“Hop-Frog” (1849), one of Edgar Allan Poe’s final stories, is a dark tale of revenge, madness, and dehumanization. First published in The Flag of Our Union, it follows a court jester—a little person cruelly nicknamed Hop-Frog—who suffers humiliation at the hands of a corpulent king and his ministers. Alongside his fellow captive, Trippetta, Hop-Frog endures mockery and abuse until the king strikes Trippetta, sparking his plan for vengeance. Under the guise of helping with a masquerade ball, Hop-Frog convinces the king and his ministers to dress as orangutans, coating them in tar and flax before chaining them together. During the ball, he hoists them into the air and sets them ablaze before escaping with Trippetta. The story echoes Poe’s recurring themes of punishment, sin, and human cruelty, hallmarks of Dark Romanticism, and may reflect the author’s personal struggles. It also draws inspiration from the 1393 Bal des Ardents, when costumed nobles perished in fire.
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