On Edgar Allan Poe
Summary
TLDREdgar Allan Poe, a renowned poet, faced a tumultuous life marked by tragedy and eccentricity. Orphaned at a young age, he was adopted by a wealthy merchant and attended the University of Virginia, where he developed a penchant for drinking and gambling. Disowned by his foster family, Poe's personal life was fraught with financial struggles and the loss of his young wife, Virginia, to malnutrition. Despite his hardships, Poe's literary career flourished as an editor, critic, and author, with 'The Raven' being his most celebrated work. His life ended mysteriously with a disappearance and subsequent death from brain fever in 1849.
Takeaways
- 📚 Edgar Allan Poe was a renowned poet, editor, and critic with a life as intriguing as his works.
- 🎭 His life was marked by tragedy, including the early deaths of his parents and siblings, and his own struggles with alcoholism and gambling.
- 🏛️ Poe was adopted by a wealthy merchant, John Allan, and was sent to the University of Virginia, where his vices led to his disownment.
- 💍 His engagement to Elmira ended when her parents persuaded her to marry someone wealthier due to Poe's financial instability.
- 📖 After military service, Poe moved to Baltimore and started publishing his poems, though they were not successful financially.
- 🔫 He was dismissed from West Point for neglect of duty and disobedience, adding to his string of failures.
- 💔 Poe married his cousin Virginia at 26, an alcoholic, to a 13-year-old, which led to a marriage filled with hardship and her eventual death from malnutrition.
- ✒️ His career as a magazine editor and critic was highlighted by his sharp critiques and the publication of 'The Fall of the House of Usher'.
- 🐦 'The Raven', one of his most famous works, was published to great acclaim but brought him little financial reward.
- 🕊️ His life ended mysteriously with a disappearance and death in Baltimore, with speculations about his final days still persisting.
Q & A
Who is considered the son of his own works according to the script?
-Edgar Allan Poe is considered the son of his own works.
What was the profession of Poe's parents?
-Poe's parents were strolling players.
How did Poe's parents die when he was young?
-Both of Poe's parents died before he was two years old.
What happened to Poe's siblings, William and Rosalie?
-William became insane, and Rosalie died young.
Who adopted Edgar Allan Poe and why was he fortunate?
-Edgar was adopted by a wealthy merchant, John Allen, who provided him with an opulent upbringing and sent him to the University of Virginia.
What led to Poe's dismissal from the University of Virginia?
-Poe was dismissed from the University of Virginia due to his drinking and gambling, which led him into hopeless debt.
Why was Poe's engagement to Elmira terminated?
-Poe's engagement to Elmira was terminated because he was disowned by his foster parents and was no longer heir to the Allen fortune, leading her parents to persuade her to marry a more affluent man.
What significant event happened in Poe's life after his time in the army?
-After his time in the army, Poe moved to Baltimore to live with his aunt Maria Clara and her daughter Virginia, and he managed to get his poems published in Boston.
How did Poe's marriage to his cousin Virginia affect their lives?
-Poe's marriage to his cousin Virginia was disastrous as they faced poverty, suffering, and Virginia's eventual death due to malnutrition.
What was the high point of Poe's career as a critic?
-The high point of Poe's career as a critic was his work for the Southern Literary Messenger, where he brilliantly critiqued the works of his contemporaries.
What was the financial outcome for Poe after the publication of 'The Raven'?
-Despite the enthusiastic reception of 'The Raven,' Poe received only about ten dollars for the work.
What is the mystery surrounding Poe's death?
-The mystery surrounding Poe's death is that he disappeared in Baltimore, was found in a drugged condition, and died of a violent brain fever without anyone knowing exactly what happened to him during those missing days.
Outlines
📚 The Turbulent Life of Edgar Allan Poe
This paragraph delves into the life of the renowned poet Edgar Allan Poe, whose life was as enigmatic and tragic as his literary works. Born to strolling players, Poe lost both parents by the age of two and was adopted by a wealthy merchant, John Allen. Despite a privileged upbringing, Poe's life took a dark turn with alcoholism and gambling, leading to his dismissal from the University of Virginia and estrangement from his foster family. His early attempts at publishing his poetry were financially disastrous, and his military career at West Point ended in dismissal due to neglect and disobedience. Poe's marriage to his young cousin, Virginia, was fraught with hardship and ended in her death, possibly due to malnutrition. Despite these personal tragedies, Poe found some success as a magazine editor and critic, most notably with the publication of his poem 'The Raven,' though financial stability remained elusive. His life concluded with a mysterious disappearance and death in Baltimore, with speculations surrounding the circumstances of his final days.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Edgar Allan Poe
💡Tragic self
💡Alcoholic
💡West Point
💡The Raven
💡Gambling
💡Debt
💡Neurotic
💡Mysterious death
💡Cousin Virginia
💡The Fall of the House of Usher
Highlights
Edgar Allan Poe's life was as bizarre as his tales, reflecting his fantastic imagination and troubled personal life.
