Biography of Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts. Poe’s family life was a struggle, all the way from early childhood until his death. Poe never really knew his parents because his dad left the family early in Poe’s life. After the abandonment of his father, Poe went on to live with John and Frances Valentine Allan. Poe was separated from his brother and sister at this time. At age 13, he was considered an abundant poet. His talents weren’t discovered until later because they were shot down by John Allan, who wanted Poe to follow in the family business. Poe and John Allan struggled with money. Poe excelled in classes at the University of Virginia in 1826, but had to turn to gambling to help with costs because Allan wouldn’t cover all the funds. Turning to gambling resulted to Poe being in debt and having to return home, only to find his fiancé engaged to someone else. In 1827, Poe joined the army as well as published his first book. Two years later, he returned home after finding out that Frances Allan had tuberculosis, but she passed before he made it home. Allan then helped him get enrolled to West
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He then made writing his full-time priority. He began posting more short stories after he got a break from winning a contest in the Baltimore Saturday Visitor. Poe also began his career as a critic. Poe’s reputation as a critic was brutal and harsh. His time with the magazine was short after they let him go. It is said that alcohol also played a role in his departure. Although he was no longer a critic for the magazine, he still continued to sell his work to many journals. His career really took a leap in 1844 after publishing a story in The New York Sun about a trip across the Atlantic Ocean in a balloon, which he later proved to be a hoax, grabbing viewers’ attention. Poe then published “The Raven”, in 1845, and he became a literary