Edgar Allan Poe was born 200 years ago today, on January 20, 1908.What is probably his most well-known work, the poem The Raven, was the first poem I actually liked. Perhaps due to my, at the time, fascination with Vincent Price movies. Remember The Abominable Dr. Phibes? He was awesome! But I digress.
Poe invented detective stories as we know them, influencing that genre so heavily that the Mystery Writers of America named their awards, the Edgars, after him. He is also believed to have strongly influenced science fiction writing. And, of course, Gothic horror stories.
A typical feature of Poe's stories was his ability to create an emotional tone, an atmosphere, that permeated the story. Good examples of this are The Fall of the House of Usher and The Pit and the Pendulum.
So, boys and girls, if you ever find yourself having trouble getting to sleep, be sure to reach for your Edgar Allan Poe anthology. I recommend The Masque of the Red Death. Hmmm... On the hand, may be you shouldn't read that just before sleeping.
