Hop-Frog

Title: Hop-Frog

Author: Edgar Allan Poe

Narrator: Jonathan Dunne

Original Publication: 1849

Public Domain: Yes

Series Placement: Timeless Terrors No. 85

Description:

Hop-Frog is one of Edgar Allan Poe’s most viciously ironic tales of psychological and moral horror—a dark exploration of cruelty, humiliation, and the devastating power of revenge. Set within the grotesque decadence of a royal court, the story follows Hop-Frog, a physically disabled jester whose sharp intellect stands in stark contrast to the barbarity of those who rule over him.

Central to the narrative is the sustained abuse inflicted upon Hop-Frog by a sadistic king and his courtiers, whose mockery and violence are disguised as amusement. Poe slowly builds tension through repeated acts of degradation, revealing how cruelty, when normalized, becomes a catalyst for catastrophic consequences. Beneath the trappings of comedy and festivity, an atmosphere of moral rot festers, awaiting ignition.

Rather than relying solely on supernatural elements, Poe crafts horror through psychological inevitability and grim poetic justice, culminating in a masquerade that transforms spectacle into terror. The story’s final act is both shocking and disturbingly earned, forcing the reader to confront the true cost of unchecked power and dehumanization.

Narrated by Amazon-bestselling horror author Jonathan Dunne, this performance captures the story’s escalating malice, bitter irony, and explosive conclusion. Hop-Frog endures as one of Poe’s most unsettling revenge tales—a reminder that those treated as monsters may one day decide to become them.