The Lightning-Rod Man
E529027
"The Lightning-Rod Man" is a short story by Herman Melville that satirically portrays a traveling salesman who exploits people’s fear of thunderstorms to sell lightning rods.
All labels observed (1)
| Label | Occurrences |
|---|---|
| The Lightning-Rod Man canonical | 1 |
Statements (41)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf | short story ⓘ |
| antagonistRole | traveling lightning-rod salesman ⓘ |
| author | Herman Melville NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| countryOfOrigin |
United States of America
ⓘ
surface form:
United States
|
| depicts |
domestic interior during a storm
ⓘ
traveling salesman ⓘ |
| firstPublicationMedium | periodical press ⓘ |
| genre |
satire
ⓘ
short fiction ⓘ |
| hasSymbolism |
lightning rod as symbol of false security
ⓘ
storm as symbol of divine or natural power ⓘ |
| hasTitle | The Lightning-Rod Man NERFINISHED ⓘ |
| hasTone |
comic
ⓘ
ironic ⓘ satirical ⓘ |
| intendedEffect |
critique of manipulative commercial practices
ⓘ
satire of irrational fear ⓘ |
| language | English ⓘ |
| literaryDevice |
dialogue-driven narrative
ⓘ
hyperbole ⓘ irony ⓘ |
| literaryForm | prose ⓘ |
| literaryMovement | American Romanticism ⓘ |
| mainCharacter |
lightning-rod salesman
ⓘ
unnamed householder narrator ⓘ |
| narrativePerspective | first-person ⓘ |
| partOf | Herman Melville's short fiction corpus ⓘ |
| plotSummary | A lightning-rod salesman tries to frighten a householder into buying lightning rods during a storm, but the householder resists and rejects him. ⓘ |
| protagonistRole | skeptical homeowner ⓘ |
| setting | rural house during a thunderstorm ⓘ |
| subjectMatter |
fear-mongering
ⓘ
lightning rods ⓘ salesmanship ⓘ thunderstorms ⓘ |
| theme |
commercial exploitation of fear
ⓘ
fear and superstition ⓘ human relationship to nature ⓘ religious faith versus material protection ⓘ skepticism toward salesmanship ⓘ |
| timePeriodOfCreation | 19th century ⓘ |
| workOfAuthor | Herman Melville NERFINISHED ⓘ |
Referenced by (1)
Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.