Poe's Alien Poetics (original) (raw)
Revista de Estudios Norteamericanos, 2021
Canons is the last addition to the vast Poe scholarship developed and published by Lehigh University Press (within their collection Perspectives on Edgar Allan Poe). After other similar titles such as Translated Poe (edited by Emron Esplin and Margarida Vale de Gato) or Poe's Pervasive Influence (edited by Barbara Cantalupo), among others, this volume comes to complete the comprehension of the global impact of Edgar Allan Poe and his works. The volume we are reviewing here is divided into four different sections, covering respectively the earlier anthologies of Poe's works during the 1840s, the collections that have been produced in the US, the UK, and the Anglophone context in general, specific anthologies based on genre and format, and how Poe has been anthologized in foreign contexts. By choosing such a division, the editors have been capable of collecting and addressing the most relevant perspectives considered by contemporary Poe scholars from different points of the planet. Within the first mentioned section of the book, three chapters are included. The first of them (by Jana L. Argersinger) opens, as probably could not be done otherwise, with the labor Poe developed as editor of anthologies when working in different literary magazines, but also on how Griswold and Osgood contributed to coin a
Fables of Mind: An Inquiry into Poe's Fiction
American Literature, 1988
are "more compelling because more akin to our experience of mystery in the world." Considering Edith Wharton's short story "The Duchess at Prayer," Eleanor Dwight reveals the influence of Poe's "The Cask of Amontillado" on both language and details of plot and setting. Kent Ljungquist persuasively argues that Poe's "Eleonora" influenced language and imagery in Scott Fitzgerald's This of Paradise, and that Poe's "To Helen" shaped such elements in Fitzgerald's Tender Is the Night. Carol Marshall Peirce documents a clear affinity between Poe and J. R. R. Tolkien; Maurice J. Bennett illuminates the Poe-Borges relationship, showing the influence of "William Wilson" on "Deutsches Requiem." Fisher himself demonstrates that Poe's "The Masque of the Red Death" influenced both Stephen King's flawed novel, The Shining, and John Dickson Carr's admirable one, Corpse in the Waxworks. Linda E. McDaniel makes evident that Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher" critically affected the tone and plot of William Styron's Set This House on Fire; Craig Werner examines the influence of Poe's "The Raven," "The Fall of the House of Usher," and other works on Ishmael Reed's novels The FreeLance Pallbearers, The Last Days of Louisiana Red, and Flight to Canada. Finally, D. M. McKeithan and Henry Wells elaborate upon the lives of two great scholars, Killis Campbell and Thomas Ollive Mabbott-men who were vitally influenced by Poe, and who, in turn, vitally influenced our understanding of him. Clearly, as this fine volume attests, a variety of important writers have been vitally influenced by Poe. Yet perhaps, I wondered, as I finished Fisher's book, casting back to that afternoon in the Endicott Bookstore, the word "influenced" be, in some cases, too weak. I vividly remember that in response to my inquiry as to whether Poe had influenced Isaac Bashevis Singer had paused from inscribing my book, turned up to me with gleeful eyes and grin, and declared, emphatically, "Not 'influenced'-'inspired'!"
The bicentenary of Edgar Allan Poe’s birth in 2009 generated a renewed enthusiasm in the American writer and his work. International conferences and monographic studies reexamined the importance of Poe and his influence on twenty-first-century national literatures. Among the most recent studies, Cantalupo’s Poe and the Visual Arts (2014) puts in context Poe’s oeuvre and the artwork to which he was exposed in the 1830s and 1840s. In the same vein, Emron Esplin and Margarida Vale de Gato’s edited volume Translated Poe deals with translations and translators of Poe in an attempt to demonstrate “how Poe’s translations constitute multiple contextual interpretations, testifying to how this prolific author continues to help us read ourselves and the world(s) we live in” (2014: xix). Echoes of Lois Davis Vines’ Poe Abroad (1999), a landmark in Poe studies published to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the writer’s death, abound in this compilation of articles. In this regard, Esplin and Vale de Gato, who acknowledge having been inspired by Vines’ work, commissioned an outstanding group of Poe experts and translators to assess the specific vehicle that delivers Poe to the world: translation. “One can understand Poe”, contends Cagliero in his review of Poe Abroad, “by understanding those who read his texts and how they understood him” (2000: 45). And this statement may also be fitting for Translated Poe....
