Hop Frog as a Love Story Essay -- Hop Frog Essays

Hop Frog as a Love Story "Hop Frog", by Edgar Allan Poe, is a short story in which the title character, after enduring much abuse by the king, gets revenge in the end. Hop Frog is not only the king's jester, but is also a handicapped dwarf. The king perpetually berates Hop Frog and plays practical jokes on his poor jester. At one point, king and his seven ministers summon Hop Frog before them so that he may give them ideas for an upcoming masquerade. The king forces him to drink wine (which Hop Frog always has an adverse reaction to drinking) and becomes very upset at him. Hop Frog is saved only by the intercession of Trippetta, a woman from Hop Frog's own land and his only true friend. Trippetta succeeds, but only after suffering great humiliation at the hands of the king. Nevertheless, Hop Frog gives the eight an idea for their masquerade disguises. After tarring them, covering them with flax, and chaining them together, they have the rough appearance of eight orangutans, and Hop Frog leads them into the m asquerade. Here his vengeance plot unfolds, as he hoists the into the air and sets them on fire. He then makes his escape, probably with Trippetta and the two are never seen again. But this story is not just about escape from oppression. Instead, it is a love story, because Hop Frog’s entire course of action was inspired only by his love for Trippetta.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Hop Frog had suffered through years of torment at the hands of the king. To begin with, Hop Frog was kidnapped from his own land and sent as a captive to the king. Hop Frog was made to suffer verbal abuse for his physical shortcomings and sufferings.  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   For example, he was given the insulting nickname of "Hop Frog", though ...through the distortions o... ...e being abused himself, but when his love is mistreated, something just snaps. His cool plot is created solely to avenge the injustice done upon Trippetta. If Hop Frog only wished to escape or to have revenge for his own trials, he would have just killed the king. But instead, he kills the king (committer of the injustice) and the ministers (who all laughed at the humiliation of Trippetta). He does so in a public forum so as to humiliate them in the way they humiliated his love. After inflicting his vengeance on these men, Hop Frog escapes with his love and they disappear from the kingdom. One can only assume that they returned to their homeland, but wherever they did go, they went there together. This truly is a love story. Works Cited: Poe, Edgar Allen. "Hop-Frog." Collective Works of Edgar Allen Poe. Ed. Thomas Ollive Mabbott. Massattusetes: Harvard, 1978.