Edgar Allan Poe (/po/; born Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 October 7, 1849) was an American writer, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is widely regarded as a central figure of Romanticism in the United States and American literature as a whole, and he was one of the country's earliest practitioners of the short story. Poe is generally considered the inventor of the detective fiction genre and is further credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. "The Cask of Amontillado" "A Descent into the Maelström" "The Fall of the House of Usher" "The Gold-Bug" "The Masque of the Red Death" "The Imp of the Perverse" "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" "The Oval Portrait" "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" "The Oval Portrait" "The Pit and the Pendulum" "The Premature Burial" "The Purloined Letter" a. o.
Edgar Allan Poe è nato a Boston (USA) nel 1809 da una famiglia di attori girovaghi. Non ebbe modo di conoscerli approfonditamente poiché la madre morì quando ancora era un infante e il padre, alcolizzato, abbandonò la famiglia subito dopo la morte della moglie. Il piccolo Edgar fu quindi allevato da un ricco mercante di Richmond di nome John Allan.
Anche Edgar Allan Poe era solito deliziarsi dell'uso di alcool e gioco d'azzardo, motivo per cui John Allan lo estromise dal testamento.