7, 2025.
BIRCH, D. Working Effects with Words – Whose Words? Stylistics and Reader Intertextuality. In: CARTER, R.; SIMPSON, P. (eds.) Language, Discourse and Literature: An Introductory Reader in Discourse Stylistics. London: Routledge, 1989. p. 257-274.
BURTON, D. Through Glass Darkly: Through Dark Glasses. In: CARTER, R. Language and Literature: An Introductory Reader in Stylistics. London: Allen & Unwin, 1982. p. 195–214.
FORREST, W. M. Biblical Allusions in Poe. Whitefish, MT: Literary Licensing LLC, 2011.
FROW, J. Intertextuality and ontology. In: WORTON, M.; STILL, J. (eds.) Intertextuality: theories and practices. Manchester: Manchester University Press,1990. p.45-55.
HALLIDAY, M. A. K. Language as Social Semiotic: The Social Interpretation of Language and Meaning, USA: UPP, 1978.
HALLIDAY, M. A. K.; HASAN, R. Language, Context and Text: Aspects of language in a social-semiotic perspective. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press,1989.
HALLIDAY, M. A. K.; MATTHIESSEN, C. M. I. M. An Introduction to Functional Grammar. 2nd ed. London: Hodder Arnold, 2004.
HALLIDAY, M. A. K.; MATTHIESSEN, C. M. I. M. An Introduction to Functional Grammar. 4th ed. London: Hodder Arnold, 2014.
HASAN, R. Linguistics, language and verbal art. Oxford: Oxford University Press,1989.
KRISTEVA, J. Word, Dialogue and Novel. In: KRISTEVA, J.; MOI, T. The Kristeva Reader. New York: Columbia University Press, 1986. p. 34-61.
LEECH, G.; SHORT, M. Style in Fiction. 2nd ed. Harlow: Pearson Longman, 2007.
LEMKE, J. L. Intertextuality and Educational Research. Linguistics and Education, vol. 4, issues 3-4, p. 257-267, 2002. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0898-5898(92)90003-F. Accessed on: Sep. 01, 2025.
MIOLA, R. S. Seven Types of Intertextuality. In: MARRAPODI, M. (ed.). Shakespeare, Italy, and intertextuality. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2004, p. 13-25.
MARTIN, J. R.; WHITE, P. R. R. The Language of Evaluation. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005.
MINAYO, M. C. S. (org.). Pesquisa social: teoria, método e criatividade. Petropolis: Vozes, 2001.
MUKAROVSKY, J. On poetic language. In: BURBANK, J.; STEINER, P. (eds.). The word and verbal art. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1977. p. 01-64.
POE, E. A. Silence a Fable. In: HARRISON, J. A. The Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe - Vol. II: Tales – part 01, p. 220-224, 1902. Available at: https://www.eapoe.org/works/harrison/jah02t18.htm. Accessed on: August 20, 2025.
QUINN, A. H. “Chapter 11,” Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography, 1941, p. 263-304. Available at: https://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1921/quinn00c.htm. Accessed on: December 11, 2024.
RIFFATERRE, M. Compulsory Reader Response: The Intertextual Drive. In: WORTON, M.; STILL, J. Intertextuality: theories and practices. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1990. p. 56-78.
RIVERA, M. E. Lynx Spiritual Meaning (Discovering Hidden Meanings). Spiritual Mojo, 2025. Available at Lynx Spiritual Meaning (Discovering Hidden Meanings) - Spiritual Mojo. Accessed on: August 20, 2025.
VOLÓCHINOV, V. Marxismo e Filosofia da Linguagem. 3. ed. São Paulo: Editora 34, 2017.
WHITMAN, S. H. Edgar Poe and His Critics, New York: Rudd & Carleton, 1860. Available at: https://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1851/18600000.htm. Accessed on: March 11, 2025.
WRIGHT, J. A History of Libya. London: Hurst and Company, 2012.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Záira Bomfante dos Santos, Luiz Antônio Caldeira Andrade

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
A Diálogo das Letras não se responsabiliza por conceitos e opiniões emitidos pelos autores, tampouco manifesta, necessariamente, concordância com posições assumidas nos textos publicados. Além disso, os dados e a exatidão das referências citadas no trabalho são de inteira responsabilidade do(s) autor(es). Ao submeterem seus trabalhos, os autores concordam que os direitos autorais referentes a cada texto estão sendo cedidos para a revista Diálogo das Letras; ainda concordam que assumem as responsabilidades legais relativas às informações emitidas.














