After eleven months at the university, Poe dropped out due to his debts, but mostly for John Allan's refusal to pay for them ("Poe, Edgar Allan,"" Encyclopedia Britannica 540). No sooner then Poe was home, then he been invited to a party of Sarah Elmira Royster's, his sweetheart before college. When he arrived at the party, he learned that it was Elmira's engagement party, striking a dramatic blow to Poe's heart (540). After John Allan and Poe had their quarrels over Poe's gambling addiction, he joined the army under the alias of "Edgar Allan Perry- ("Poe, Edgar Allan,"" Encyclopedia Britannica 540). In 1829, Poe was honorably discharged, but not before attaining the rank of Sergeant Major (540). A year later, John Allan scheduled an appointment for Poe with the West Point U.S. Military Academy (540). Poe had not been in the academy for a year when he was dismissed from West Point. It was after his military career when Poe starting to become a successful writer of poetry and short stories. In 1831, Poems included three of his greatest works: "To Helen,"" "The City in the Sea,"" and "Israfel- ("Poe, Edgar Allan,"" World Book Encyclopedia 591). When his poems failed to reach recognition, Poe began to write short stories such as "MS. Found in a Bottle- in 1833 (591). It was around this time when he married his fourteen-year old cousin, Virginia Clemm, who was a very influential character in Poe's later works (591). In 1840, Poe published a collection of his first twenty-five stories called Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque ("Poe, Edgar Allan,"" World Book Encyclopedia 591). Even when this collection failed to sale or gain recognition, Poe still kept a daily routine of working on literature. In 1843 he sold 300,000 copies of "The Gold Bug- (592). Also in 1843 Poe published one his greatest works, "The Tell-Tale Heart- ("Poe Edgar Allan,"" Encarta Encyclopedia n. pag). Then again in 1845, Poe struck gold with his twelve stories in Tales and 30 poems in The Raven and Other Poems (592).
