English
On the 18th of January the birth of one of the greatest writers of contemporary literature will be commemorated, an influence to numerous writers and movements such as surrealism and the damned poets of 19th century France: I´m talking about the great Edgar Allan Poe, American writer than in his short 40 years of life managed to build a renovating work of gothic literature, a fundamental piece of romantic literature which inspired the detective novel genre.
The life of Poe was shaped by the death of the women he loved the most, something which is reflected in most part of his poetic creation as well as in his prose. His biological parents died when he was barely two years old and, due to this, him and his sister were adopted by two different families, the Allan family in the writers case, although they never acknowledged it legally. The death of Mrs Allan, his stepmother, the person who Poe was closest to, occurred when Edgar was still a teenager, which knocked the boy hard and left him completely helpless because his stepfather, tired of the new vices of the 16 year old, ended up cutting him off, a main reason as to why Poe lived with so many economic difficulties throughout his life. This was aggravated due to the choice of the writer of dedicating himself exclusively to literature, which was unheard of in his time.
The work of the writer was delimited by the economic condition he was going through, “writing what sold the most”, reason why his poetic work isn´t as extensive, despite his talent. However, it´s in prose and especially in short stories where Poe develops a large part of his imagination, with works that reflect his tremendous intelligence and input to modern literature. Despite the few years of formal studies he went through, his intelligence, vision of the world and imagination went further, managing to stand out during his life in the romantic movement and, as we said previously, renovating gothic literature, which Poe was a great admirer of. His most clear influences are writers such as Lord Byron, the English and German gothics, French poetry and English romantics.
His stories stand out in his works, stories which Julio Cortázar, who studied his work, catalogued by subject. Among these, the stories of terror, supernatural and satirical themes stand out. He only wrote one novel, but this was enough to influence surrealist writers in the development of unconscious elements, reason why it was also studied by renown psychoanalysts.
Illustrious son of American literature, this 19th of January it´s his birthday anniversary, reason why in various cities, especially in Boston and New York, acts and events in his honour will take place. One of them in the so-called ´Poe Cottage´, the country house located in the Bronx, where the writer lived out the last days of his life.
For more information on the events in New York visit: http://poeinternational.com/
If you´re an admirer of the work of Poe or you want to get to know him better, rent apartments in New york in the month of January, visit the ´Poe Cottage´ in the Bronx and attend the event ´A night with Edgar Allan Poe´.
Translated by: aleixgwilliam
