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Home , Edgar Allan Poe

Amy Petrie

Edgar Allan Poe

Amy Petrie AUCA: in the Arts October 22, 2015

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Amy Petrie

Romantic era contained more emotion and feeling than its predecessor, the classic style. Romanticism included radical thinking and vivid imagination and rejected the idea of decorum. Many Romantic era poets wrote highly emotional pieces. Others completely rejected the classic styles and created their own new forms. Within this essay I will discuss how Edgar

Allan Poe is a prime example of a romantic era writer; he uses many of the tenets of Romanticism including imagination and introspective and gothic writing, often reflecting his own personality and struggles.

Poe’s works are dark and terrifying like those of other Romantic era authors. His characters often struggle with madness and other psychological issues, representing an exaggerated picture of his own mental health challenges. His perspective was likely defined by his abandonment at a young age so his mother could work as an actress. Poe was able to attend college at the for one year. However, he resorted to gambling to pay for his tuition and was forced to drop out when he incurred too many debts. His extreme poverty and broken heart, suffered when he found his fiancé Elmira Royster engaged to another man, likely contributed to his heightened anxiety and unhappiness (Poe’s Life).

Poe released his first collection of poems in 1827 and another one in 1829. Continued financial instability forced him to move in with his aunt Maria Clemm where he started to write short stories. He sold these stories to magazines and in 1835 became the editor of the Southern

Literary Messenger, providing him with a reasonable livelihood as well as an opportunity to engage with other Romantic era writers. In 1836 he married his fourteen-year-old cousin Virginia and was extremely devoted to her. Virginia died from in 1847 which worsened Poe’s lifelong struggle with depression and alcoholism. Poe writes,

"Prophet!" said I, "thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil! By that Heaven that bends above us- by that God we both adore-

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Amy Petrie

Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn, It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name - Clasp a rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore." Quoth , "Nevermore." (The Raven)

Some theorize that the poem was written about Virginia and describes Poe’s own agony over losing his wife. It may be his way of asking if he will meet Virginia in heaven. The main character asked questions to the crow that he already knew the answers to because he sought solace and reassurance. Hough says, “With the Raven’s reply, “Nevermore,’ to the lover’s final demand if he shall meet his mistress in another world…may be said to have its completion” (31). He wants to hear the answers so that he may have some peace of mind. He has a slight hope that the raven may answer with something other than “Nevermore” but that is not the case. It is interesting to note that

The Raven was published in 1845 and Virginia actually did not pass away until 1847 meaning that the poem could not have been written about her death. However, it is likely the piece was heavily influenced by Poe’s concern and distress about Virginia’s long terminal illness which affected his mood for many years before her passing.

Poe’s stories did not necessarily get darker after Virginia’s death, but he did write more about insanity. The Raven and The Fall of the House of Usher were both written before Virginia’s death, while and The Tell Tale Heart were written afterward. He talks more about the agony of one man in both of the later stories while referring to more than one character in the earlier ones. He may refer to a single man in later years because he felt that he was now alone in his life. Without any comfort from his beloved wife, he struggled even more with his emotional and other problems.

Poe’s way of writing is gothic, both in the way that he describes places as well as the structure that he writes in, which is consistent with the Romantic era. He writes in an emotional way and his paragraphs, while well-structured, do not follow the classic rules of writing. He

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Amy Petrie presents information in a manner that makes sense to the reader but that is not “classic.” The information is not presented in chronological order but in a way that keeps the reader on his/her toes. In The Fall of the House of Usher Poe describes the house as follows:

“I know not how it was --but, with the first glimpse of the building, a sense of insufferable gloom pervaded my spirit. I say insufferable; for the feeling was unrelieved by any of that half-pleasurable, because poetic, sentiment, with which the mind usually receives even the sternest natural images of the desolate or terrible. I looked upon the scene before me --upon the mere house, and the simple landscape features of the domain --upon the bleak walls -- upon the vacant eye-like windows --upon a few rank sedges --and upon a few white trunks of decayed trees --with an utter depression of soul which I can compare to no earthly sensation more properly than to the after-dream of the reveller upon opium --the bitter lapse into everyday life --the hideous dropping off of the veil.” (Fall of the House of Usher 1)

Poe’s description provides an eerie backdrop to the story that may cause an emotional response in the reader, most likely extreme fear. Romantic era pieces often elicited that type of reaction. In this case the house almost seems to be dying, with “bleak walls” and “decayed trees” giving that impression (The Fall of the House of Usher).

Poe often describes mental agony or torture consistent with his own anxiety disorders and depression. This approach is similar to other Romantic era authors who regularly portrayed part of themselves in their writing. In The Pit and the Pendulum Poe expands on the torture theme, and some individuals even think it’s a “companion piece” to The Tell-Tale Heart because both are “a study of terror” (Quinn 394). The Pit and the Pendulum is a truly terrifying piece. Every time the character, who remains nameless, seems to get himself out of the way of impending doom something else stands in his way. Poe writes:

I now noticed the floor, too, which was of stone. In the centre yawned the circular pit from whose jaws I had escaped; but it was the only one in the dungeon.

All this I saw indistinctly and by much effort: for my personal condition had been greatly changed during slumber. I now lay upon my back, and at full length, on a species of low framework of wood. (The Pit and the Pendulum)

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Amy Petrie

The man in this story had just narrowly escaped drowning in a pit when he woke up to find himself tied to a wooden table. The man soon realizes there is a swinging pendulum coming down at him very slowly – thus the poem’s name. This may be a subtle cue to Poe’s fight with depression. The poem’s main character, like Poe, will one death to find himself in the path of another just as terrible death.