Review of Time-Transcending Poetry of E. A. Poe
Slawomir Studniarz. The Time-Transcending Poetry of Edgar Allan Poe: An Explanation of the Mechanics of His Poetic Speech. Lewiston, N.Y.: Edwin Mellen Press, 2016. 323 pp. $219.95 cloth. Reviewed by Wesley Scott McMasters, Carson-Newman University
Edgar Allan Poe and the Tradition of Western Mysticism: A Study of A Selection of his Short Storie
Revista de Estudios Norteamericanos
The article is devoted to the mystical elements and allusions surfacing in Poe's-analytical,‖-angelic,‖ and-landscape‖ tales:-A Descent into the Maelström,‖-The Purloined Letter,‖-The Murders in the Rue Morgue,‖-The Domain of Arnheim,‖-Landor's Cottage,‖-Mesmeric Revelation,‖-The Colloquy of Monos and Una,‖-The Conversation of Eiros and Charmion,‖ and "The Power of Words.‖ It is argued that the narrative circumstances in-A Descent into the Maelström,‖‖ in which the Norwegian fisherman describes to the unnamed narrator his adventure, rework the long-established spiritual imagery. The Dupin tales, in turn, are grounded in the cult of Night and in the initiatory powers of darkness, recalling the mystical-night of the soul.‖ The two-landscape tales‖ depict the act of an artistic transcendence, performed by an artisan devoted to emulating the supernal order within the bounds of empirical reality. The article pays also due attention to the revelatory experience that results from crossing the boundary between the temporal and the eternal in Poe's-angelic‖ dialogues. RESUMEN Este artículo se centra en los elementos y alusiones místicos que afloran en los cuestos-analíticos,‖-angélicos‖ y-paisajistas‖ de Poe:-Un descenso al Maelström,‖-La carta robada,‖-Los crímenes de la
Gothic Studies, 2019
Sean Moreland's latest collection on H. P. Lovecraft enters into the squall of recent conversations and publications about the Rhode Island native and weird fiction writer. And yet, despite the magnitude and the diverse composition of such recent collections of scholarly work, The Lovecraftian Poe attempts to redirect our attention back to a seemingly dry reservoir: the authorial tie between Lovecraft and Edgar Allan Poe. In doing so, the voices in the collection from Lovecraftian familiars-like S. T. Joshi, Jefferey Andrew Weinstock, and Caitlin Kiernan-reopen not only the selfproclaimed authorial genealogy that Lovecraft traced, but also the impact that such a linkage has had on contemporary readers of both Gothic and weird fiction writers. Within this collection, Moreland challenges his readers to observe how Lovecraft's declaration of fealty to the strange nineteenthcentury writer "has, for better and for worse, indelibly shaped Poe's place in American-and international-literature and popular culture" (xvii). In this way, Lovecraft, through his endorsement and posthumous popularity, ensures that modern readers and critics view Poe through a Lovecraftian lens. Moreland's collection systematically and chronologically tests this connection through mostly close readings of Lovecraft's and Poe's writing. Where Moreland's collection shines, however, is in its rather diverse collection of theoretical explorations into such a literary genealogy. From Bachelard's space theory, Toni Morrison's race/whiteness studies, posthuman animal studies, to new media studies, the collection covers a broad amount of ground. As a result, the collection appeals to both new and established critics that find themselves trying to find a place within a given set of literature. While covering the traditional stories that synch up between the two writers, Moreland's collection also injects novelty into the discussion by including essays on Lovecraft's verse in relationship to Poe's (beyond merely citing their terribleness as other examinations have done), and in the final essays moves to incorporate contemporary horror film and weird fiction writers into the overarching theme of continuing influence. The Lovecraftian Poe,
Gloominess and Sadness in Edgar Allan Poe's Selected Poems: Textual and Analytical Approaches
2024
Edgar Allan Poe's life was plagued by melancholy and disaster, which is evident in all of his writings. Among the many other poets of his generation, his solitude and individuality set him apart from the rest. He gave the Gothic genre a completely new meaning, making it both dark and significant at the same time. First, as an overview is given, of the 19th century, Edgar Allan Poe, and the tragedies that influenced his poetry. This study employs a comprehensive methodology focusing on the close reading of three of Poe's wellknown poems: "The Raven," "A Dream within a Dream," and "Alone." By analyzing how sadness and sorrow are portrayed in these poems, the paper investigates the extent to which these emotions impacted Poe's writing. The analytical approach involves delving into the thematic and stylistic nuances of the selected poems, shedding light on the intricate ways in which Poe articulates his emotions. The purpose of this study is to tackle the sense of gloominess and sadness by employing textual and analytical approaches. The significance of the feelings of loss and sorrow in Poe's writings is addressed, drawing connections to Poe's life story. The findings demonstrate that Poe's writings occasionally converge with personal catastrophes, tragedies from his own life, and stories about death sadness, and grief come together on multiple occasions over the course of his demanding career. Concluding that sadness, sorrow, and everything that comes with it were indeed lurking in every one of his statements, this paper contributes to the existing literature by portraying the semi-autobiographical image of the author within the realm of his poetry. The textual and analytical approaches used in this study provide a nuanced understanding of how personal experiences influenced Poe's poetic expression, enriching our comprehension of the intricate relationship between his life and art.
