
You may be under the common misconception that beauty is everything, it’s not. Seeing with your heart is immensely more powerful than seeing with your eyes. The heart can see what the eyes cannot. In Edgar Allen Poe’s, “The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar”, concludes the argument that the power of the soul, in the center of the body, is home to one’s values, beliefs and even secrets. In today’s society, many Americans believe that the judgment of an individual solely on their appearance and outer shell. Throughout this story, the author contradicts this theory and shows there is a divergence between a person’s outlying appearance and their insides; the soul holds the power. The use of dialogue penetrating from the human lips resembles the speaking of the soul. Therefore, a mindful interior has greater power than a beautiful exterior. 

The defiance of certain names symbolizes the body and soul. Throughout the story, the narrator is preforming the difficult task of hypnotizing a man in “articulo mortis”, meaning at death. No one’s full names are given except for the man being hypnotized, Valdemar. The author says, “Doctors D-- and F-- were in attendance”, writing the names exactly as seen (Poe 68). This writing style allows for the magnification of the character Valdemar throughout the reading. In comparison, the title of the story mentions the name, Valdemar, forcing readers to unconsciously zero-in on him before a single page is read. From this perspective, it seems as if Poe just didn’t want to give the doctors names for their sake. On the other hand, however, others argue, Poe does this to show that people have names in order to feel connected to one another. A name can also tell a lot about an individual and give a brief insight into the much larger story of their life. This is why more description about Valdemar is given, saying: “His lower limbs much resembling those of John Randolph; and, also, for the whiteness of his whiskers, in violent contrast to the blackness of his hair...” (Poe 67). The narrator, P--, gives off distant and unapproachable feelings, because his name is not stated and no background information is given. It could be a common name, an ethnic name, an easily mispronounced name; there is no way of knowing. The goal of the author is to put more emphasis on Valdemar than anyone else in the story.  By doing this, Poe is saying Valdemar represents the interior soul and everyone else, whose names are not given, represent the exterior body. The outside of the body serves as the shell which protects everything valuable inside. The soul of an individual makes a person who they are, not the outside body alone. The ultimate goal is to share the message that looking deeper into the soul can reveal an individual’s purpose. 

The voice of M. Valdemar serves as the active conscience of a person. The man being mesmerized while at death, is the only person in the story who engages in speech to communicate. Valdemar is set to die in twenty-four hours when he calls for the narrator, P--, to test if hypnotism will work on his dying self. Slowly the patient becomes unable to move, and enters a state of demise. This is when P-- starts to perform his act, which is done by moving the body while Valdemar speaks. As the movement of the outside body is unable to be controlled by the hypnotist, Valdemar says, “Yes; -no;-I have been sleeping-and Now-Now-I am dead” (Poe 71). Valdemar only speak short phrases, while in the act of dying, which shows the soul is still present at death. The dialogue amplifies the division between mind and body. The declined movement in Valdemar’s arm is mentioned before he starts to talk, in order to symbolize the complete death of the exterior body. This detail is significant because its displays the body can be dead on the outside due to movement, but still alive on the inside due to voice. Closer to the end of the story, Valdemar is completely paralyzed, with only his tongue moving. As said in the text, “As I rapidly made the mesmeric passes, amid ejaculations of ‘dead! dead!’ absolutely bursting from the tongue and not from the lips of the sufferer…” (Poe 73). Emphasis is put on the exercise of only the tongue while the body is motionless. The attention to this detail shows the relationship between the soul and the tongue. This relates back to the argumentative point in the essay, that the soul defines a person. The interior soul can function without the body, but the body cannot function without the soul. Listening to speech can define who a person is.

The story is told through the eyes of the narrator, first person point of view. Throughout the story, readers gain insight into feelings and thoughts of the narrator that gradually build an image in their heads. In contrast, Valdemar’s character is portrayed in direct characterization, where his background is given. The narrator says, “I knew the steady philosophy of the man too well to apprehend any sculptures of him; and he had no relatives in American that would be likely to interfere” (Poe 67). This quote tells readers that Valdemar has no relatives in America; while showing that the narrator is unsentimental and selfish. Valdemar is a dying man and all the narrator mentions is the performance of the experiment. The purpose of first person is to give direct characterization of Valdemar, while at the same time indirect characterization is given of the narrator. No prior information is given about the narrator, not even his full name. This technique forces readers to make judgements solely on thoughts and communication with the other characters. As previously said, values and emotions are planted in the soul. This relates back to the overall argument, saying that Poe is trying to teach readers to look at a person based on their insides. This is exactly what happens through the whole story; being compelled to form conclusions about P--, without ever having a visual description. Readers are given an insight into the narrator’s soul and can feel how they feel about the unnamed speaker. 

Character comes from within. Edgar Allan Poe defines the argument, to never judge a person based solely on appearance through the use of different literary elements. Listen to the heart in order to determine the ultimate intentions of a human being. The overall magnification of Valdemar, symbolizes the soul. A person speaks from experiences and feelings that are brewed within. There can be ethical souls as well as corrupt souls, but we all have one. 

  