Edgar Allan Poe

American author, poet, editor, and literary critic Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809, and he died on October 7, 1849. He is well renowned for his short stories and poetry, especially his macabre and mystery-themed works. Poe is credited with creating the detective fiction subgenre and significantly contributing to the newly emerging science fiction subgenre.

The actors David and Elizabeth "Eliza" Poe had their second child, Poe, in Boston. John and Frances Allan of Richmond, Virginia, adopted Poe after his mother's death, and his father left the family in 1810. He lived with them until he was a teenager, despite the fact that they never officially adopted him. He stayed at the University of Virginia for a year because of financial constraints, and then he departed. He had a disagreement with John Allan over how to pay for his studies and his gambling debts. After entering the American Army under a false name and receiving only the credit of "a Bostonian," he published his first book, Tamerlane and Other Poems, in 1827.

He wed Virginia Clemm, a 13-year-old relative, in 1836; however, she passed away from the disease in 1847. Poe published his poem "The Raven" in January 1845, which gained immediate popularity. For years, he had intended to publish his own newspaper, The Penn, which was eventually renamed The Stylus. However, on October 7, 1849, in Baltimore, under strange circumstances, he passed away before it could be done.

He and his creations can be found in a variety of popular media, including books, music, movies, and television. His homes include several museums. The Mystery Writers of America give out an annual prize for outstanding work in the mystery genre.

Early Life

On January 19, 1809, Edgar Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts. He was the second child born to David Poe Jr. And Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins Poe, an actress. It's possible that Shakespeare's King Lear figure inspired Edgar's name. Around 1750, his grandpa left County Cavan, Ireland, for America.

In Richmond, Virginia, in 1810, Edgar Allan Poe was born into a low-income household; his mother passed away from consumption (pulmonary tuberculosis), and his father abandoned the family. Although they never legally adopted him, the Allans took care of him as their own and gave him the name Edgar Allan Poe.

Before being sent to boarding school in London, he briefly attended grammar school. He went to the Manor House School in Stoke Newington, a neighborhood north of London, in 1816. He acted as a Marquis de Lafayette, honor guard for the young people of the city in 1824. After his uncle William Galt passed away in 1825, Allan was left with several acres of land and an estimated $750,000 (which would be about $18,000,000 in 2021).

Edgar Allan Poe enrolled at the University of Virginia in 1826 to study both classical and contemporary languages. The university, founded on the ideas of its founder Thomas Jefferson, was in its infancy. Although it had stringent prohibitions against gambling, horses, firearms, tobacco, and alcohol, these laws were largely disregarded. He lost contact with his childhood sweetheart Sarah Royster while he was there, and he also grew apart from his foster father due to gambling debts.

Military Career

He entered the military academy on July 1st, 1830, and was left seven months later. He built up an impressive record during those months, but it wasn't the kind of record that cadets typically aimed for. The number of crimes committed by cadets and the related demerits is listed on the Conduct Roll for July through December 1831. With 44 violations and 106 demerits for the term, Poe tops the list with 66 offenses for the month of January, according to the offense roll. Poe appeared to be undertaking a deliberate attempt to get ejected out of West Point.

The allegations noted his absences from math class "on the 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 24, 25 and 26 January 1831" as an example of his dereliction of duty. A quarterly class report had placed him among the top mathematical students just two months prior. Reading the Consolidated Weekly Class Reports is pretty intriguing. For each academic subject, they list the top and bottom pupils for that week. Poe achieved top rankings in French for several weeks as well.

Poe's court-martial record was displayed in the "American Originals" exhibit from the Archives in 1998. The custodian wrote that Poe executed well in school but that his difficulties with his adoptive father and money immediately overrode him. He made the decision to leave West Point during his first term, but he was unable to do so without his foster father's consent. Poe set out to have himself court-martialed and terminated after Allan refused to give his clearance. The National Archives also contains enlistment paperwork and muster rolls from Edgar Allan Poe's time in the U.S. Army from 1827 to 1829, as well as letters of recommendation for him to present with his application to West Point and a register of cadet applications.

Poe's 1827 Army enlisting paperwork (under the name Edgar A. Perry) and seven pages from the court-martial case file are also available on the internet through the National Archives Catalog at Archives.gov.Although you can't have instant access to them through a convenient link, if you're in the neighborhood of the National Archives in Washington, DC, think about dropping in. Poe makes for fascinating reading, even if he's not the author.

Death

The enigma surrounding Edgar Allan Poe's unexpected death at the age of forty causes more debate than any other aspect of his life. What is known is that on September 28, 1849, Poe planned a trip from Richmond, Virginia, to New York City, during which he traveled by steamer and stopped in Baltimore. Over the following five days, it is unclear what he will do or where he will be.

Was alcohol a factor?

On October 3, 1849, printer Joseph Walker discovered Poe inside or close to the Gunner's Hall bar and left a letter for J.E. Snodgrass, a friend of Poe's in Baltimore. Poe seemed to be in "extreme anguish," according to Walker.

