Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19th, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts. As he was growing up, he had to deal with death at an explicitly young age, with his mother dying when he was only two years old. With his mom dead, and a father who abandoned him, he was taken in as a foster child. This is where he adopted his middle name Allan. As a young teenager, Poe was very immensely into writing. As he got a bit older, he enrolled into the University of Virginia, but soon found himself to be a victim of a gambling problem and a money problem. He eventually had to withdraw from the school due to his inabilities to pay for tuition, "Allan failed to provide Poe with enough money for necessities such as furniture and books, and Poe soon ran up a tremendous gambling debt" (Loveday 1). Money was very tight for Mr.Poe. Struggling to pay with funds, he decided to enlist in the U.S. Army, "On May 26, 1827, Poe assumed the name Edgar A. Perry and enlisted as a private in the US Army" (Loveday 1). Throughout his years of military experience he has gained the rank of Sergeant Major. After he served his time in the Armed Forces, his foster-father had provided him with the funds necessary to attend school again.
For his love life, he was deeply infatuated by his cousin, Virginia. When he met Virginia she was 7 years old, and he was 20 years old. They dated secretly and were very discreet about it and even had a private wedding, "The marriage certificate stated that Virginia was twenty-one, when in fact, she was just thirteen years old. Her nickname was "Sissy," and Poe waited for more than two years before becoming intimate with her" (Loveday 1). He was eminently in love with her. As Poe grew older, his drinking habit had gotten worse. He used this as a way to deal with life's recurring problems, "He began to drink more often, resorting to alcohol as a means of escape" (Loveday 1). Poe was very low on luck, not only financially, but the alcohol was taking a toll on his health. Not only was his health being drained, but Virginia had been diagnosed with Tuberculosis, which was a death sentence in the mid 1800's. Poe had to watch the love of his life slowly die right in front of him, suffering immensely. While although he was getting recognition for his poem, The Raven, published in 1845, he was still struggling to make a living. A couple years after that, in 1847, his wife Virginia had passed away due to her battle with Tuberculosis. This affected him deeply and he resorted back to a heavy drinking binge. It wasn't too long until he found himself another partner. In 1848, "Poe soon fell in love with a women named Sarah Helen Whitman. She agreed to marry him on the condition he refrain from drinking. Unable to control the intense emotions he had for her, he attempted suicide by ingesting laudanum in November 1848" (Loveday 1). Laudanum is an alcoholic solution that contains morphine and opium. Poe found it quite difficult to cope with what he was feeling. The two of them never ended up getting married, and Poe decided to go back to writing. He eventually died of a mysterious death in a shady alley that is often believed to be due to drugs or alcohol.
Work's Cited
Loveday, Veronica. "Edgar Allan Poe." Edgar Allan Poe, Sept. 2005, p. 1. EBSCOhost,
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