"The Art of Reviewing," Edgar Allan Poe in Context, Kevin J. Hayes ed (Cambridge UP, 2013), 198-208.
E D g a r a l l a n P o E i n C o n t E x t Edgar allan Poe mastered a variety of literary forms over the course of his brief and turbulent career. as a storyteller, Poe defied convention by creating gothic tales of mystery, horror, and suspense that remain widely popular today. This collection demonstrates how Poe's experience of early nineteenth-century american life fueled his iconoclasm and shaped his literary legacy. rather than provide critical explications of his writings, each essay explores one aspect of Poe's immediate environment, using pertinent writings -verse, fiction, reviews, and essays -to suit. Examining his geographical, social, and literary contexts, as well as those created by the publishing industry and advances in science and technology, the essays paint an unprecedented portrait of Poe's life and times. Written for a wide audience, the collection will offer scholars and students of american literature, historians, and general readers new insight into Poe's rich and complex work. kevin j. hayes is a professor of English at the University of Central oklahoma. Editor of The Cambridge Companion to Edgar Allan Poe, he has published several books on american literature, history, and culture, including Poe and the Printed Word (2000) and The Road to
Introduction from Anthologizing Poe: Editions, Translations, and (Trans)National Canons (2020)
Journal of Transnational American Studies
This book examines the processes of editing and anthologizing as innovative contributions to the field of literary culture, analyzing how single-author editions and multi-author anthologies have created distinct reputations for Edgar Allan Poe. The book explores how Poe's editors, anthologizers, and translators continue to shape his global images"-Provided by publisher.
International Poe Bibliography: 1998-2000
Poe Studies, 2002
The committee has tried to be as comprehensive as possible, but in selecting material most likely to be of interest to an audience of literary scholars, we generally did not include references to Poe in recent fiction, poetry, film, music, and such popular culture forms as graphic novels. Additionally, neither the absence nor, on the other hand, the length of an annotation should be viewed as an evaluation of the work's scholarly merit. Sources for annotations that cite the "author's abstract" may be found at the journal's Web site <http://libarts.wsu.edu/english/ Journals/PoeStudies/>. We will be pleased to receive offprints for upcoming installments of the "International Poe Bibliography," which will cover 1994-97 and 2001-3 (send to the
Edgar Allen Poe's " The Raven " : A Heideggerian – Whiteheadian Take
Poe article appeared in Existentia (vol. XXV, 2015), a philosophy journal out of Budapest and networked with German universities. It compares ideas in Heidegger's Contributions (Beitraege) to motifs in the works of Poe, especially "The Raven." Consult titles of other articles under "Doud, Robert E." on the Existentia website.
Poe Studies, 2009
“Poe’s Genre-Crossing: From Domesticity to Detection” examines the crucial but critically unremarked influences of domestic fiction on the genre-founding detective stories of Edgar Allan Poe. Domestic novels achieved their immense appeal in the early nineteenth century in part by offering readers an ideal of home life as an antidote to the multiple alienations of the emerging marketplace. While the features of Poe’s detective obviously diverge in striking respects from those of the domestic heroine, the essay demonstrates that detective fiction nevertheless recreates the cultural functions of domestic fiction to counter and confound commercial culture. However, while the virtuous homemaker promoted by women’s fiction provides a shelter from the instrumentality of the public sphere, Poe’s detective (in appropriating elements of the domestic woman’s social role) drives the frontiers of the private sphere to a challenging new standard of nonconformity.
