Poe's Place in the World
In human nature there exists a morbid desire to explore the darker realms of life. As sensitive creatures we make every effort to deny our curiosity in the matters that frighten us. Edgar Allan Poe was a master of his craft, gifted with the talent of introducing each reader to his or her own subconscious fears. Poe was the first writer in American literature who introduced horror, death and mystery into poetry. A look into Poe's childhood might shed some light on where his fascination with death came from. Edgar Allan Poe was born in 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts to drifting actor parents. His father abandoned his wife and three children, soon after Poe was born, leaving her to support the family as best as she could. The family traveled for a few years, looking for a comfortable place to settle down, until the end of 1811, when Poe's mother became ill and passed away. The children were sent off into foster homes and Poe was placed into a "residence of a well-off, yet unsupportive merchant named John Allan" (Johnson 1). John Allan was emotionally detached from Poe, refusing to legally adopt him. All these events that occurred when Poe was very young would trigger feelings that came out in his writing and his lifestyle
Poe reinvented American literature through his emotions, spirituality and his arguable drinking problem, which served as inspiration to many great stories. He came from a broken home and did the best he could with what he had. Poe lived an extraordinary life, though he never fully attained the fame and success that he sought until his untimely death in 1849. Whatever opinion readers have of his work; his genius and influence in the world of writing cannot be denied. We may never know if any of his tribulations affected his ideas or style, or if he was simply destined to write what he did. Considering all that is currently known about the sustained effects of alcohol on the brain, it is possible that he never reached his full capacities as a writer. What we do know is that as readers we will never be the same. The things that have secretly scared us since childhood are forever entrenched in the stories by Edgar Allan Poe. . Even though Poe was condemned to be a drunk, he delivered America emotional and spiritual literary poetry. two drinks. His reputation as a drunk started when he was working on the Messenger in Richmond, Virginia. There, Poe was easily sidetracked as he would meet friends at a local bar and often not come home until the early hours. According to Poe's physician, Dr. Thomas Dunn English, Poe already felt the illnesses of alcohol after two or three drinks. Poe could go long periods without drinking but as soon as times became rough, he would seek refuge in the bottle. Poe was a man who liked long night discussions with friends, and alcohol "unlocked the restraints of rigid courtesy and painful dignity from him" (Bittner 278). Due to these long night discussions and the rudeness of his character under influen
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Approximate Word count = 1178
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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