On Edgar Allan Poe

Summary

Edgar 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

00:00

📚 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.

Keywords

💡Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe is a central figure in the video script, known as a poet, editor, and critic. His life and works are the main focus of the video. Poe's unique style, characterized by the macabre and the mysterious, is exemplified in his tales and poems, making him a significant figure in American literature. The script discusses his tumultuous life, which included personal tragedies and a struggle with alcoholism, and how these experiences influenced his dark and imaginative works.

💡Tragic self

The term 'tragic self' refers to the self-destructive behaviors and unfortunate circumstances that Poe encountered in his life. The video script describes how Poe's drinking and gambling led to his expulsion from the University of Virginia and his disownment by his foster parents. This self-destructive behavior is a recurring theme in the narrative, illustrating the tragic nature of Poe's life that mirrors the dark themes in his literary works.

💡Alcoholic

Poe's struggle with alcoholism is a key aspect of his life story mentioned in the script. It is noted as a factor contributing to his financial instability, his dismissal from West Point, and his tumultuous personal relationships. The script implies that his alcoholism was a significant element in the downward spiral of his life, which is a common theme in discussions of Poe's personal struggles.

💡West Point

West Point refers to the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, where Poe was appointed after being disowned by his foster parents. The video script mentions his dismissal from the Academy for 'gross neglect of duty and disobedience,' highlighting another failure in his life that contributed to his overall tragic narrative.

💡The Raven

The poem 'The Raven' is one of Poe's most famous works and is mentioned in the script as a high point in his career. Despite the poem's enthusiastic reception, Poe received only a modest sum for it, illustrating the disconnect between critical acclaim and financial success that many artists face. 'The Raven' is a narrative poem that explores themes of loss and melancholy, reflecting the darker aspects of Poe's own life.

💡Gambling

Gambling is mentioned in the script as one of the vices that led to Poe's financial ruin. It is described as a behavior that contributed to his accumulation of debt, which in turn led to his disownment by his foster family and the loss of his fiancée to another man. The script uses gambling as an example of Poe's self-destructive tendencies.

💡Debt

Debt is a recurring issue in Poe's life as described in the script. It is tied to his gambling and drinking habits, which led to financial instability. The script mentions that debt was a hurdle between Poe and various opportunities, including his publishing endeavors and his time at West Point, emphasizing the impact of financial troubles on his life and career.

💡Neurotic

The term 'neurotic' is used in the script to describe Poe's mental state, suggesting a level of emotional instability and anxiety. This characterization aligns with the script's portrayal of Poe's life as one filled with personal and professional turmoil, and it may also allude to the psychological depth found in his literary works.

💡Mysterious death

Poe's death is described as mysterious in the script, with the detail that he disappeared before being found in a drugged condition and later dying of 'a violent brain fever.' This element of mystery surrounding his death adds to the enigmatic nature of Poe's life and legacy, which is a common theme in discussions of his life.

💡Cousin Virginia

Cousin Virginia, or Virginia Clemm Poe, was Poe's wife, and the script describes their marriage as a 'disaster.' She was a young and sickly girl when they married, and her health further deteriorated due to Poe's reckless lifestyle. Her death, attributed to malnutrition, is another tragic element in Poe's life, reflecting the theme of loss and suffering that permeates both his personal life and his literary works.

💡The Fall of the House of Usher

This is one of Poe's notable works mentioned in the script, published during a period when he was also working as a magazine editor and critic. The story is a gothic tale that explores themes of decay, madness, and the supernatural, which are characteristic of Poe's writing. The script's mention of this work highlights his contributions to the genre of gothic literature.

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