Edgar Allan Poe

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Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer. He is famous for writing horror stories and poems. He had a terrible life. He lost everyone he loved to death. He became depressed and died in a delirious mental state. His most famous poem is The Raven. It is a poem telling a story of a man's mourning and loss. Other works include The Tell-Tale Heart and The Cask of Amontillado.

[edit] Early life

David Poe Jr. and Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins were touring actors. When Edgar was one year old, David Poe Jr. left the family. At the age of two, Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins died and Edgar was orphaned. He escaped from his orphanage, and arrived at the nearby zoo. He spent a few days there. He watched the animals and became an animal lover). A man named John Allan worked at the zoo. He found Edgar and felt very sorry for him. Edgar was adopted informally by John Allan. Although the Allans did not take steps to legally adopt Poe, there was nothing illegal about. In America before the Civil War, homeless children were just "taken in" by foster parents. In 1815, the Allans went on a business trip to England for five years. While there, Poe went to an English private school. After the five years, the family moved back to Richmond, Virginia.

Poe enlisted in the army using the name Edgar Allan Perry. He had considered himself an outcast. He became a sergeant. His luck was getting better. His stepmother died and Poe thought that he would be John Allan's heir. Poe made peace with his stepfather and went back to Richmond. He enrolled in West Point, the academy for army officers in New York State. But, Allan had remarried, and Poe would not be Allan's heir anymore.

Poe didn't want to stay at West Point being a poorly paid Army officer. No one could simply drop out of West Point. Poe knew that the only way to get out of West Point was to be expelled. He disobeyed orders, stopped studying. Once he obeyed orders too literally. He saw a bulletin that said that only one kind of belt should be worn. He wore the belt only, no other clothing. He was expelled from West Point in March 1831. He went to Baltimore, Maryland, and not much is known about what happened in this time.

In Baltimore, Poe was taken in by his widowed aunt, Mrs. Maria Clemm. She was the sister of Edgar’s real father. Mrs. Clemm did not care if Poe had a job or not. She loved him and admired him for who he was. Mrs. Clemm had a daughter named Virginia Clemm. She adored and admired the young writer also. When Virginia was thirteen, she and Poe became married. Their love was strong.

Poe was writing a lot by this time. He sold his first story in 1832. Soon he was turning out a steady stream of thrillers like The Tell Tale Heart. The writing did not give him a steady way to earn money. Poe was poorly paid for his stories. He went to work as a magazine editor. Because of Poe drinking problems, he could not keep the job for long.

Through all this Poe, Virginia, and Mrs. Clemm stuck together. They went from city to city. But things were not good. Virginia was getting sick. In January of 1845, Poe published The Raven. It gave Poe fame but almost no money. By the winter of January 1847, Virginia had died.

Poe started traveling through New York leaving Mrs. Clemm alone. She had gotten letters from Poe. They showed his madness. He once attempted suicide in 1848. On October 7, 1849, in a hospital in Baltimore, Poe's heart stopped and he died.