Edgar Allan Poe

The 19th century American poet, Edgar Allan Poe, had been plagued by grief from an early age. He was an amazing poet and author who just happened to have a darker story. Many who have studied this prestigious man feel that his works, though magnificent, were extremely dark. Some believe it was nothing more then a fancy for him to spin such gruesome tales. Others feel his work was manipulated by the misfortune of his past. These people have actually found evidence that agrees with this statement. The works of Edgar Allan Poe were inspired by the history and life style of the author. The evidence is evident, when people look back and examine the author, his life, and his writings closely.

Neither of his first two collections attracted much attention. "Poe married his 13-year-old cousin Virginia Clemn. She burst a blood vessel in 1842, and remained a virtual worthless until her death from tuberculosis five years later" (online-literature, pg. 2). He addressed the famous poem "Annabel Lee" to her in 1849. In 1836, he received an editorship at The Southern Literary Messenger in Richmond. Around this time, Edgar began using drugs and dinking very heavily. He even showed up at events drunk. Still, he was writing incredible stories and poems. Poe received a large amount of recognition, not only for his poetry and fiction, but as an exceptional literary critic. He also achieved popular success, especially following the publication of his poem "The Raven." Edgar had fallen for Merrie next and she died of brain cancer. After a period in which he was involved in various romantic affairs, Poe planned to remarry, but in late September, 1849 he arrived in Baltimore for reasons unknown. "Poe suffered from bouts of depression and madness, and he attempted suicide in 1848" (online-literature, pg. 2). In early October he was discovered nearly unconscious in a Baltimore gutter. Edgar was taken to Washington College Hospital. Some say that Poe called out the name "Reynolds" on the night before he died. He died on early in the morning of October 7, 1849. He was buried in the yard of Baltimore's Wesminster Presbyterian Church. People said that his

The life of Edgar Allan Poe is not a tale of ease. Poe’s life was full of personal and fiscal disaster. These disasters help to mold some of the most ominous and intellectually challenging poetry ever written. For the short duration of Poe’s life, he was seen as a literary critic rather than an author. To the modern generation his unbeknown status seems bafflingly inconceivable, considering his now acclaimed publications. Edgar Allan Poe’s writing was very much dictated by his life. The mournful tone of Edgar Allan Poe’s life created his literature; death and all his friends narrated Poe’s life. Edgar Allan Poe shows his life’s constant despair through his poetry and short story writings.

“Mr. Poe could not possibly send forth a book without some marks of his genius, and mixed up with the dross we find much sterling ore.” — (From a review of Poe’s Tales, September 6, 1845.) In 1845, Poe, 27, and Virginia, 13, married, and were happy for a time. In 1842, Virginia ruptured a blood vessel; the first sign of the ill health that plagued her short life. Poe turned to alcohol to cope with her illness and the stress of his dying wife. Two years later, Virginia died of tuberculosis, and Poe’s own death would follow shortly two years after that.

In May of 1836,Poe married his then 13 year old cousin, Virginia,which now most people would think is odd and disgusting,but it was very common for a person to marry their cousins back then.Afterwards his writing career began to take

My poor Virginia, oh my poor Virginia. We were having the most joyous time today. Singing and playing the piano, when she began to cough. Her beautiful voice was abruptly broken into a startling cough. She began to expectorate blood. I was aghast! I was terrified! I immediately took Virginia to the nearest doctor in order to get her checked. She had busted a blood vessel! I was filled with trepidation when I heard the diagnosis. I am fearful of the things to come. There is nothing I can do now but wait and hope my dear Virginia recovers.

When Virginia Clemm and Poe got married, for the first time Poe was very positive about his life. “Edgar was living as well as he ever had. The salary he earned.. Allowed him to provide for Virginia and her mother. His health improved, and he stopped drinking. His family had enough to eat.. He made a good impression on the familiar streets of Richmond” (Streissguth 48). Poe’s reputation grew in a positive way. He became well known and famous for his poetry.

Poe’s philosophy is depicted in “Annabel Lee” and “The Raven”; a man of dark and depressing poems who was influenced during his hard, emotional, life to write. His poems describe the mental and emotion devastations a person’s state of mind can reach. Despite his hard life and mysterious death he faced, the speaker can recognize his struggles through his life to become successful with his literary works.

