The Dark Genius Of The Short Story Essays - Edgar Allan Poe

The Dark Genius of the Short Story Many authors have made great contributions to the world of literature. Mark Twain introduced Americans to life on the Mississippi. Jack London told of the courage of many on the Alaskan Frontier. Another author that made an influence on literature is Edgar Allan Poe. Poe is known as the father of the American short story. To understand the literary contributions of Edgar Allan Poe, one must look at his early life, his literary life, and a summary of two of his famous works. Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 19, 1809 (Stern xi). He was born to a southern family that was in a traveling company of actors (Marks 2). His father, David Poe, was from a Baltimore family. He was an actor by profession but his family would say he made a career out of drinking, not acting. Soon after Edgar Allan Poe was born, he left his family. Poe's mother, Elizabeth Arnold Poe, was a widow at the age of eighteen (Porges 32). Two years after his birth, she died of tuberculosis (Stern xi). When his mother died, Poe was adopted by John Allan (Stern xi) at the urging of Mr. Allan's wife. In 1815, John Allan moved his family to England. While there, Poe was sent to private schools which he described as dark, ancient, labyrinths (Stern, Edgar Allen Poe Visitor for the Night of Time 42). In the spring of 1826, Poe entered the University of Virginia. There he studied Spanish, French, Italian, and Latin. He had an excellent scholastic record, but he got into difficulties almost at once. Mr. Allan did not provide him with the money to pay for his fees and other necessities. Poe was confused and homesick. He learned to play cards and started drinking. Soon he was in debt over two thousand dollars. Poe discovered that he could not Clint Fiore 2 depend upon Allan for financial support. His foster father refused to pay his debts, and Poe had to withdraw from the University (Haines 62). In May of 1827, Poe enlisted in the army as a common soldier. He did this under the name of Edgar A. Perry (Porges 43). He was stationed on Sullivan's Island in Charleston Harbor for over a year. Poe adapted very well to military discipline and quickly rose to the rank of regimental sergeant major. After a while, he got tired of the same daily routine involved in military life. Poe wrote regularly to Mr. Allan. He met with Mr. Allan after the death of Mrs. Allan in February of 1829. With Allan's support, he received his discharge and enlisted in West Point on July 1, l830 (Stern xii). While at West Point, Mr. Allan, who had remarried, continued in not providing Poe with enough money. Poe decided to have himself kicked out of school. Cutting classes and disregarding orders were his solutions (Porges 44). He was court-martialed for neglect of duties in January, 1831, and left West Point the following month (Stern xii). Poe was great in three different fields , and in each one he made a reputation that would give any man a high place in literary history. Poe wrote great short stories, famous not only in his own country, but all over the world (Stern, Edgar Allen Poe Visitor from the Night of Time 12). Hawthorne, Irving, Balzac, Bierce, Crane, Hemingway and other writers have given us memorable short stories; but none has produced so great a number of famous and unforgettable examples, so many tales that continue, Clint Fiore 3 despite changing standards to be read and reprinted again and again throughout the world (Porges 15). Poe was the father of the modern short story, and the modern detective story (Porges 19). In 1831, Poe succeeded in publishing a new edition of his poems entitled, Poems. Poe was now in great difficulty. He went to New York, but could find no job there. Eventually he took refuge with his aunt, Mrs. Clemm, in Baltimore. There he decided to seek employment and make his living by writing. Failing to get attention with his poems, he decided to start writing short stories. Poe competed in a contest for the best

SAT Essay Sample: How to Use Upenn Personal Essay Samples

SAT Essay Sample: How to Use Upenn Personal Essay SamplesThe best way to get through the process of getting good grades on your SAT or ACT is to write essays, but no matter how many good examples of open personal essay samples you see on the internet or in college bookstores, they will still be useless if you don't apply what you learn from them. Writing essays can be difficult, but the right essay examples can make it a whole lot easier. Keep reading to find out what writing the right essay should entail.To start, get a copy of either your SAT or ACT test or ask your counselor for a sample essay. You need to get at least one example to work with before you can begin writing. Most students will be required to write an essay on a given topic during their college admissions process. It's important that you understand what is expected of you when it comes to this task. Get this information before you begin to write so that you won't have any surprises in terms of the quality of your wri ting.When you do get a few excellent essay examples to use, study each one very carefully. Pay attention to the sentence structure and the overall style of the essay. This is your guide to help you follow the correct sequence to writing an essay. Once you understand how to write an essay, the rest will fall into place.In each essay, you'll want to focus on several different topics. You'll want to cover all of the bases on one topic, and then move onto another topic to cover a more detailed idea. Many students don't know where to begin when it comes to writing the perfect essay. Writing an essay on multiple subjects is a great way to get started. It will also keep your essay short and sweet and make the writing process a whole lot easier.Focus on strong points of your essay and include them in your writing. You need to make sure that all of your points are established throughout your essay. You won't be able to fully develop the theme, outline, or content if you don't first make sure that your points are going to be included in your conclusion. Don't be afraid to build upon existing ideas because it will make your writing stronger overall.When you're done with your essay, make sure you let your reader know about the different ways in which you used words. Use your examples in sentences and paragraphs to keep your readers' attention and to add variety to your essays. Look at how you could have used different wordings and vocabulary throughout your essay. Just remember to think about the overall theme of your essay before you go too crazy with words.Using upenn personal essay samples can be very helpful to you as you're writing your own essay. However, don't rely on them completely. Always have a working copy of your essay before you begin writing. As long as you know what you want your final product to look like, then you'll be in good shape to write it.Remember, personal essay samples only tell you what to write; they don't give you ideas. Write your essay by w riting yourself!