Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston on January 19, 1809. His father, David Poe, deserted his wife and son shortly after the birth. Poe's mother, Elizabeth Arnold Poe, became seriously ill with tuberculosis and died at the age of twenty-four. Poe was devastated by his mother's illness. He was only three when he watched his mother vomit blood and men dressed in black take her from him forever. John Allan, of Richmond, took Poe into his home and provided his early education. Poe met another challenge early in life, as Allan and he had a falling out, his finances were depleted and he had to withdraw from the University of Virginia. In an effort to support himself Poe turned to his writing. He published his first volume of poetry, Tamerlane and Other Poems, at the age of eighteen in Boston (Wilson p 1). Poe later moved to Baltimore, to live with his aunt Mrs. Maria Poe Clemm, where he began writing prose-tales. He submitted his prose-tales in an effort to win prize money. He married his cousin, Virginia Clemm, in 1836 and it is said they never lived as most husband and wives live. He was editor of Burton's Gentleman's Magazine for six years then he moved to New York to work for the New York Evening Mirror. After many works had been written and several published finally, Poe reached fame for his poem The Raven. The last years of Poe's life seemed as much of a challenge as his first years: his wife became ill and died in 1847, his employment ended as the journal failed, and his own health weakened. Edgar Allan Poe died at the age of forty on October 7,1849. .
The writings of Edgar Allan Poe received much criticism. Perhaps no other American writer has been subjected to such critical appraisals. "The European mind has always been more hospitable to Poe than the American mind". Charles Baudelaire led the French in a discovery of Poe .Recently the French Structuarlists have resurrected Poe from many years of critical condescension by considering his stories from a point of view both new theories in psychoanalysis and new theories of narrative"(Short Fiction p192).