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Edgar Allen Poe: The Cause Of Death

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Edgar Allen Poe was an amazing writer whose life ended much sooner than expected on October 7, 1849. His cause of death is an unknown and very controversial topic. Some say that he died of alcohol poisoning, while others believe that he died due to a case of rabies. Some think that on his journey to the North he had a large amount of an alcoholic beverage which lead him to die before he could reach his destination. According to Burton R. Pollin and Robert E. Benedetto, two professors from CUNY and the University of South Carolina, “ Evidence of Poe’s chronic binges is strewn through his letters in periodic admissions of ‘recoveries’ and promises to …. ‘Reform’” This could show how Poe often drank more that he should have and could be a likely …show more content…

Michael Benitez, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Maryland Medical Center. Benitez wrote, “The incubation period in humans may be as long as a year”. Simply stated, even without evidence of a bite or scratch it could take up to a year for any physical signs of rabies to show making his allegation trustworthy. Also, it is important to consider the fact that “at the time… the causative agent, a rhabdovirus was unknown”(Benitez). This dismisses the previous counter argument by showing how the medical education of the time was not knowledgeable of the virus that is the base of rabies and therefore makes it difficult to correctly diagnoses. Furthermore, in the article “Poe’s Death Is Rewritten as Case of Rabies, Not Telltale Alcohol” from The New York Times,it lists the recorded behaviors of Poe at the hospital before his death and compares them to that of a rabies victim claiming that this was a “classic case of rabies”.The article then points out, “Poe refused alcohol and could drink water only with great difficulty. Rabies victims frequently exhibit hydrophobia, or fear of water.” This comparison can lead many to draw the conclusion that Poe had displayed obvious side effects of rabies, making this the only logical theory. Over all after fully considering all of the evidence, the best assumption would be that Poe died of rabies rather than alcohol

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Rhetorical Analysis Of Edgar Allan Poe's Death

209 Words | 1 Pages

Edgar Allan Poe creates this menacing tone by the repetition and description of his senses. In the killing the narrators explains that the eye of the old man is the reason why he killed him in the first place .The description of the old man’s “eye of a vulture- a pale blue eye, with an film over it. Whatever it fell upon me, my blood ran cold; and so by degrees”(1). The senses of the narrator helps to bring on the mood of menace into the story.

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Edgar Allan Poe Cooping Essay

801 Words | 4 Pages

With him being an alcoholic for a majority of his life people like to think that it was a simple possibility for him to fall back into that lifestyle even though he had claimed to be apart of the temperance movement. But when Poe stated that he was becoming a part of that movement he was very adamant about his decision. No one had seen him pick up a drink since he had stated that. Before he had stopped drinking, after about two drinks, Poe began to feel sick and not be able to handle heavy drinking. With that being said there would be no logical reason for Poe to continue drinking if it made him sick.

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Causes Of Edgar Allan Poe's Death

248 Words | 1 Pages

They often harden into masses, after death. When consuming too much alcohol with a brain tumor, you can increase how easy it is to a seizure,which affects the brain negatively. Poe alcohol problem could have increase the risks of him having seizures,then damaging his brain. Another reason why I believe Poe had a brain tumor, is because technology wasn't that advance,so

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Edgar Allan Poe Accomplishments

600 Words | 3 Pages

Around the year 1845, an infamous literary writer named Edgar Allan Poe wrote a poetry piece deemed, "The Raven." This piece was a staple in Poe's career, allowing him to grow becoming one of the most preferred poets due to "The Raven" garnering him so much popularity. On October 9th, 1849, tragically Poe (at the time) mysteriously died. No one was seen around him at the time nor spoke to him; this was a mystery that no one could solve easily. As time passed, his death continued to be a mystery.

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Edgar Allen Poe's Cause Of Death

464 Words | 2 Pages

Even though we will never truly know the reason for his death, rabies

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Edgar Allan Poe Alcoholism Theory

147 Words | 1 Pages

This online article reviewed the many theories that surround the death of Edgar Allen Poe to date. The articled emphasized that the alcohol theory is the most commonly accepted cause of death recognized by majority of people. Even Poe’s good friend J.E. Snodgrass felt binge drinking caused his death. Other critics argued Poe was a victim of cooping, a practice that entailed bribing him with alcohol, thus forcing him to vote repeatedly in polling booths for a particular candidate, as Balitmore’s elections were notorious for political uproar and extortion. This would explain the conditions under which Poe was foundOthers suggested Poe died of other medical ailments ranging from brain tumors, heart disease, tuberculosis, rabies, epilepsy,

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How Did Poe's Life Change Throughout The Tell Tale Heart

