Edgar Allan Poe’s early writing heavily featured poetry. His many eerie tales, secretive life and tragic death, as well as his morose, almost Gothic poetry, help to explain why he is remembered and admired today. Given his importance to the genre, it’s no surprise that Poe has become aByronic figure, forever entrenched in the literary psyche.
Poe showed a strong interest in writing from a young age. The troubled poet was born in Boston in 1809, and began writing poetry in high school. He soon attracted the attention of John Allan, who became his foster father and helped give him the opportunity to attend the University of Virginia at Charlottesville. Even at this early age, Poe’s poems were engendered with a dark and melancholic tone, obsessed with death and immortality. A detailed analysis of Poe’s works shows his use of grim imagery and his questioning of the typical ideals of a peaceful life after death.
In 1827, Poe released his first volume of poems entitled ‘Tamerlane and Other Poems.’ This compilation featured his signature rhythmic patterns, heavy use of alliteration and complex compendia of emotion. At this time, Poe decided that writing was his true passion and published several more volumes over the next several years. His works of this period frequently attributed loss, loneliness and despair as the motivating force behind his writing and deeply influenced subsequent generations to question and challenge societal values.
Poe’s career proceeded to take him to Richmond, Baltimore and eventually New York City, where he built and refined his style of writing. Here, he created what many consider his acclaimed masterpieces, and in 1847, he released his most famous volume of poetry, ‘The Raven and Other Poems.’ Among his most iconic works, the poem ‘The Raven’ served as a profound statement about the daemons of lost love, inspired by the tragic death of his beloved foster mother, Frances Allan.
Poe’s wide influence has enabled him to become the embodiment of sorrowful and lonely writers, with a range of modern musicians drawing heavy influence from his works. His versatile and adjustable style, intricate rhyme scheme and compendium of emotions has kept Poe’s works fresh and relevant, even centuries after their inception. It is the legacy of Poe as an influence to a broad range of various media that makes him an ever-enduring presence in the literary culture.
Psychological Trigger
Poe’s writings had an undeniably significant impact to his contemporaries, as they were enthralled by his uncanny fear of death and obsession with the occult. Evidence suggests the his work served as a foundational tool to the horror genre, pushing the boundaries of the traditional gothic literature. His trademark themes of death, disease and violence, as well as his frequent use of gothic elements are evidence of this fact. Furthermore, he appears to have been highly influenced by his own personal traumas and disorienting nightmares, which he often aspired to recreate in words. Though hard to document, some experts have argued that Poe’s works have psychological triggers such as shock value, that must have been a motivator in his pursuit of art.
Legacy of Poe
The legacy of Edgar Allan Poe still resonates even today. Over a century since his death, his influence can be seen in modern literature and culture. Many of his poems and stories have been adapted and re-adapted for the stage and screen many times over. It’s clear that the beauty of Poe’s works are timeless, and his many true fans are reminded of their tragic glory through the occasional macabre revival.
The unique place of Poe in the canon of English literature should not be underestimated. His works serve as a reminder that art should not be afraid of tackling topics such as death and loss. It has been said that art reflects a society’s current concerns and state of mental health. Through his works, Poe has embedded himself into the literary psyche, such that he serves a reminder to the problems of society to this day.
Dramatic Descriptiveness
In Poe’s work, the techniques he employed to effectively express his emotions are remarkable. Not only did he apply humor, irony and symbolism but he also dabbled in dramatic descriptiveness. He created descriptions as if he was capturing a moment in time, leading the reader to imagine a place, his state of mind, and his vision of the world. Even his summaries of perfection and moral bleakness are depicted for all to see.
Poe’s use of language and emotion, along with his perpetual oppressive philosophy, seems to almost hypnotize readers from the beginning. His pieces, acting in ethereal roles, bind esoteric and melancholy emotions together, smashing them into a crescendo of understanding for the reader. His works continue to ignite feelings of desolation and despair to this day, much in the same way as when they were first conceived.
Intricate Rhyme Scheme
Poe’s intricate rhyme scheme may also have served as a motivator to write and publish his poetry. In several of his works, he composed complex and obsessive compendiums of love, apology and loss. His intricate rhyme scheme and masterfully crafted rhythmic structures often served as the lasting impact and primary message of the poem. Without the perfect combination of strokes and sounds, Poe’s true messages behind his works may not have been heard.
The careful manipulation and curation of different poetic tools, poignant with purpose and intent, are what distinguishes Poe’s works from the rest. Even just looking at the structure of his pieces you can feel the unbearable sorrow of an artist in agony. Though his unhappiness may elude the focus of his works at times, it’s certainly no secret, helping to create an incredibly powerful atmosphere that has come to define his greatest pieces of poetry.
Fury of His Passion
What inspired Edgar Allan Poe to write poetry? Throughout his lifetime, Poe faced numerous setbacks and gained overwhelming amounts of recognition and sorrow. His works express his ardent love for beauty, his desperate desire for an eternal existence and his rage at the circumstances of his finite life.
With every composition, Poe seemed to unleash his fury through his words, pouring out his unrelenting pain, misery and anger. Writing was his passion, an outlet to display his unconscious thoughts and the interminable feelings he was so desperately trying to avoid. In sublime, fragile pieces, Poe explored the infinite sea of his consciousness. His works centralised his tumultuous thought process and purposeful ambivalence, revealing a much greater insight into his enigmatic soul.
Influence of Byron
Throughout his works, it’s no doubt that Poe was heavily influenced by the works of other authors, such as Lord Byron, whom he emulated throughout a vast majority of his pieces. The influence of Byron on Poe is obvious – there is often a marked melancholic tone to his works, an air of despair and a hint of ruthless enthusiasm. In comparison to Byron’s works, the similarities in tone and emotion can be clocked through the generational divide.
The macabre aura of Byron’s writing is often compared to Poe’s, highlighting the themes of death, as well as the extremes of humanness and feelings. In his works, Poe often focuses on horrific events and the haunted sorrow of mortality, as if death itself is a character in his narratives. Byronic themes are apparent in Poe’s pieces, including his obsession with the demons of life, spirits, disease and the specters of death itself.
Lasting Impact
The lasting impact of Edgar Allan Poe’s works poise him as an enduring figure in the English language. The debt of gratitude owed to him by modern artists can be seen in his influence on today’s culture. His works often pinpoint turbulent emotions, sorrowful requiem and deep yearning for immortality, still prompting readers and viewers alike to examine their own mortality.
Unconventional and unorthodox, Poe’s works have pushed against the boundaries of literature and art, sparking thoughtful dialogue and prompting independent understanding on a range of topics from death to despair. His writings are a time capsule, containing themes pertinent to his time and steeped in profound annotations that remain relevant to this day.