Poe also uses supernatural aspects in his writing which is another Romantic era style. This is particularly apparent in The Raven when the raven actually speaks, which is not a natural occurrence. The raven only says one word, “Nevermore,” but this communication gets the point across that the listener is mentally unstable. The narrator asks “Tell me what thy lordly name is” and the raven answers “Nevermore” to which the narrator replies “Bird or beast upon the sculptured bust above his chamber door, / With such name as ‘Nevermore’” (The Raven). No sound-minded person would ever have a conversation with themselves about how strange a name

“Nevermore” is, instead they would think, “why am I talking to a crow?”

The supernatural element is also apparent in The Tell Tale Heart when the narrator hears the old man’s heart beating in life and in death.

No doubt I now grew very pale; --but I talked more fluently, and with a heightened voice. Yet the sound increased --and what could I do? It was a low, dull, quick sound --much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I gasped for breath -- and yet the officers heard it not. I talked more quickly --more vehemently; but the noise steadily increased. I arose and argued about trifles, in a high key and with violent gesticulations; but the noise steadily increased. (The Tell Tale Heart).

The main character is unstable and feeling guilty for his actions which cause him to hear the old man’s beating heart from underneath the floorboards. It is not possible to hear that sound since the old man is dead, so it’s clear the main character’s mind is playing tricks on him. The narrator even anticipates the reader’s questioning his sanity saying:

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TRUE! -- nervous -- very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad? The disease had sharpened my senses -- not destroyed -- not dulled them. Above all was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell. How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe how healthily -- how calmly I can tell you the whole story. (The Tell Tale Heart).

He makes a good point, arguing that it is difficult to call a man mad when he can tell you the whole story without hesitation. Poe questions the idea of sanity in this piece, maybe for his own sake. He hopes that he does not sound insane in all of his pieces. He also is questioning if he is really mad or not, he can’t tell so he writes about it. It is interesting to note that this piece was written in

“January 1843” while Virginia was still alive indicating that even in marriage Poe suffered profoundly (Quinn). Questioning the very basis of life is not something that would have been accepted in the classic era, which shows that Poe’s writing was more consistent with the Romantic themes.

The Raven is also written in a non-traditional style, breaking most of the customary poetry rules. Romantic era poets liked to show their individuality in any way possible. Poe demonstrates this style by adding extra lines for effect as well as including more stanzas than usual to get his point across. He believed “Every piece had to fit, as in a jigsaw puzzle; if it did not, the writer had wasted words and lost some of his potential effect” (Olsen xix). Poe was very methodical and would not add an extra word to make the poem have a better flow if he did not feel it fit. In The

Raven he writes:

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken, "Doubtless," said I, "what it utters is its only stock and store, Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore- Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore Of 'Never- nevermore'."

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The above stanza stands out because in all the previous stanzas and all the following ones the last line contains seven syllables. In this stanza the last line contains only six syllables. Poe was not willing to put in an extra word just to follow his previous setup.

One aspect of Poe’s writing that is not consistent with Romantic norms is that he does not use common language. Instead, he uses large and unusual words and many of his readers may not know their meaning. He includes words such as “dissimulation” (i.e. a form of deception in which one conceals the truth) “sagacity” (i.e. soundness of judgement) and “suavity” (i.e. agreeableness) in The Tell Tale Heart. This technique might have been a good choice for Poe, making his poetry more elusive and mysterious to the common man or woman. Poe may also have used advanced vocabulary to demonstrate how smart he actually was, perhaps reflecting his insecurity at not having been able to finish his college education.

On October 7, 1849 Poe died from “acute congestion of the brain” which was later thought to be rabies. His death was a tragedy for many, although his work did not become popular and widespread until long after his death. Ironically, he became famous because of a book written by

Rufus Griswold who said he was a womanizer and a drunk which made him all the more popular

(Poe’s Life). Poe was an alcoholic; however, his first and only true love was Virginia, his first wife. It is widely believe that he stayed faithful to her throughout their marriage so the author’s portrayal of him seems unfair.

Poe is a prime example of a Romantic writer. He did not follow any of the classic literature rules and wrote a lot about himself in his works. He also created very dark, introspective pieces including a lot of works about one man’s journey. His writing had an unusual style that is uniquely his, being dark, gothic, and supernatural.

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Works Cited

Ackroyd, Peter. Poe A Life Cut Short. London: Chatto & Windus, 2008.

Cestre, Charles. “Edgar Allen Poe.” Encyclopedia Britannica. September 29, 2015. http://www.britannica.com/biography/Edgar-Allan-Poe.

“Edgar Allan Poe.” Academy of American Poets. September 29, 2015. https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/edgar-allan-poe.

“Poe’s Life.” Poe Museum. September 29, 2015. http://poemuseum.org/.

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Fall of the House of Usher.” Burton’s. September 1839.

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Pit and the Pendulum.” The Gift. 1842.

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Raven.” Evening Mirror. , 1845.

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Tell Tale Heart.” The Pioneer. January 1843.

Olson, Paul A. Regents Critics. Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1964.

Quinn, Arthur Hobson. Edgar Allan Poe A Critical Biography. USA: D. Appleton-Century Company, Inc., 1941.

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