Edgar Allan Poe Thesis

John Allan did not send Poe enough money so he decided to be dismissed from West Point and was on March 6, 1831. Poe then moved to Baltimore to live with his widowed Aunt Maria Clemm and her daughter, Virginia (Poe Chronology). John Allan died in 1834 and moreover Poe received no inheritance. Poe then turned to journalism and began to write for the Richmond based Southern Literary Messenger. By the end of the year, Poe, who had moved to Richmond with Virginia and Mrs. Clemm, was named editor in chief.

Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809, in Boston, Massachusetts. His parents David and Elizabeth Poe were professional actors. They had three children: Henry, Edgar, and Rosalie. When in 1817, Mrs. Poe died, Henry was taken to be raised with his grandmother, Edgar was adopted by the wealthy couple, Frances and John Allan, and Rosalie was taken by another couple. The luckiest one became Edgar because his new parents were very wealthy people, so he was able to go to different schools. When he was seventeen, he entered the University of Virginia, but because of his gambling and drinking problems he was dismissed from there.

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

Edgar Allan Poe was a sick man that went through a troubling life full of tragedies. For Poe to deal with this he drank and poured his feelings into his works. Honestly as horrible it is that he had to go through all of that we should be grateful because without his suffering these masterpieces wouldn’t have been fabricated. While intensifying his philosophy for short stories Edgar Allan Poe wrote “The Fall of the House of Usher” reflecting the characteristics of Dark Romantic Movement.

“Although dissolute in his personal life, when Poe touched pen to paper, he became a disciplined craftsman.” (Carnes 300). Edgar Allan Poe cemented his place in American literature by publishing countless poems and short stories, including “The Raven” and “Masque of the Red Death.” Poe effectively invented the detective fiction genre and perfected the horror story. His style, visionary as it was, was not with its influences. A life filled with tragedy, disappointment, alcoholism, and depression shaped Poe’s seemingly strange and taboo mind. Many of Poe’s writings were directly impacted by events in Poe’s life. In the Romantic period of the mid 1800’s, Edgar Allan Poe succeeded among American

“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.

Poe was born to traveling actors: Elizabeth Poe and David Poe Jr. in Boston on January 19, 1809, but within three years both of his parents had died from Tuberculosis. He was then taken in by John and Frances Allan, a well-to-do Richmond, Virginia couple unable to have children of their own. John Allan was a wealthy tobacco merchant who provided Poe with a

Edgar Allan Poe was born at 33 Hollis Street, Boston, Mass., on January 19, 1809, the son of poverty stricken actors, David, and Elizabeth (born Arnold) Poe. His parents were then filling an engagement in a Boston theatre, and the appearances of both, together with their sojourns in various places during their wandering careers, are to be plainly traced in the play bills of the time.

Edgar Allen Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 19, 1809. Poe, a son of an actor, never knew his parents very well because his father left early on, and his mother died early in his childhood. He went to live with the Allens, he made a bond that influenced him and his writing with Frances, the wife of John Allen. Poe went to the University of Virginia in 1826, but didn't receive enough funds from John Allen to continue, he then turned to gambling but only ended up in more debt.

Poe grew up like any other inner city kid right in the heart of Boston, Massachusetts where he was born on January 19, 1809.. Within three years of Poe’s life both of his parents had died of tuberculosis. Poe was adopted by a wealthy tobacco owner in Richmond John Allan and his wife Frances Valentine Allan, who loved poe just like her own. At a very young age Poe’s love for literature and writing became apparent to those who knew him, but none would have ever thought of the unfortunate life poe would live.

This put Poe into a depression, and he began to suffer from health and financial issues. On September 27, 1849, Poe left Baltimore and was thought to be headed toward Philadelphia. On October 3, he was found drunk, sick, and wearing someone else’s clothes in a bar in Baltimore. He was taken to Washington College Hospital, where he died several days later on October 7. His final words were, “Lord, help my poor soul.” At the time the cause of Poe’s death was said to be congestion of the brain; however, this is not wholly accepted. Some other theories are that he died of rabies, epilepsy, or maybe carbon monoxide poisoning. Edgar Allan Poe’s death has always been surrounded by questions and mystery, and no one knows what really happened to the great author. He never saw much financial success from his writing in his lifetime, but his work is just as prominent and influencing today as it was when he wrote

If one were to say that Edgar Allan Poe is a good writer, he or she is making an understatement of his work. He is one of the most critically acclaimed writers of all time. His stories have put him in a category of notoriety that also includes, Mark Twain, William Shakespeare, John Steinbeck, and Earnest Hemingway, just to name a few. Poe is most widely known for his unique obsessively dark, or gothic horror stories. To many, he is considered to be the “grandfather” of present- day horror. His writing shows that he is familiar with the thought process of a madman, leaving some to believe that he himself was in fact insane, but if he were, could he have the ability to describe such dark

    Edgar Allan Poe once said, “With me, poetry has not been a purpose, but a passion.” When stressed, writing was his coping mechanism, and through observation, many grasp how much death encompassed Poe. Although not appreciated during his era, he revolutionized mystery with mesmerizing story plots that yield suspense, but also makes readers question his stability. Most importantly, unlike those famous during his lifetime who are now forgotten, Poe’s legacy will live on forever. Moreover, throughout life, Poe experienced catastrophe, and because of this, writing became his creative outlet.

Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19,1809 to David and Elizabeth Poe. Edgar’s father David disappeared during his infancy and his mother, Elizabeth died before his 3rd birthday (Bloom183). The death of a mother and the loss of a father contributed to Poe’s dark writing style. Poe was then taken in by Frances and John Allan. Frances loved Poe and spoiled him as though she were his biological mother. John Allan supported Poe financially while giving him no real love or attention. John Allan never truly accepted Poe as his son and even when John died, he left nothing to Poe in his will. Poe went on to move to Baltimore where he lived with his Grandmother, his Aunt Maria Clemm, and his cousin Virginia. Poe and Virginia became very close and they were married in a secret ceremony in 1835 (Bloomfield 85). Poe was 27 years old and Virginia was only 13 years old when they got married. They were married for 11 years until Virginia contracted tuberculosis and died. After Virginia’s death, Poe became sick for months with depression and he started drinking heavily. During his time of pain Poe wrote some of his best work (Bloom 14). The people in Poe’s life influenced both his character and his writing

Edgar Allan Poe was a popular American author during the Romantic Era. During this era, authors wrote with emphasis on emotion and imagination, and Poe fits this stereotype perfectly. John Chua describes his reasons for writing by saying, “Poe’s writing aims at a concentrated affection or emotional response from the reader.” In many of his poems, Poe uses characters and plots that touch both the reader’s heart and imagination. These characters were often modeled after actual people in his life, such as his mother and many lovers. His poetry became even more famous after his death because of the “evil” persona that was adopted to his name (Meyers 263). In fact, two of Poe’s most famous poems, “Annabel Lee” and “The Bells,” were published after his death in 1849 (Poetry of Edgar Allan Poe). He achieved this reaction by using many different literary devices. Edgar Allan Poe’s biographical background contributed to the theme of death, role of women, and the use of doppelgänger to produce an emotional response from the reader.