Poe and the ancients, thresholds of anxiety
Poe in the century of anxiety, 2010
Mystery was Poe's lifelong vocation. It was an anxious vocation. Most compelling for Poe is not the mystery of the strange, but of the familiar. Most familiar for Poe and his educated audience were the Greek and the Roman classics whose classicism was defined by their commonality. Poe's art of mystery consists in good measure in re-enciphering the familiar as suspenseful and as anxious. This essay examines Poe's uses of the classical canon whose elements would have been even more familiar to his educated contemporaries, to adduce the mysterious, the strange and the anxiety-provoking in what otherwise might have remained comfortably familiar and canonical. Such anxieties, though not limited to a specific epoch, may well prove more unsettling for readers of Poe in the current century, at a greater remove from classical learning than perhaps any other period. My discussion focuses on the abundance of classical elements in "The Assignation" then suggests other classically relevant works in which Poe reconstructs familiar narratives as anxious expectations. El misterio era la vocación vitalicia de Poe. Era una vocación ansiosa. Obsesionado más por el misterio de lo familiar que lo extraño, lo más familiar para Poe y sus lectores eran las obras clásicas griegas y romanas. La familiaridad universal de esa tradición entre sus contemporáneos es lo que define el clasicismo de dicha herencia literaria. El arte de Poe consiste en gran parte en la re-inscripción de lo familiar en misterio. El ensayo presente investiga los usos del canon clásico por Poe, canon cuyo contenido equivalía la formación escolar de sus contemporáneos. Así, la vocación de Poe consiste en la transformación de lo común y corriente en misterioso instrumento de ansiedad. Tal desconcierto resulta no menos ansioso para nuestro siglo, aunque se encuentre más distante que nunca de la tradición clásica. Este trabajo dirige su enfoque sobre la ejemplaridad de uno de los cuentos más conocidos del autor, "The Assignation," en dicha vocación de misterio y provocación de ansiedad. Se alude, además, a otros ejemplos del canon clásico en que Poe ha vertido sus obsesiones de reinscripción del legado greco-latino. began classical studies at age seven in England at Manor House School, Stoke Newington, under the classical scholar Reverend John Bransby (Quinn 1998: 71-72).
The Solitude of Poe‟ s The Raven
agorajournal.org
On July 2, 1844 Edgar Allan Poe wrote a letter to James R. Lowell. In this letter, he states, "You speak of 'an estimate of my life'-, from what I have already said, you will see that I have none to give. I have been too deeply conscious of the mutability and evanescence of temporal things. . .My life has been whim-impulse-passion-a longing for solitude-a scorn of all things present, in an earnest desire for the future" (Poe 1: 257). Here, Poe states that he has been too conscious of the uncertainty of this life and the tendency of secular things to vanish, and therefore, he longs for a life of impulse, passion, and more importantly, solitude. By reading Poe's "The Raven," however, one can find that if one lives in solitude, he or she will become solitude, as seen in the progression of the speaker's imagination becoming reality. Edward H. Davidson says in "Poe: A Critical Study" that the "The subject of 'The Raven' was a difficult one, namely, the mind's loss of any hold on reality or the steps toward imaginative madness" (93). The mind's loss of reality can be attributed to the solitude in which the speaker has put himself. The opening lines of the poem reflect the dreariness of his situation, and for the first few stanzas of the poem, the speaker does know imagination from reality. The speaker states, "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, / Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore" (1-2). The reader knows that the speaker is alone and is "weak and weary," brooding over books of lore. The "lore" is not explicitly stated, but the reader assumes from the tone of the speaker thus far that these books are of myths, tales, or superstitions. The speaker is "nearly napping," possibly in a dream-like state, when "there came a tapping, / As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door" (3-4). The speaker, completely alone and miserable, believes that he hears someone knocking at his chamber door,
An analysis to Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Raven'
This is a paper I had to write for an introducion to literary studies at University. It covers the meter, structure, content and literary devices and includes my personal interpretation of the poem as well as a short biography about Poe and the era of romanticism.