Poe was a brilliant editor and critic, known for his sharp and insightful literary analysis.
His personal life included struggles with alcoholism, gambling, and financial instability.
Both of Poe's parents were actors and died before he turned two, leaving him an orphan.
Poe was adopted by a wealthy merchant, John Allen, and was raised in a life of luxury.
His time at the University of Virginia was marked by excessive drinking and gambling, leading to debt and expulsion.
Poe's foster parents disowned him, and his fiancée was persuaded to marry someone wealthier.
After a stint in the army, Poe moved to Baltimore to live with his aunt and her daughter.
He managed to get his poems published but faced financial failure and dismissal from West Point.
Poe's marriage to his cousin Virginia was fraught with challenges due to his alcoholism and her poor health.
Virginia succumbed to malnutrition, largely due to Poe's reckless lifestyle and financial mismanagement.
Poe's career as a magazine editor, contributor, and critic was marked by both critical acclaim and financial struggles.
His work 'The Fall of the House of Usher' was a significant publication in his career.
Despite the success of 'The Raven', Poe received minimal financial compensation for his work.
Poe's personal life was filled with a series of magazine associations and financial hurdles.
His engagement to his childhood sweetheart Elmira was a bright spot before his mysterious disappearance.
Poe's final days were marked by a disappearance in Baltimore, followed by a drugged state and eventual death.
Edgar Allan Poe's life and works are a testament to the saying 'the son of his own works'.
Transcripts
it's been said that every man is the son
of his own works one of my favorite
poets is Edgar Allan Poe and his own
life was as bizarre as his tales his own
life story is the story of an author of
fantastic imagination a brilliant editor
and critic a poet tender and cruel an
alcoholic gambler and debt-ridden
neurotic Poe's parents were strolling
players both of whom died before he was
two years old leaving three panelists
children William Rosalee and Edgar
William became insane and Rosalie died
young far more fortunate Edgar was
adopted by a wealthy merchant John Allen
from whom he took his second name heir
to a fortune he was brought up in
opulent tradition and at the age of
seventeen was sent to the University of
Virginia it was there that Poe came into
his tragic self he drank and gambled
himself hopelessly to debt he was
withdrawn from school disowned by his
foster parents and because he now was no
longer heir to the Allen fortune his
fiance's parents persuaded their
daughter Elmira to marry a more affluent
man after a two-year enlistment the army
Poe moved to Baltimore to live with aunt
Maria Clara and her daughter Virginia
there he somehow wrangled enough money
to pay a Boston pendant to publish some
of his poems at the same time
manoeuvered himself into an appointment
at West Point the publishing of his
falls as a literary and financial flop
the appointment a disaster after one
year he was dismissed from the Academy
for gross neglect of duty and
disobedience Poe's marriage to his
cousin Virginia was equally disaster to
begin with he was 26 and an alcoholic
while she was a pale of a sickly child
of 13
the poor girl though she with the some
of her husband's finest hours fell
victim to most of his worst his reckless
living and squandering bought her mostly
poverty is suffering for eight years and
finally death do it was said to
malnutrition the bright spots opposed
life where his days as a magazine editor
contributor and critic as
critic for the southern literary
messenger he brilliantly torn apart many
of his contemporaries and their insipid
works his own crowning work the fall of
the House of Usher was published the
bottle to the debt cropped up again and
again
almost as hurdles between a series of
magazine Association's the highlight of
this period was the publication and
enthusiastic reception of his great poem
The Raven PO became a social lion but
financially he received only about ten
dollars for the work his tragic end
started on a note of happiness learning
that Elmira his youthful sweetheart had
been widowed he proposed to her and she
accepted happily in route to Richmond
for the wedding he stopped off at
Baltimore and just disappeared and now a
moment for this message
nobody knows what happened to Poe in
Baltimore he simply disappeared and was
found a few days later in a pitiful
drugged condition it was all over he
died of a violent brain fever and
October 7th 18-49 as I said the son of
his own works
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