I’ve recently reviewed the stories of Edgar Allan Poe. Now I’m going to take a look at his poetry. Poe has a reputation for writing horror stories, but he also wrote stories of adventure, mystery, science fiction, fantasy, and humor. Likewise, not all of his poems are dark and melancholy. He also wrote love poems and poems with a joyful tone. He even wrote a Hymn to Mary, Mother of God. Due to their sing-song rhythm and oft-repeated lines, many of his poems feel like songs. Love, death, and dreams seem to be his favorite topics. Some of his poems rhyme, some don’t.

My favorite poems of his are “The Raven”, “A Dream Within a Dream”, “The Conqueror Worm”, and “Dream-Land”. Honorable mentions go to “Bridal Ballad”, “Lenore”, “Silence”, and “Romance”.

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The Narrative of A. Gordon Pym of Nantucket

Poe’s done his research regarding life at sea, sometimes going on for pages about stowage or sails or sea cucumbers. Pym keeps repeating that what happens to him can’t be imagined by someone who hasn’t been in a similar position.

As a schoolboy, Pym and his friend Augustus take their boat out at night. Augustus is drunker than he appears and passes out. Pym doesn’t know how to operate a boat. A whaling vessel runs them over, destroying their boat, but through good luck, the whaling crew manages to save them.

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Flights and Fantasies

The Balloon-Hoax

A balloon is said to have crossed the Atlantic in three days. Why did they bring sailors? He said it would be explained later and it wasn’t. This wasn’t originally published as a story, but was rather a journalist hoax.

Mesmeric Revelation

Mr. Vankirk is skeptical of the afterlife. P. (Poe?) mesmerizes him. They have a philosophical discussion about God, the nature of matter, how pain is necessary to appreciate pleasure, etc. Inhabitants of Venus are mentioned. He may have died during the séance.

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Humor and Satire

The System of Doctor Tar and Professor Fether

Patients at an asylum think they’re chickens, donkeys, a tea pot, etc. The lunatics end up taking over the asylum and tar and feather the employees. The narrator takes too long to figure out what’s happening. I didn’t find it funny, but your milage may vary.

The Literary Life of Thingum Bob, Esq.

Narcissistic writer tells his life story. He started his career by plagiarizing Dante, Homer, etc. Humorously, editors declare the writing drivel. He then writes a bad two line poem and everyone praises him, although the editor won’t pay him. He goes on to become a famous editor himself.

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I’m a big fan of Mike Flanagan. His next series on Netflix is The Fall of the House of Usher, coming some time later this year. It will be based on the work of Edgar Allan Poe. Poe is having a bit of a moment on Netflix right now with Wednesday and The Pale Blue Eye also invoking him, so now seems like a good time to revisit Poe’s work.

Poe sometimes quotes other languages without providing English translations, so it’s a good idea to have your phone handy while reading to translate for you. He sometimes blanks out the year or character names for some reason. I also noticed he uses lots of adverbs. (Supposedly, good writers don’t use a lot of adverbs, but I’m not convinced that’s true.)

The narrators of his stories often go unnamed. I wonder if this is because the reader is supposed to think Poe is the viewpoint character? This seems especially likely in stories where the narrator’s name is given as P. or P__. Some of his narrators marry their cousins, like Poe himself did.

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