Wednesday, August 10, 2011
What works of Poe's literature reflect/were influenced on his alcohol (or drug?) problem?
I think Poe's drug problems have been overstated. Rufus Griswold wrote a biographical article of Poe called "Memoir of the Author", which he included in an 1850 volume of the collected works. Griswold depicted Poe as a depraved, drunk, drug-addled madman and included Poe's letters as evidence. Many of his claims were either lies or distorted half-truths. For example, it is now known that Poe was not a drug addict. Griswold's book was denounced by those who knew Poe well, but it became a popularly accepted one (I mean, really, his stories are dark). This view was widely accepted because it was the only full biography available at the time and was widely reprinted and in part because readers thrilled at the thought of reading works by an "evil" man. Letters that Griswold presented as proof of this depiction of Poe were later revealed as forgeries.
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