Music often tells a story, whether it is directly through lyrics, hidden meanings, or through the composition and sounds of the instruments, there is always a story being told. Songwriting and fiction go together perfectly because of this. This basis is what will be assessed, seeing how musicians adapt the stories of authors to pay tribute and add on the compelling story being told. For our first analysis, let’s look at “The Murders in The Rue Morgue” – a short story written by Edgar Allan Poe and a song by the British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. First written in 1841, Edgar Allan Poe’s short story captivated audiences, as it was one of the first modern stories written about a fictional detective which eventually inspired the likes of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes series. C. Auguste Dupin is the French detective that is the narrator’s companion and main character of the short story. Dupin is not a professional, but his supreme intellect, imagination, and ability to put himself in the mind of the criminal are the talents that allow him to solve cases.
The story starts with the narrator and Dupin meeting in a library in Rue Montmarte, Paris, and conversing and becoming friends. Soon after, the two characters read newspaper headlines about a brutal double murder that occurred in Rue Morgue. One night at three a.m., eight or ten neighbors of Madame L’Espanaye and her daughter, Camille, wake to shouts and cries from their fourth-floor apartment, hearing two voices and then pure silence. The neighbors and police get into the apartment and stumble upon a crime scene. Searching through the mess, they find Camille’s body in the chimney and eventually find L’Espanaye in a courtyard nearby. As they lift her body, her head falls off, being badly cut and beaten. The brutality of the murder caused a hurried investigation. The neighbors say the voices they heard were the deep voice of a Frenchman and a voice of a differing language, possibly Spanish. Dupin becomes involved when he learns that Adolphe Le Bon, a bank clerk that he had known was arrested for the murders.
Gaining access to the crime scene, Dupin learns the police mishandled the crime scene and sets out to figure out the case. As he investigates the crime scene, he notes that the hair found underneath L’Espanaye’s fingers was not human. Basing a sketch off the hair, shape, and size of the hand, Dupin reveals that the hand belongs to that of an orangutan. Dupin advertised and reached out and a sailor responded to the advertisement, expecting that his orangutan was caught and waiting to be picked up. When confronted, the sailor describes how the orangutan escaped from his enclosure one night, and he desperately chased after it, not being as fast or as strong as the creature. He follows it to the murders and could do nothing to stop them. He acknowledges that the voices heard were his own and the orangutan’s shrieks. Dupin reports his findings to the police, absolving Le Bon from the crime. The police are grateful and resentful but ultimately accept the evidence.
Iron Maiden begins “Murders in the Rue Morgue” by building the atmostphere right away. The melody at the beginning resembles the peace, somberness, and solitude of the evening, gradually building as we find out the atrocity that occurs. However, from the very first verse, we learn that the lyrics don’t follow the same path as Poe’s story. This is done to possibly be a way to retell the story considering that the narrator is coming from a different perspective. Surely this may change the view, as our narrator starts out describing his passing through the rainy streets of Paris until he hears shouts. Rushing to the sound, he finds two mutilated bodies and calls for help.
“There’s some people coming down the street
At last someone heard my call
Can’t understand why they’re pointing at me
I never done nothing at all
But I got some blood on my hands
Because everyone’s shouting at me
I can’t speak French so I couldn’t explain
And like a fool I started running away
Murder in the Rue Morgue
Someone call the Gendarmes
Murder in the Rue Morgue
Am I ever gonna be free?”
In our next verse, the panic continues. The guitars continue to drive the song as we get into the lyrics. The narrator is relieved that people heard his calls for help. Seeing him standing above the bodies, he worries they suspect him. Looking down he realizes he must have touched the bodies, as his hands are covered with blood. Knowing he is an innocent man but being unable to plead his case, he flees. This only further reinforces the crowd feeling he is guilty, as an innocent man would typically not flee in panic.
“And now I’ve gotta get away from the arms of the law
All of France is looking for me
I’ve gotta find my way across the border for sure
Down the south to Italy
Murders in the Rue Morgue
I’m running from the Gendarmes
Murders in the Rue Morgue
I’m never coming home”
In the bridge of the song, the song changes pace as the narrator quickly decides what he needs to do to remain safe. Fleeing to Italy seems to be a good option – maybe they can speak the language there to reinforce their innocence, or perhaps there are other motives…
“Well, I made it to the border at last
But I can’t erase the scene from my mind
Anytime somebody stares at me, well
I just start running blind
Well, I’m moving through the shadows at night
Away from the staring eyes
Any day they’ll be looking for me
‘Cause I know I show the signs of
Murders in the Rue Morgue
I’m running from the Gendarmes
Murders in the Rue Morgue
Running from the arms of the law”
The narrator is distraught as he flees to the border, still not feeling satisfied and safe. Guilt washes over as he attracts attention wherever he goes, causing panic in his mind and continuing to flee. Hiding is the best bet. Hiding will stop them from searching for him. Hide, hide, hide.
“Murders in the Rue Morgue
Running from the Gendarmes
Murders in the Rue Morgue
Am I ever gonna be free?
It took so long and I’m getting so tired
I’m running out of places to hide
Should I return to the scene of the crime
Where the two young victims died
If I could go to somebody for help
To get me out of trouble for sure
But I know that it’s on my mind
That my doctor said I’ve done it before
Murders in the Rue Morgue
They’re never gonna find me
Murders in the Rue Morgue
I’m never going home”
An instrumental solo reinforces the long, troubled journey. As we return to our narrator, we make a shocking discovery. The narrator admits in his mind that he knows he is the one that committed the murders, as it has happened in the past. After this revelation, it can be inferred that the narrator may have committed murders just like these – just like the murders committed in Poe’s story.
The argument can be made that this is the same perspective as the orangutan in the story, but now it committed more murder. It accounts for the fact that the narrator is unable to speak the language and chooses to flee, bringing attention to himself everywhere he goes. Alternatively, perhaps it’s just a man with mental illness, not being able to process what happened at the scene of the crime. As he flees to Italy, the crime can’t escape from his mind. The identity struggle continues as he feels he can seek help to absolve him of the crime, but in the same breath, it reveals that someone (his mind, a doctor, a colleague) knows that he has committed heinous acts before, and the song ends on an ominous tone.
“The Murders in The Rue Morgue” is a mystery in multiple aspects. The story is a detective mystery, and the song provides a narrative that is open to interpretation as to whether it is a modern retelling, a sequel, or simply a related story guised under the same name. Whichever way it may be, you feel the panic and tension as you listen, and any time you read Poe’s story again, you will always have the song burning the question in the back of your head. A perfectly enjoyable read and an even more enjoyable listen, check back next time as we delve into other songs that have strong inspiration from strong literary works.
-Jason Ludtke, Blogger.
Read “Murders in the Rue Morgue” by Edgar Allan Poe here
Jason Ludtke – Prose Editor and Asst. Blog Editor: Jason is a Junior at Lewis University majoring in Business Administration. His free time is filled with various hobbies, as he likes to read, listen to
music, go to concerts, play various video games, go on runs, and watch all kinds of tv shows and films. Some of his favorite writers include Christopher Paolini, Edgar Allan Poe, and J.R.R. Tolkien.