847 Words | 4 Pages

Yet there’s one last point I must make these actions have definitely changed the course of the narrators life which leads me believe the actions that Edgar Allen Poe take the main character through seem to follow the lines of an alcoholic. Some characteristics of an alcoholic are denial they can function normally but there condition is still very noticeable to others around them. Another piece of information about this was that if a person who is an alcoholic is successful they have an even harder time believing that they have a problem. Now your probably wondering how does this relate to Edgar Allen Poe? Well he himself was an alcoholic and his stories seem to portray some of these characteristics for instance in Tell Tale Heart the narrator idea

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Why Edgar Allan Poe Died From Rabies Analysis

486 Words | 2 Pages

The reasons people believe Poe died from rabies is because in one of the letters Dr. Benitez says “Poe refused alcohol and could drink water only with great difficulty, rabies victims exhibit hydrophobia”. If Poe had been drinking he would have taken the alcohol, this shows he may have had something else. Another thing that Dr. Benitez said was “there was no evidence of a bite but some rabies victims don’t remember being bitten”. This shows that he could have been bitten a long time ago and couldn’t remember.

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Compare And Contrast Annabel Lee And The Raven

751 Words | 4 Pages

Edgar Allan Poe had experienced a loss multiple times. Poe married his cousin when she was 13, he was 27. Both of Poe’s parents died in 1811 and so he was raised as a foster child. In the poem “Annabel Lee” he talks about how his love Annabel Lee passed away. In the poem “The Raven” he talks about his love, Lenore passing away and The Raven comes to him and is repetitive.

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Theme Of Mental Illness In Edgar Allan Poe

1470 Words | 6 Pages

Gathering all the evidence, I believe that Edgar Allan Poe was a victim of schizophrenia. Although no one can be sure, considering no one was able to diagnose him, the symptoms do add up. Without all of our medical advances, no one can imagine what Poe went through his life. He may have let his feelings and thoughts flow into his numerous pieces of writing. Whether his feelings and emotions flowed into his writing, or he purposely wrote his stories like that, which would make him an even better writer.

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Alcoholism In Edgar Allen Poe's Death

478 Words | 2 Pages

While some symptoms Poe exhibited matched rabies, doctors did not know enough about the disease back in the 1800’s. Dr. Benitez even admits the faults in his theory, “Lack of evidence of a bite or scratch. In those days rabies was known as to causes and symptoms, including itching and other sensations that could affect an entire limb or side of the body. . . Catrina [Poe’s pet cat], who, uninfected and and showing no signs of rabies” (qtd. In Pollin and Benedetto 189).

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Theme Of Death In Edgar Allan Poe

2063 Words | 9 Pages

Edgar Allan Poe was an American author; he mainly focused in genres such as short stories and poems. Poe didn’t have much of an academic background in literature but, he excelled in it. Some people believe that his success was mostly due to the fact that his life was very sad, filled by a series on misfortunate events, such as being an orphan, suffering from poverty and being constantly surrounded by death. In his works, Poe portrays narratives that are characterized by their mystery and macabre. The topic of death was ever present in his work, constantly describe with dark moods and somewhat terrifying settings.

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The Importance Of Death In Poe's Works

873 Words | 4 Pages

Many people go through horrors in their life. However, most don’t record them in the way Poe did. From a young age Poe experienced death in his family. As Poe lived his life, he started using his feelings and life experiences in his work. He based his feelings in his poems such as Annabel Lee and Alone.

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Examples Of Human Nature In The Black Cat

588 Words | 3 Pages

In the story, the narrator becomes addicted to alcohol, causing his many violent acts. He describes it as a disease that, “...grew upon me—for what disease is like Alcohol!—even Pluto began to experience the effects of my ill temper.” (Poe, 2) Addiction is most likely one of the most dangerous of human nature because it can consume your life. Poe even includes that the narrator’s, “...original soul seemed, at once, to take its flight from my body; and a more than fiendish malevolence, gin-nurtured, thrilled every fibre of my frame.” (Poe, 2) Poe takes this idea to an extreme, but brings the attention to the detrimental effects of letting any one thing have too much possession of your

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Edgar Allen Poe: The Writing Style Of Edgar Allan Poe

1459 Words | 6 Pages

Of all gothic writers, Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most groundbreaking of them all. From The Cask of Amontillado, a story with integrated historical references of the time, to The Fall of the House of Usher, a deep and morbid story full of imagery. Anywhere from The Tell-Tale Heart, truly a story of both unique syntax and perspective, to The Raven, a poem full of symbols and eerie repetition. Through these and many more, Poe has been using his writing style to immerse people into his stories and poems alike since 1839. However, Poe is only able to accomplish this through his unique writer’s style, particularly his forceful imagery and meaningful syntax.

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