What makes a good horror story? Is it because they"re scary? Or maybe because people die? Washington Irving and Edgar Allan Poe are both known for their addictive horror stories bringing your imagination to life, by using vivid words, the characters jump out at the reader. Whether it's having an axe smashed into your brain, or having your owner stab out your eyes, their stories take us into another land. Their stories come from different backgrounds. For example, Washington was a well respected person from a large, wealthy, aristocratic family. Meanwhile, Poe was a foster child who had a troubled childhood. As you read their stories, you notice the different details told as it relates to their past and previous experiences.
Washington Irving was a wealthy, well respected man. He was born on April 3rd, 1783, the youngest of 11 children. He was named after George Washington with George's blessing. His father was a wealthy merchant and his mother was an English women. She was also the granddaughter of a clergyman. Although Washington Irving was the first author to make enough money for a living, he was also known for other things. Irving was a trained lawyer and also into architecture, politics, and writing. At the age of 17, Irving was engaged to his finance, Matilda Hoffmanm. Sadly she died at the age of 17 and he never remarried. He didn't have a family for his own but lived with his brother and his brother's five daughters. Irving's writing took him very far in life. He received many honors. Such were medals and degrees. Not to mention all the historian clubs he was asked to join. Washington Irving lived a long life however. He died at the age of 76 on November 28th, 1859. He was buried in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.
At the age of 3 years old, Poe had been left alone with the care of different foster homes. Both his parents [ David Poe Jr. and Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins ] had died leaving no one to take care of him.