Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts, and became an orphan child shortly after. He was abandoned by his father and his mother died when he was just a child. The Allan family of Virginia took him in, but they never legally adopted him.
Above, is a picture of Edgar Allan Poe, and you can see through the expression on his face that he was a very different man. He was a very crooked man and this is shown through many of his works. His imagination was wild, and he is known for his invention of the detective fiction genre. Like we discussed in class, it's almost like he was determined to come up with the perfect murder and a sneaky way around it. Some of his works have been described as morbid, but that was something he knew about and something he felt.
To me, "The Fall of the House of Usher" was the strangest of the these two works. The theme of melancholy is so powerful in this work. It expresses a gloomy state of mind, even depression. The video below is a clip from a film that was based on this particular work. Although there are no words, I really "felt" the emotion behind it. The music enhanced it for me, as well. If I were to sit down to write a story, this would not be remotely close to what I would choose, and I think it has a lot to do with the troubles and emotions Poe dealt with throughout his life.
All the women in his life were taken from him due to illnesses and incurable diseases such as Tuberculosis at the time. This is probably one of the main forces behind his uncomfortable works. Substance abuse is a big part of many of his stories, including "Ligeia". In this particular story, it is implied that the narrator is an opium addict. Opium is a drug made from the poppy plant. It was used for medical and recreational purposes, but too much of it can cause alteration of thought and become addicting.
"In the excitement of my opium-dreams, I would call aloud upon her name, during the silence of the night...as if...I could restore her to the pathway she had abandoned...upon the earth."
This is a direct quote from "Ligeia" that gives indirect evidence that the narrator is dealing with some form of mental issue and/or drug addiction. It allows the reader to interpret that the dreams he is having are nothing short of hallucinations provided to him by opium intake.
Many of Poe's stories involve an unnamed narrator in which the reader can question the validity behind his thoughts and words. The confusion in his works can relate to the confusion in his life. Literature is Poe's escape from reality and a way for him to express his feelings.
This is a cover for "Ligeia" showing herself and Rowena. The theme of strong will is portrayed through this piece. Strong will is supposedly what keeps someone alive. Although it is not stated whether it was Ligeia's will or the narrator's, we do know that will is what caused her resurrection. "Only the strong survive" is not only used in this story, but in Poe's life as well. He faced many challenges in his life that must have been hard to endure and ones he may have never overcame, emotionally being the worst. I know I probably would have never made it a day in his shoes. Many people may see Poe as a crooked man and a strange writer, but with the life he had, I can see why his works were written the way that they were.
Works Cited:
http://www.poedecoder.com/essays/usher/
http://www.poemuseum.org/life.php
http://www.shmoop.com/ligeia/summary.html
http://www.biography.com/people/edgar-allan-poe-9443160
