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Cryptography

Poe had a keen interest in the field of cryptography, as exemplified in his short story The Gold Bug. In particular he placed a notice of his abilities in the Philadelphia paper Alexander's Weekly (Express) Messenger, inviting submissions of ciphers, which he proceeded to solve. His success created a public stir for some months.

Poe's success in cryptography relied not so much on his knowledge of that field (his method was limited to the simple substitution cryptogram), as on his knowledge of the magazine and newspaper culture. His keen analytical abilities, which were so evident in his detective stories, allowed him to see that the general public was largely ignorant of the methods by which a simple substitution cryptogram can be solved, and he used this to his advantage. The sensation Poe created with his cryptography stunt played a major role in popularizing cryptograms in newspapers and magazines.

Preserved homes

The earliest surviving home in which Poe lived is in Baltimore, preserved as the Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum. Poe is believed to have lived in the home at the age of 23 when he first lived with Maria Clemm and Virginia (as well as his grandmother and possibly his brother William Henry Leonard Poe). It is open to the public and is also the home of the Edgar Allan Poe Society.

Poe, his wife Virginia, and his mother-in-law Maria would later rent several homes in Philadelphia, but only the last house has survived. The Spring Garden home, where the author lived in 1843-44, is today preserved by the National Park Service as the Edgar Allan Poe National Historic Site. It is located on 7th and Spring Garden Streets, and is open Wednesday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Poe's final home is also preserved as the Poe Cottage in the Bronx, New York. The oldest home in Richmond, Virginia, which Poe never lived in, today serves as another Edgar Allan Poe Museum, focusing on his early years with the Allan family in particular.

Imitators

"For my soul from out that shadow

Hath been lifted evermore-

From that deep and dismal shadow,

In the streets of Baltimore!

Like many famous artists, Poe's works have spawned legions of imitators and plagiarists. One interesting trend among imitators of Poe, however, has been claims by clairvoyants or psychics to be "channelling" poems from Poe's spirit beyond the grave. One of the most notable of these was Lizzie Doten, who in 1863 published Poems from the Inner Life, in which she claimed to have "received" new compositions by Poe's spirit. The compositions were re-workings of famous Poe poems such as "The Bells", but which reflected a new, positive outlook. Poe researcher Thomas Ollive Mabbott notes that, at least compared to many other Poe imitators, Doten was not entirely without poetic talent, whether that talent was her own or "channelled" from Poe.

Selected bibliography

Poetry

"Annabel Lee"

"The Bells"

"Eldorado"

"Lenore"

"The Raven"

"Ulalume"

Tales

"The Black Cat"

"The Cask of Amontillado"

"The Fall of the House of Usher"

"The Gold-Bug"

"Hop-Frog"

"Ligeia"

"The Man of the Crowd"

"The Masque of the Red Death"

"The Murders in the Rue Morgue"

"The Pit and the Pendulum"

"The Purloined Letter"

"The Tell-Tale Heart"

Poe in popular culture

Audio interpretations

Vincent Price collaborated with actor Basil Rathbone on a collection of their readings of Poe's stories and poems.

A double-CD organized by Hal Willner, "Closed On Account of Rabies" with poems and tales of Poe performed by artists as diverse as Christopher Walken, Marianne Faithfull, Iggy Pop and Jeff Buckley was issued in 1997.

Literature

Author Ray Bradbury is a great admirer of Poe, and has either featured Poe as a character or alluded to Poe's stories in many of his works. Notable is Fahrenheit 451, a novel based in a world where books are banned and burned. A character in the novel memorizes Tales of Mystery and Imagination to make sure it is not lost forever.

Robert R. McCammon