In 1830 Poe entered West Point. He was dishonorably discharged the next year, for intentional neglect of his duties. Apparently he did this out of his own strong desire to be released. In 1833 Poe lived in Baltimore with his father's sister Mrs. Maria Clemm. After winning a prize of $50 for the short story 'MS Found in a Bottle,' he started a career as a staff member of various magazines, some of which were; the Southern Literary Messenger in Richmond (1835-37), Burton's Gentleman's Magazine in Philadelphia (1839-40), and Graham's Magazine (1842-43). During these years he wrote some of his best-known stories. Southern Literary Messenger he had to leave partially due to his alcohol addiction. In 1836 Poe married his 13-year-old cousin Virginia Clemm. She bust a blood vessel in 1842, and remained virtually invalid until she died from tuberculosis five years later. After Virginia’s death, Poe began to lose his struggle with drinking and drugs. He had several romances, including an affair with the poet Sarah Helen Whitman, who said: "His proud reserve, his profound melancholy, his unworldliness - may we not say his unearthliness of nature - made his character one very difficult of comprehension to the casual observer." In 1849 Poe became engaged to Elmira Royster, who was at that time Mrs. Shelton. To Virginia he addressed the famous poem 'Annabel Lee' (1849) - its subject, Poe's favorite, is the death of a beautiful

Poe met his cousin when she was seven and they married when she was thirteen. Yes, when we look back now this seems extremely wrong, but times were different back then. After she died, he was left all alone once again. This poem allows you to see into his thoughts after Virginia died, “And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side Of my darling—my darling—my life and my bride, In her sepulchre there by the sea—In her tomb by the sounding sea.” He was extremely obsessed with her and was devastated when she passed. A few months later, Poe died from poor health and a broken

Hoping for a new life, Poe joined the army but carelessly mishandled the job and somehow managed getting dismissed. Thus, unemployed he remained, but nevertheless, continued writing and publishing short stories. Feeling overwhelmed, Poe decided to reconnect with his biological family, confiding in his aunt Maria and cousin Virginia whom he later married. Many deemed the relationship strange whereas others assumed Virginia was merely a source of comfort. Career wise, Poe was somewhat accredited until the publishing of the renowned poem, “The Raven” by which he received great recognition.

He married Virginia in 1836 and it is believed that the couple lived very happily together. Alas, in1847, Virginia passed away due to a case of tuberculosis, which is what claimed the lives of his mother and foster mother the years before. Poestories.com states in the article titled “The Biography of Edgar Allan Poe”, “After losing his wife, Poe collapsed from stress but gradually returned to health later that year” (“Biography of Edgar…”). For the next two years, Poe tried starting a relationship with a married woman, Nancy Richmond, but she did not share the same feelings. He attempted to marry Sarah Helen Whitman, but the engagement did not last. He finally became engaged again to his previous fiancée, Elmira Royster, but disappeared shortly after. Many of Poe’s best works are based on the loss of a loved one, especially a woman. “The Raven” is a prime example of this and is also a good example of the things that can happen to a person’s sanity after a loss that great. The poem is a must read for a poetic look at hallucinations.

Edgar Allan Poe had married his fourteen year-old cousin, whom died ten years later at the age of twenty four, from Tuberculosis (Ljungquist N.P.). After Virginia died, Poe became lost, alcoholic, drug addicted, and debauchery (Szumski 20). “Under the adroit cover of the special mechanism he had constructed, Poe could unveil his inner, introverted self

Poe eventually married his thirteen-year-old cousin Virginia Clemm. She proved to be the great love of his life, but she too, unfortunately, died of tuberculosis at the young age of twenty-five. He struggled with alcoholism and opiate abuse, along with a rocky writing career in which he never received the accolades he deserved while living. After his death he became one of the most acclaimed short story writers and poets in history. His writing could be viewed as eerie and disturbing, but one thing is certain, he definitely stood out with his distinct style. One author wrote:

Poe married his cousin Virginia Clemm in 1836,she was only 13, then in 1837 they went to New York there he published the narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym his only novel. In the summer of 1846 he moved with his wife to a cottage in what was a rural area in Bronx N.Y; she died there of tuberculosis in January of 1947.On October 3, 1949, in Baltimore a stranger found him delirious and in need of medical attention, a few days later he died at the age of 40 from unknown causes.