Edgar Allen Poe’s notorious drug and alcohol abuse combined with his dysfunctional and unsupportive family played a significant role in the development of Poe’s unique writing styles and topics. Edgar Allen Poe was born January 19, 1809, in Boston, Massachusetts. His mother, Elizabeth Arnold Poe was a British actress. His father, David Poe Jr. was an actor from Baltimore. Edgar Allen Poe had two other siblings, a brother named William and a sister named Rosalie. Poe did not have a close relationship with his parents; they were a part of his life for a short amount of time. His father abandoned his wife and children, a few years later Elizabeth contracted tuberculosis. (“Edgar Allan Poe.” Poetry Foundation.) She was the first of Poe’s many …show more content…
John Allen was a prosperous Tobacco Merchant. Poe developed a strong bond with Frances Allen; However, he did not have a good relationship with John Allen. Poe struggled to get along with John Allen because he did not support Poe’s desire to become a writer. Poe was a prolific poet by age 13, John Allen wanted Poe to get into the family business. (“Percy Bysshe Shelley.” Poets.org) John Allen also believed Poe was selfish and ungrateful because he was uninterested in the family business and went against their wishes to pursue a writing career. The family moved to England in 1815 and moved back to Richmond in 1824 when Poe was 15. While in England, Poe’s family sent him to elite boarding schools in London where he excelled academically in all his courses. (“Edgar Allan Poe Biography.” Encyclopedia of World …show more content…
Edgar Allen Poe and Sarah Elmira Royster had been engaged. However, Poe broke off their relationship when he found out she got engaged to another man while Poe was at university. (“Edgar Allan Poe's Women.” History and Women.) Broken-hearted, Poe enrolled in the army. During his time enlisted as a cadet in training at West Point in 1827, he had somewhat mended his relationship with John Allen. It was during this period when Poe’s writing career began. Frances Virginia Allen died of tuberculosis in 1829. Poe failed cadet training, lost contact with John Allen, and decided to focus on his career as a writer. Poe moved in with his aunt, Maria Clemm, and her daughter, Virginia, from 1831 to 1835. (“Edgar Allan Poe Biography.” Encyclopedia of World Biography.) Poe fell in love with Virginia and married her, she was 13, and he was 27. Poe loved Virginia, and she became his muse. She fell ill with tuberculosis around the time Poe had written and published "The Raven." It was at this time when another woman entered Poe’s life but not in the way many people believe. Her name was Fanny Osgood, a rising poet who wrote letters to Poe. It is unclear the kind of relationship the two had, but it is doubtful it had a romantic element. Poe loved Virginia, and he often shared his letters from Osgood with Virginia and her mother. Two years later, Virginia died on January 30, 1847, at the age of 24. Poe was