Edgar Allan Poe Webquest

1.      Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts.  He died on October 7, 1849 (http://www.poemuseum.org).

2.      The death of his mother and father, along with his father’s alcoholism all influenced Poe’s works (http://www.poemuseum.org).

3.      The following are death theories of Edgar Allan Poe (http://www.poemuseum.org):

a.       Beating

b.      Toxic Disorder

c.       Rabies

d.      Porphyria

e.       Dipsomania

4.      Poe called Richmond, Virginia home (http://www.poemuseum.org).

5.      The Poe society of Baltimore believes that although Richmond was considered Poe’s hometown, Baltimore was a very significant city for him during his lifetime.  This is where he sought comfort while fighting with his foster father.  This is also where his parents are buried (http://www.eapoe.org).

6.      Poe was expelled from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (http://www.poemuseum.org).

7.      Poe married Virginia Clemm.  She was 13 years old at the time (http://www.poemuseum.org).

8.      I think Virginia was way too young to get married.  However, things were probably a little different back then.  I also thought that it was wrong for Poe to marry his first cousin.

9.      Murders in the Rue Morgue is a classic crime story.  In it, Poe analyzes the mind of the criminal (http://www.mysterynet.com).

10.  Tell Tale Heart and The Black Cat were both written in 1843 (http://www.xroads.virginia.edu).

11.  The Raven was published in 1845 (http://www.heise.de).

12.    (http//:www.poestories.com) This picture looks most like the Poe I envisioned because of the exhausted, old, and uneventful look of the portrait.  It looks depressing, just like his stories.

13.  My favorite Poe story is the Masque of the Red Death.  It was very interesting in its own creepy, distorted way.  I thought it was a great short story, and it really demonstrates Poe’s ability as a writer of this genre.

Picture from 12.