Edgar Allan Poe

1. Edgar Allan Poe 1809(?)-1849

2. His Family and Tragic Life • Born in Boston or Baltimore • Some question as to when • The son of traveling actors • His mother was adored by all • Tragic and unhappy life

3. Tragic and Unhappy Life • Supposedly watched his Mother die of illness--Tuberculosis • Father deserted him at the age of two—father died shortly after mother • adopted by Mr. and Mrs. John Allan • constant disagreements with his step-father—usually about money/gambling • Step-mother adored him, but she died!

4. Education • Product of a formal education • Studied briefly at the University of Virginia • Tendency to sabotage himself • Drinking and gambling difficulties kept him from continuing at UVA

5. L I F E… • Received an appointment to West Point, but provoked his own dismissal, which means he was kick out! (you can’t quit West Point) • Caused a final separation between himself and step-father—was written out of his step-father’s will

6. . . .continued • 1826 he discovered his childhood sweetheart got married, he became depressed • First book is published in 1827 and sold for $0.50 a copy…he barely sold any.

7. . . .continued • In 1836 married his 14 year old cousin, Virginia • Moved many times—NY, Philly, Baltimore, Richmond • Last 12 years of life worked as journalist, editor, and creative writer

8. . . . continued • Lived in poverty stricken conditions despite going from job to job • In 1846 wife died after a long illness—it is unclear exactly what it was, but most believe it was Tuberculosis

9. . . . continued • Died in Baltimore after having been found in the streets, presumably drunk • His death is a mystery today—rabies? Illness? No one knows • Died a poor man despite all his work, but was widely read!

10. Addiction • Sometimes strange special effects linked to his addiction to laudanum • Laudanum is a highly addictive, opium based medicine, commonly used in treatment of headaches and stomach pains in 1800’s • May be false information—Poe not an addict?

11. Poe’s Work Known for: • Tales of mystery and terror stories • Introducing the modern detective story

12. Literary Term: Gothic Elements • Poe’s intentions were to blur the distinction between nightmare and reality. • Supernatural horrors and an atmosphere of unknown terror pervades the action • High emotion, sentimentalism, but also pronounced anger, surprise, and especially terror

13. Literary Term: Gothic Elements • Use of words indicating fear, mystery, etc.: apparition, devil, ghost, haunted, terror, fright, fainting • Word choice is key in his writing—it’s all about developing the mood and atmosphere

14. Literary Term: Allusions • Reference to a famous historical or literary figure or event • Best sources are literature, history, Greek myth, and the Bible • Serves to explain or clarify or enhance whatever subject

15. VERBAL SITUATIONAL DRAMATIC words spoken by one character mean something different than what that character means situation is not what it appears to be what do we know that the characters do not know about something Literary Term: Irony

16. Literary Term: Symbol • Something that is itself and yet also represents something else • Universal symbols embodying universally recognizable meanings • Invested symbols given symbolic meaning by the way an author uses them in a literary work

17. Poe and Gothic Tenets • Poe emphasized grotesque, desolate, mysterious, horrible and an ultimate abject fear that can be aroused in the reader. • Remoteness/indefiniteness • Single effect is eerie (an emphasis on physical aspects.)

18. Poe and Gothic Tenets (cont.) • Poe creates a super sensitive hero who would not/could not function in normal society • Predisposition with emotional needs • Sort of psychic communication present (usually between a member of living world and a living corpse)

19. Poe and Gothic Tenets (cont.) • There exists the possibility of returning to living world/to life after death (allows for inhabitation of own corpse) • There is life of the mind after death of the body –superhuman strength to live – one does not yield oneself to death except through the weakness of the will

20. General belief • Poe: man feels and senses BEFORE he thinks and reasons. • You must have something to express before you can commit it to expression. • Is this true in your life?

21. Poe’s Characters • Poe shows men on the borderline of sanity. They try to keep a foothold on common sense and the material world. • Poe’s narrators are important for understanding the bizarre logic of some men—sometimes the main character • Poe’s women are doomed to premature death, one way or another • Constructs his tales to show characters’ limitations

22. CONFLICTS • Poe’s characters are pushed over the border by events and some urgency within themselves • Internal conflicts are the driving force—external conflicts usually serve to emphasize the internal conflicts • IE--Fear of death is dealt with through actual confrontation with the character of Death

23. Poe’s settings – Usually an unknown or obscure setting at some distant time. • Purpose: readers will not be diverted from story, etc. by contemporary references or ideas • New worlds are created so there may be a concentration wholly on theme and atmosphere • Characters can live by/through emotion because of NO time/setting constraints

24. Characterization • Often characters are not named or are given a name that is deeply rooted w/ contextual meaning. • Why would he leave some characters unnamed?

25. THEMES in POE • Poe’s central theme involves some approach to life. • All his narrators, however demented, cling to the world of logic and common sense. • Themes involve that which we think, but never dream to do. • The darkest parts of men and women. • The saddest parts of life.

26. MAJOR THEMES AND CONCEPTS • Premature Burial • Love gone awry • Man’s arrogance about everything • Guilt and Self-fulfilling prophecy • Man’s inhumanity to manVengeance • Death is unavoidable and horrible

27. Subject Matter • Poe says “no” to common and ordinary or mundane, there is an emphasis on bizarre, unexpected, unusual • Wanted to affect people in a manner different than that which they might encounter in ordinary life.

28. Short Stories • Short Stories • The Tell-Tale Heart • Masque of the Red Death • The Cask of Amontillado • The Black Cat • The Pit and The Pendulum

29. Poems: The Raven Annabel Lee To Helen Lenore Common Theme— Women and Premature Death or Lost Love Poetry

30. Remember… • Poe is the author, and not the character • Many people assumed Poe to be mad due to his characters and themes • Only natural considering what he suffered in his lifetime

31. THE END!!