Snodgrass observed that Poe's attire appeared unkempt and out of place, saying that "he had either been robbed of his [own] outfit or tricked in an exchange." Snodgrass and his uncle Henry Herring decided to take Poe to Washington College Hospital because they both believed that Poe was intoxicated. Poe was then brought to a room designated for people who were suffering from alcohol-related illnesses. The following few days saw Poe drift in and out of consciousness, and when asked about his condition by Dr. John J. Moran, Poe's responses were reportedly illogical and unsatisfying. Because Poe was "excitable," Moran also forbade visitors.

Later, in a letter to Poe's mother-in-law Maria Clemm, Moran wrote that during Poe's conscious state, he held "On the walls, the empty talk to ghosts and imaginary things. His body was saturated in perspiration, and his face was pale." On Sunday, October 7, 1849, Poe passed away softly before dawn. Given that alcohol occasionally showed up as a detrimental influence in Poe's adult life, it may be reasonable to believe that it had a part in his demise. However, how does that explain why Poe was dressed inappropriately? It also does not explain the circumstances that led to his discovery in this sad condition.

Was Poe a Cooping Victim?

Given that Poe was discovered on election day and that Gunner's Hall served as a polling place, one of the most well-known hypotheses surrounding his passing centers on this fact. Poe might have been a victim of cooping on that particular day, a popular technique for voter fraud in the 19th century. Cooping victims were abducted, given drugs, made to drink, and repeatedly disguised in order to cast several ballots. Some have speculated that Poe may have been beaten and robbed or even that he may have contracted rabies.

Poe's death is the subject of numerous theories, but none of them has yet provided conclusive evidence. This is an appropriately enigmatic finish for the maestro of mystery.

Literary Career

Poe and White started fighting soon after Poe joined the Southern Literary Messenger, presumably as a result of Poe's drinking. Maria and Virginia, Poe's aunt and cousin, were invited to move in with him in Richmond. Poe and Virginia eventually got married a year later. He was 27, and she was 13. There is much discussion about the nature of their connection because this is an odd couple. Virginia was frequently referred to as "sissy" (sister) and Maria as "Muddy" by Poe (mother). We will never know what transpired in their marriage behind closed doors, despite the widespread assumption that their relationship was familial in today's society. Virginia and Maria helped Poe feel more secure. He appeared to be more responsible and content when they were with him.

Poe left Richmond and the Southern Literary Messenger in 1837. His prime literary years began in 1838 while he was a resident of Philadelphia. The Tell-Tale Heart, Masque of the Red Death, The Black Cat, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Gold Bug, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, and more works were written by Edgar Allan Poe.

The Tell-Tale Heart

"The Murders in the Rue Morgue" is particularly important because it was the first modern detective story. Poe was the first to write about an eccentric genius who solves mysterious crimes. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle cites Poe's character, C. Auguste Dupin, as the literary inspiration behind his character, Sherlock Holmes. Poe was also an early pioneer of science fiction. Interestingly, the majority of his stories are comedies.

Despite writing in a variety of genres, Poe is most known today for his contributions to the horror genre. Poe transformed the field. He was one of the first to incorporate psychological horror that was deep and intuitive. He frequently created tales in which the true villain was each individual's capacity for evil and the consequences of acting on it.

The Raven is Poe's best-known work. He became an overnight success after this poem was published in the first few months of 1845. Edgar Allan Poe was well known in literary circles before the publication of "The Raven," but he became well-known to the general public as a result. The success of "The Raven" on a global scale opened up lucrative opportunities like taking on literary clients and giving lectures and recitations, even though Poe only got around $15 from its publication. Poe was the first American author to rely solely on his writing income. Poe, however, had a difficult time providing for himself and his family throughout most of his adult life.

Unfortunately, his wife Virginia had already started to show signs of tuberculosis by this point. The couple stayed in New York during her long illness, which she passed away in 1847. Virginia passed away at the age of 24. Poe's wife's death left him emotionally broken, and he never recovered. It was clear that he needed her to support him mentally and emotionally. Poe started to return southward and headed for Richmond, the hometown he had grown up in.

Poe frequently used subjects that were intended expressly for mass-market tastes in his literature and frequently used aspects of well-liked pseudosciences like phrenology and physiognomy. He frequently used irony and absurd extravagance for comic effect in an effort to free the reader from social convention. Although "Metzengerstein," Poe's first story that is known to have been published, was also his first entry into the horror genre, its initial intent was for it to be a burlesque that parodied the genre.

Other Work Fields of Edgar Allan Poe

• Music for Edgar Allan Poe
  The works, life, and reputation of the poet and author of horror fiction, Edgar Allan Poe, have had a significant and enduring impact on the art of music. For more than a century, composers and musicians from a variety of genres have drawn inspiration from Poe.
• Edgar Allan Poe in movies and television
  Edgar Allan Poe, a short story and poetry author from America, has had a significant impact on film and television. Some just make references to Poe's writing, while others are adaptations.
• Popular culture's use of Edgar Allan Poe
  Characters based on Edgar Allan Poe have been used in books, comics, movies, and other forms of popular culture. Along with his writings, Poe's reputation has captivated people for ages. He frequently appears in popular culture as some sort of "crazy genius" or "torme."