Episode 14. Edgar Allan Poe.
1849 “Annie” daguerreotype of Poe
Poe is a name as easily recognised as Grimm, Shakespeare or Atwood.
Poe was a writer, editor and a critic. He wrote stories of the macabre, from insanity to murder. He is credited with being a staple in the invention of the detective story, and of science fiction and was the first well-known American writer to attempt to earn his living solely through his short stories and poetry. Just as would be expected now, it was not an easy way to live.
In 1809, Edgar Poe was born. He was the second child of his parents, whose relationship, and life in one case, were not to last. Poe’s father left the family in 1810 and his mother passed away in 1811 of pulmonary tuberculosis, known then as consumption, leaving Edgar and his sibling orphaned.
Edgar was taken in by John and Frances Allan. Though they never officially adopted the young boy, they raised him well into young adulthood. Their home life became turbulent when Edgar was entering into further education when money was already tight due to gambling. Edgar and John would often argue over funds. Poe attended the University of Virginia for only a year before he had to leave due to a lack of funds. He went on to enlist in the army under another name. He ended his military career early, knowing that he wanted to work solely as a writer. He published his first works, Tamerlane and Other Poems, in 1827, thus beginning his writing career.
In 1830, John Allan married his second wife Louisa Patterson. The relationship was unsettled and the pair would often argue over the children Allan had had as a result of his affairs. This led to Poe being abandoned by his second father figure. He ended his military career by getting himself court-martialed, knowing he would be found guilty and subsequently dismissed. His charges were neglect of duty and disobedience of orders.
Poe’s writing career began with poetry which soon moved to prose when he found himself struggling. He submitted stories to several publications and in 1833 won an award for his story “MS. Found in a Bottle”, a story about a man lost at sea and carried to the South Pole by a hurricane. When he finds himself aboard a new ship, he is unable to make use of the maps and tools and is not able to be seen by the elderly crewmen that travel with him. He steals writing materials from the captain and starts a journal which he then throws into the sea. The story ends when the ship approaches Antarctica and becomes caught in a whirlpool where it begins to sink.
In 1835, Poe found himself working as an assistant editor for the Southern Literary Messenger in Richmond. He was fired shortly after when his boss caught him drunk on the job, though with promising behaviour, he was hired on once again. The same year, Poe would marry his 13 year old cousin. He was 26 at the time. It is said that she may have been the inspiration for some of his writing. She passed away after 11 years of marriage. She had fallen victim to tuberculosis and experienced her first symptoms while playing the piano and singing. Poe had described it as a blood vessel breaking in her throat. He began to drink more heavily in an attempt to cope with her impending death.
Obviously no hero, but just a regular man, Poe actually alienated himself from the writing community at the time. He accused another infamous author, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, author of Evangeline and The Divine Tragedy, of plagiarism. Longfellow, taking the high road, deigned not to respond.
Poe’s instability and drinking only worsened after the death of his young wife. He attempted another relationship with Sarah Whitman but it did not survive because of his excessive drinking and unstable behaviour. He then went on to form a relationship with childhood love, Sarah Royster.
Poe’s erratic behaviour continued up to the moment of his death. On October 3, 1849, Poe was found on the streets in, quote, “great distress and in need of immediate assistance”. He was taken to the Washington Medical College and passed away on 7, October 1849 at 5am. During his stay at the medical college, Poe was incoherent. No one could get a word out of him as to how he came to be wasted, dressed in another man’s clothes, and left on the street. It’s alleged that he repeatedly called the name “Reynolds” the night before he passed. His famous last words? “Lord, help my poor soul.” He was 40 years old.
Poe’s cause of death remains a mystery to this day. Though some theories have been put forward such as inflammation of the brain due to alcoholism, heart disease, epilepsy and even syphilis or rabies. A theory that arose in 1872 was that Poe was forced to make a vote for a particular political candidate. Getting the victim into a mindless and vulnerable state was one of the first steps of this practice. Cases like these often ended in violence or murder. His death was officially ruled as phrenitis. Swelling of the brain.
Smithsonianmag.com goes into further detail about some of these theories, and I recommend heading over for a read-through!
John Evangelist Walsh, in his book Midnight Dreary: The Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe, puts forward the theory that Poe was indeed murdered. I have added this to my reading list. If you have read it, I would love to hear your thoughts.
I also recommend reading a collection of Poe’s work, in whatever format suits you. I have a copy of his collected stories and poetry at home that I received as a teen but I haven’t dived into the entire book completely. I often will pick stories that I want to read and just enjoy them individually.
As for my theory on his death, I think it was a combination of alcoholism, mental illness and perhaps violence. I don’t believe that the mystery will ever be solved, but as the ladies from Wine and Crime would say – let’s speculate wildly.
I also came across a bit of trivia which I hope is true. It’s said that Poe was quite a fan of cats and would often write with one perched on his shoulder or perhaps just nearby.
Let me know your favourite poem or tale by Poe, your other favourite authors in a similar vein, and what theory catches your interest in regards to his death.
Good Nightmare 