Page 13 - DENG202_ELECTIVE_ENGLISH_III

Elective English—III

Notes This unit is designed to make you aware about the times and life of Poe and his works. His one
of the most famous poems, A Dream within a Dream is elaborately explained with critical analysis.

2.1 About the Poet

Edgar Allan Poe was a brilliant American poet, journalist, short story writer and literary critic.
In his lifetime, he had the distinction of being one of the first American writers with more
cultural cache in Europe than in the United States. The writing of Poe has inspired various
thinkers and writers including H. P. Lovecraft, Jules Verne and Charles Baudelaire. He is also a
contributed in the development of the literary genres of mystery and science fiction. The collection
of his writing is diverse and includes classics such as The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of
Nantucket, The Fall of the House of Usher, and The Purloined Letter to name a few.
Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on 19 January 1809. His father and mother were
professional actors and members of a repertory company in Boston. Poe’s father left around the
same time when he was born and after a few years, his mother passed away. According to
Leonard Unger, “Poe’s mother’s death shaped his life (Unger 1079).” Poe was taken in by John
and Frances Allan. The couple gave him a respectable upbringing but never officially adopted
him. This was why Poe felt like an outcast. Due to all this, he suffered from depression, which
made his writings very beautiful.

Figure 2.1: Edgar Allen Poe in 1898

Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Edgar_Allan_Poe_1898.jpg
Poe spent most of his life struggling and dealing with hardships. He was good in academics but
was mocked by his peers because of his actor parents. He was involved in gambling and was in
a huge debt. When the Allans acquired some money, they sent Poe to University of Virginia at
Charlottesville in 1825.
At the university, Poe excelled in academics but was compelled to quit after less than a year due
to bad debts and insufficient financial backing from Allan. His relationship with Allan began to
break down after his return to Richmond in 1827. Soon after Poe left for Boston, where he
enlisted in the army and published his first poetry collection, Tamerlane and Other Poems. The
volume did not catch public attention and went unnoticed by readers and reviewers. His second
collection, Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane, and Minor Poems came out in 1829 and received only slightly
more attention. In the same year, Poe was honourably released from the army, having achieved
the rank of regimental sergeant major. He then enrolled to the United States Military Academy
at West Point. Poe intentionally went to West Point just to please John. During this time,

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