Edgar+Allan+Poe+(6th+period)


 * __Edgar Allan Poe__



=__About Edgar Allan Poe__= Edgar Allan Poe is an American Poet, author, and literary critic. He is considered the father of modern detective stories and contributed greatly to the genres of horror and science fiction. His most recognizable work is The Raven in which got him national fame. His poems reflect the dark and tragic past in his life. Edgar was born on January 19, 1809 to Elizabeth Poe and David Poe. After his dad left and his mom died Edgar went to live with the Allan family. From this point Edgar’s life would have its many ups and downs. He went to the University of Virginia but had to drop out when he was too in debt and his step father John Allan didn’t supply him with financial aid. He than moved to Boston and Published his first book of poetry titled “ Tamerlane and other Poems.” He than enlisted himself in the United States Army but dropped out after two years and moved in with his aunt Maria Poe Clemm in Baltimore. There he Married his young cousin Virginia Clemm. After some time Edgar moved to Philadelphia than later to New York. He worked in many magazines and Published news paper such as Evening Mirror and Burton’s Gentlemen Magazine. In 1845 “The Raven” Gave Poe national fame. On 1847 Virginia became very ill and later died. Poe seeped back into depression and started to drink again. During that time he was described as “ lost in stupor, not living or suffering but existing merely.” After Virginia’s death Poe took a turn to rock Bottom. He became a drunk and had wild sprees with various women. He was left with few money and became very bitter. Edgar died on Sunday, October 7, 1849. The cause of his death his still a mystery. ||
 * (January 19, 1809- Ocotber 7, 1849)** ||< == ==


 * = [[image:http://i635.photobucket.com/albums/uu73/ruwilling2catchme/blankpaper.gif width="425" height="143"]]

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 * = **__A Dream Within__** __Dream__

Take this kiss upon the brow! And, in parting from you now, Thus much let me avow- You are not wrong, who deem That my days have been a dream; Yet if hope has flown away In a night, or in a day, In a vision, or in none, Is it therefore the less gone? All that we see or seem Is but a dream within a dream.

I stand amid the roar Of a surf-tormented shore, And I hold within my hand Grains of the golden sand- How few! yet how they creep Through my fingers to the deep, While I weep- while I weep! O God! can I not grasp Them with a tighter clasp? O God! can I not save One from the pitiless wave?

Is all that we see or seem But a dream within a dream? ......................................................................... ||= **__The Lake__**

In spring of youth it was my lot To haunt of the wide world a spot The which I could not love the less- So lovely was the loneliness Of a wild lake, with black rock bound, And the tall pines that towered around.

But when the Night had thrown her pall Upon that spot, as upon all, And the mystic wind went by Murmuring in melody - Then- ah then I would awake To the terror of the lone lake.

Yet that terror was not fright, But a tremulous delight- A feeling not the jewelled mine Could teach or bribe me to define- Nor Love- although the Love were thine.

Death was in that poisonous wave, And in its gulf a fitting grave For him who thence could solace bring To his lone imagining- Whose solitary soul could make An Eden of that dim lake. ....................................................................................... ||= **__Alone__**

From childhood's hour I have not been As others were; I have not seen As others saw; I could not bring My passions from a common spring. From the same source I have not taken My sorrow; I could not awaken My heart to joy at the same tone; And all I loved, I loved alone. Then- in my childhood, in the dawn Of a most stormy life- was drawn From every depth of good and ill The mystery which binds me still: From the torrent, or the fountain, From the red cliff of the mountain, From the sun that round me rolled In its autumn tint of gold, From the lightning in the sky As it passed me flying by, From the thunder and the storm, And the cloud that took the form (When the rest of Heaven was blue) Of a demon in my view.

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To me the poem had a sad and depressing feel to it, it made me feel heavyhearted. In my view the poem describes the pain of losing a love one and how no matter how hard he tries to grasp onto them they slip through his fingers and all he can do is watch without being able to do anything. It’s very depressing to read
 * = **__Personal Reaction__**


 * __Theme and figurative language__**

The theme of the poem revolves around the feel of lose, it could be the lose of someone or something that he is talking about. Another theme is frustration how he seems to hold on to what he is losing but he can’t hold onto it no matter how hard he is trying. He can only watch as they slip through his fingers. The figurative language that I see in the poem has to do with symbolism, repetition, and hyperbole. For example when he says “ yet if hope has flown away” or “he is using hyperbole because hope can’t flow away. An example of symbolism in the poem would have to be the grains of sand, the grains of sand symbolize the things he is losing and how he can’t hold onto them. The pitiless wave represents the occurrence of events that take away the “grains of sand” from him. The repetition in the poem is when he asks “Is all that we see or seem But a dream within a dream?”
 * __Rhyme scheme__**

The rhyme scheme for the poem is external. AAABBCCDDEE FFGGHHHIIJJ BB ................................................................................. ||= **__PersonalReaction__** The poem gave me a creepy and lonely feel. The way he describes the eerie lake and how he makes describes it and what happens with a dark undertone to it. I found it weird how he actually welcomed the darkness and the fright of the lake as if that was what he really wanted.

__**Theme and Figurative Language.**__

The theme around the poem is loneliness and death. Poe compares the lkae to the loneliness he feels but yet he welcomes it with open arms. Than how he accepts and welcomes death in. The figurative language he uses in the poem is symbolism and personification. An example of symbolism in the lake which represents Poe himself and how lonely he feels. Example of personification is in the second stanza first line when he talks about the wind throwing her pall, it’s personification because wind can’t through anything.

__**Rhyme scheme**__

The poem has an external rhyme scheme which is: AABBCC DDEFGG HHEEE IIJJGG

................................................................................. ||= **__Personal Reaction__** To me the poem had a lonely and different feel to it. I think it describes Poe throughout his life and how he always felt alienated from the rest of society and how he felt alone because he wasn’t like the rest. He didn’t fit in the crowd.


 * __Theme and Figurative Language__**

The theme of the poem is loneliness. Poe describes how he was always different in his ways than most people and how no matter what there was always something that kept him down even in his brightest moments. The figurative language in the poem is metaphor and personification. One of the metaphors of the poems is when he compares a spring to the typical thinking of the people. An example of personification in the poem is when he tells how the cloud took the from of a demon in his view.


 * __Rhyme Scheme__**

The rhyme scheme of the poem in external. AABBCCDDEEFFGGHHIIJJkk ................................................................... ||

=**__Facts about Edgar Allan Poe__**=
 * Mother was an actress
 * Had a brother and a sister
 * Married Virginia when she was only 13!
 * “The Gold Bug” won him the grand prize of $100 and gave him great publicity
 * Wrote the first detective story in history
 * “The Narrative of Arthur Gordyn Dym” was Poe’s first and only completed novel
 * Wrote 70 short stories in his entire life
 * Was an alcoholic
 * Virginia died from the same disease and at the same age as Poe’s mother and brother.
 * After his death Poe’s had a mysterious visitor show up at his gravestone every year for his birthday and leave 3 roses and a bottle of Cognac on his graveyard along with a note every once in a while. This was kept a traditional until last January when the mysterious visitor was a no show.