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Literary Criticism Of Edgar Allan Poe

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Literary criticism Usually, fairy tales are in connection to big and illustrious happy endings. But in Edgar Allan Poe’s case, it is evident that they do not exist, for his stories more often than not bear a grotesque demeanor. His life was surrounded by death. All of the women in his life died young, including his mother, sister, and wife. By the age of three, he had experienced what most would not experience until nearly the middle or end of their lives. Living in such an atmosphere allowed Poe to reach deep into his emotions when writing. Edgar Allan Poe was known for his macabre metaphors. These metaphors challenged the reader to endeavor themselves into his simple words; coming to find the gothic elements portrayed. He most commonly portrayed love and death in his poems. Poe is even credited with contributing to the emerging genre of science fiction. Edgar Allan Poe utilizes symbolism and portrays an envious love tale, ending in tragedy to expose the speaker’s emotional state in the poem “Annabel Lee.” “We loved with a love that was more than love” (Poe). Poe’s Annabel Lee portrays a protagonist who is in grievance about the death of his love, Annabel Lee. The poem focuses on an ideal love, one that extended further than physical boundaries. Although the story seems to be told years after loss of the maiden, the tone in the speaker’s voice has a grim emphasis of Annabel’s death, which suggests that it truly does oppress him. Poe does not describe the

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