Edgar Allan Poe Outline

THESIS STATEMENT

Edgar Allan Poe’s difficult and tumultuous life influenced his ingenious stories and poems of horror and mystery leading him to be known as the originator of the American detective story and the Father of the American Gothic movement.

INTRODUCTION Edgar Allan Poe is one of America literature’s most influential writers and poets. Known as the originator of the American detective story and a dominant figure in suspense and horror genre, this prolific writer takes the reader’s imagination on a journey to the darkest regions. His unfortunate childhood and tumultuous short adult life was the main influences of his chilling and eerie tales. Poe’s life and death like his literature has the element of mysteries still unsolved.

POE’S

in Boston, Massachusetts. Elizabeth was commonly referred to as Eliza, her and David met when they were working together at Mr. Placide’s Theatre Company in Boston, they were two poor touring actors. “Eliza Poe was not well born at all. She had sailed from England to America in the company of her mother, an actress …that there would be greater opportunities for the dramatic arts in the new country” (Ackroyd 9). She was poor growing up but was on stage from an early and and became a fairly well-known actor, but David was not, and was usually drunk during performances. They wed while on tour in 1806, and had three children, William Henry Leonard, Edgar, and Rosalie. By 1811, David left his family and soon after Eliza fell ill from consumption, which is now known to be tuberculosis and passed away in December 1811,in Richmond, Virginia. Shortly after her death David Poe had also died of the same disease. Henry was four, Edgar two, and Rosalie was eleven months. The three children were split up and sent to live with different families Henry lived with his paternal grandparents and Rosalie was adopted by a family in Richmond. Edgar was taken in by the Allan family of Richmond,

Edgar had very little contact with his brother and sister. He adopted the Allan name at baptism, becoming Edgar Allan Poe. John Allan was a successful tobacco merchant because of that Edgar had a comfortable life, he wanted Poe to follow in the family business but by 13 Poe was already a poet and was not interested in being a tobacco merchant. He was very close to his foster mother Frances the family lived in England from 1815 to 1820 where Edgar attended various schools one being the Manor House School at Stoke Newington. Poe was always very aware of his surroundings and the school had a gothic atmosphere. “Poe was always acutely sensitive to buildings, and this quaint and Gothic structure gave him cause for much imaginative contemplation” (Ackroyd 17) which Poe used in his writings. John sent Edgar to the University of Virginia in 1826.

Allen had given Edgar money towards college, but he gambled it rather than paying for school. “Allan had given him money to cover board and tuition, but Poe spent it within days, fancying himself in the role of a Virginia gentleman” (Meltzer 36) He gambled to the point he ended up in debt. He only spent approximately ten months at the University. Allan would not let him return to school Edgar and Allan had a very large falling