From the will to live European witchcraft: the evolution of Edgar Allan Poe's Ligea

Abstract

Poe’s works have always enjoyed tremendous popularity within the film medium. Among a large number of adaptations, however, a very original, innovative short story Ligeia seems to remain rather obscure. The two most often referred film adaptations of the story are The Tomb of Ligeia, directed by Roger Corman in 1964, and Edgar Allan Poe’s Ligeia from 2008, directed by John Shirley. Both titles differ significantly, mainly plotwise, but also in other aspects, to an extent much greater than one would expect solely due to the over forty years of time gap between them. Although based on the same short story, each film constructs a narrative and a world of its own, resembling a mirror reflecting changes in modern world and its popular culture as well as the evolution of Edgar Allan Poe’s continuing influence on popular fiction.