A
Toast to Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849)
·
As
much as he was a part of American literature as a whole, he was one of the
first to be known also for his short stories.
·
As
far as his life and career, he was one of the first well-known American writers
to earn a living through writing.
·
Poe
was born in Boston, Ma. His father left
his family when he was only a year old and his mother died a year later from
tuberculosis.
·
John
and Frances Allen took him in and raised him as their own. They never formally adopted him but gave him
their name.
·
Poe
attended the University of Virginia in 1826 to study ancient and modern
languages. The university was just a
year old and Poe left after only one year.
He began doing odd jobs and writing for a newspaper. He used the pseudonym, Henri Le Rennet.
·
His
odd jobs were not lucrative, so Poe enlisted in the Army in 1827 under an
assumed name, Edgar A. Perry. He was
only 18 but claimed to be 22.
·
During
this time, he began his writing career.
His first collection of poems,
Tamerlane and Other Poems (1827), was published anonymously as “A
Bostonian”. There were only 40 pages to
the book and only 50 copies were printed.
·
After
his second year in the Army, he had attained the rank of Sergeant Major. He wanted to end his enlistment early and
thus revealed his real name to his commanding officer. He was subsequently discharged in order to
receive an appointment to West Point Military Academy.
·
Before
entering West Point, he went home to Baltimore and reunited with family
members, including his brother Henry, his widowed aunt Maria Clemm, and her
daughter, Virginia Clemm. He published
his second book, Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane and
Minor Poems, in 1829.
·
Poe
entered West Point and less than a year later was ready to leave. He decided to be kicked out and in 1831, he
was tried for “gross neglect of duty and disobedience of orders for refusing to
attend formations, classes or church.” He
was found guilty.
·
After
failing at West Point in his ranks as a cadet, he decided to become a full time
poet and writer. He released a third
book of poems entitled Poems.
·
He
first became a literary critic working for literary journals and
periodicals. His style of criticism
immediately set him apart from others.
During this time, he began work on his only drama, Politian.
·
In
1833, the Baltimore Saturday Visitor
awarded him with a prize for his short story, MS. Found in a Bottle.
·
Poe
became assistant editor of the Southern
Literary Messenger in Richmond, but was fired after a few weeks for being
drunk at work.
·
In
1835 at the age of 26, he secretly married his 13-year old cousin, Virginia
Clemm. She was listed as 21 on the
marriage certificate.
·
He
returned to Richmond and begged for his job back at the Messenger. He remained there until 1837, where its
circulation grew from 700 to 3,500.
·
In
1839, he became the assistant editor of Burton’s
Gentleman’s Magazine and enhanced his reputation as a critic. During this time, his collection, Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque,
was published in two volumes and had mixed reviews.
·
In
1845 at the age of 36, he published The
Raven, which had instant success and made him a household name. He was paid $9.00 for its publication.
·
Virginia
died two years later of tuberculosis.
His frequent theme of “death of a beautiful woman” throughout his
writings may have come from the loss of so many women in his life: his mother, his foster mother, his wife. After her death, his drinking increased.
·
In
1849 at the age of 40, Poe died in Baltimore of an unknown cause. Many have speculated over the years of what
could have contributed to his death, such as alcohol, drugs, heart disease,
suicide, cholera, or grief. He had been
found on the streets in dire need of medical attention and died four days
later.
·
Adding
to the mystery of how he became so ill, why he was in the streets, and why he
was wearing someone else’s clothing when found, an unknown visitor began to pay
homage at his grave beginning in 1949 on the anniversary of his death. At his grave marker was left a toast of
cognac and three roses. This tradition
is now protected by the members of the Edgar Allan Poe Society as the “Poe
Toaster”.
·
Even
after such a short life and career, his writings influenced literature around
the world.
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