The juxtaposition of Poe's life and work is most evident in the morbid personalities and melancholy themes of his literary compositions, similar to those of his life. ... In the first of the poem's three stanzas, Poe compares Helen's beauty to the ships of Nicea, a city near the Sea of Marmara. ... He stated his age as twenty-two, although he was just eighteen. In his two years in the Army, he rose to be regimental sergeant major. ... For the next two years he turned to free-lance writing. ...

• Word Count: 3026
• Approx Pages: 12
• Grade Level: High School

The book records Thoreau's experiences in a hand-built cabin, where he spent two years in partial seclusion, at Walden Pond near Concord, Massachusetts. ... As exemplified in this poem, "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" (recited by an actor), Dickinson focused on themes relating to death, eternity, and love, usually in short four-line stanzas. ... His "The Gold Bug" (1843) tells the tale of a search for buried treasure on a South Carolina island lV. ... In 1899 Robinson moved to New York City, where his volume Captain Craig and Other Poems (1902) attracted little interest. ...

• Word Count: 1931
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: High School