Edgar Allen Poe and Mary Shelly Wolstoncraft

Edgar Allen Poe was born on January 18, 1809.
Before his third birthday, Edgar and his brother and
sister were orphaned, and went on to live with John
Allan and Family in Richmond Virginia.

In 1826, Edgar entered the University of Virginia.
Soon he began gambling. After one year of school,
he had to leave because he could not pay his debts.
Later in 1827, Edgar enlisted in the army under the
name Edgar A. Perry. In the same year, Edgar
published his first book, "Tamerlane and Other
Poems."

After doing well in the Army, Edgar left in 1829 and
applied at West Point. He did well, and before
leaving, his fellow cadets helped him pay for a third
edition of the book called, "Poems by Edgar A. Poe."
"For Helen," and "Israbel" appeared in this book.

Poe moved to Baltimore to live with his Aunt Maria
Clemm, and his first cousin Virginia in 1832. Soon
after, he won a $50.00 prize for the poem, "Ms.
Found in a Bottle."

Edgar Allen Poe brought his Aunt and Cousin to
Richmond where he worked with Thomas Willis White
at the Southern Literary Messenger. Edgar married
his cousin Virginia when she was 13 years old. After
that in 1839 "The Fall of the House of Usher" was
published, and in 1841 "Murders in the Rue Morgue,"
was published.

Edgar wrote his most popular poem, "The Raven," in
1845 and "The Bells," in 1847. When Virginia died,
Edgar took it very hard, and died soon after in 1849.

Today the name 'Frankenstein' inspires fear. He
was a classic movie monster, one that was created
many years before Bram Stoker's Dracula. It's
story is well known to all horror movie enthusiasts,
but not so well known, is that it was written by a
woman.

The story, or its basic premise anyway, was
written when Mary was 19 years old in 1816. On a
very dark and stormy night, Mary, her husband
Percy and Lord Byron decided to have a contest.
They would each write a scary story to see which
was the scariest. Mary's Frankenstein won hands
down. She said that the idea came to her in a
dream, and the story then poured out of her in a
fury.

When the book was published in 1818, society was
shocked that such a young girl could write this
terrifying story. She continued to write throughout
her life, but none of her works had the impact of
the first. Who could follow up such a story?

Her life was not a happy one. It began with
sadness when her mother died while giving birth to
her. Shelly would later lose children to miscarriage,
and sudden death. Her husband Percy would also
die at sea. She seemed to be haunted. Her ideas
about electricity were very ahead of her day, and
though she is remembered as a terrific story teller,
like Edgar Allen Poe, her life reflected her work.

Story by Sandi Johnson

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