Quote Sheet English 213 Edgar Huntly
Dublin & Norwalk (Physical Description)
1. “My way lay chiefly through populous and well frequented streets. In one part of the way, however, it
was at the option of the passenger either to keep along the large streets, or considerably to shorten
the journey, by turning into a dark, crooked, and narrow lane. Being familiar with every part of this
metropolis, and deeming it advisable to take the shortest and obscurest road, I turned into the alley. I
proceeded without interruption to the next turning. One night officer, distinguishes by his usual
ensigns, was the only person who passed me. I had gone three steps beyond when I perceived a man
by my side. I had scarcely time to notice this circumstance, when an hoarse voice exclaimed- ‘Damn
ye villain, ye’re a dead man!’” (50)
2. “There were two ways before me. One lay along the interior base of the hill, over a sterile and
trackless space, and exposed to the encounter of savages, some of whom might possibly be lurking
here. The other was the well frequented road, on the outsider side and along the river, and which was
to be gained by passing over this hill. The practicability of the passage was to be ascertained by
inquiries made to my hostess. She pointed out the path that led to the rocky summit and down to the
river’s brink. The path was not easy to be kept in view or to be trodden, but it was undoubtedly to be
preferred to any other. A route, somewhat circuitous, would terminate in the river road” (140)
Dublin and Norwalk (Psychological Manifestation)
3. “From a paroxysm like this the worst might reasonably be dreaded, yet the next step to destruction
was not suddenly taken. I paused on the brink of the precipice, as if to survey the depth of that
phrensy that invaded me; was able to ponder on the scene, and deliberate, in a state that partook of
calm, on the circumstance of my situation. My mind was harassed by the repetition of one idea.
Conjecture deepened into certainty. I could place the object in no light, which did not corroborate
the persuasion that, in the act committed, I had ensured the destruction of my lady. […] Was it I that
hurried to the deed [the attempted murder of Mrs. Lorimer]? No. It was the daemon that possessed
me. My limbs were guided to the bloody office by a power foreign and superior to mine” (57-9)
4. “The magnitude of this exploit made me question its reality. […] The destruction that I witnessed
was cast. Three beings, full of energy and heroism, endowed with minds strenuous and lofty, poured
out their lives before me. I was the instrument of their destruction. This scene of carnage and blood
was laid by me. To this havoc and horror was I led by such rapid foot-steps. My anguish was mingled
with astonishment. In spite of the force and infirmity with which my senses were impressed by
external objects, the transition I had undergone was so wild and inexplicable; all that I had
performed; all that I had witnessed since my egress from the pit, were so contradictory to precedent
events, that I still clung to the belief that my thoughts were confused by delirium” (129)
From the Introduction…..
5. “From the perspective of many commentators, Edgar Huntly is an exceptionally American tale about
the events, history, and psychology of the frontier. Its action is set in 1787, the year the US
constitution was ratified and thus year one of the national institution […] In the end, Brown’s
treatment of Edgar’s violence and Indian fighting may have more to do with large-scale social and
economic relations than with notions about the intrinsic savagery of the human soul. Edgar Huntly [is]
one of the first anti-imperialist narratives, as a story that inverts and deflates the myth that Anglo
invasion is a culturally beneficial and socially progressive act” (Shapiro and Barnard xxx-xlii)