Many people have adored Edgar Allan Poes’ writings and many have hated them. Overall Poe still appeals to a large audience today who enjoy the terror, the excitement, and theunique writing style he influenced and provided for readers all over the world.
All around the world Poe influences in all types of writing,”For a moment I can see theimportance and the influence Poe has had on three French poets, Baudelaire, Mallarme, andespecially Paul Valery”(Thomas Stearns Eliot 206). Poes’ influence upon the world was strongand important, introducing his own style, unique structure, and appealingness.Poe had a stronginfluence upon the developement of popular fiction and detective fiction.Poe and WilkieCollins are held greatly responsible for developing their own type of detective fiction.Collinsdeveloped the efficent professional policeman stlye,while Poe was famous for his brilliant andeccentric amateur style. Poe chose to make his stories as realistic as he could providing afascinating and exciting plot. “Poe chooses almost like a rule places his hero in a mostextraordinary situation and most extravgant realism”(Dostoevski 61). Many authors have triedto copy the same struture and plots of Poes,not many have been able to succeed.
Exciting and fascinating plots are hard to compose. Poe made it look easy to write suchdetailed and deep stories. “The excitement of one of Poes best-known poems,”ToHelen,”mounts even as the poets thoughts rise from the Helen he adores”(Regan 4). Just a fewof Poes famous and exciting tales are “The Fall of the House of Usher, The Masque of the RedDeath, and The Tell-Tale-Heart”. Such fascinating stories led to many wondering how couldPoe write exciting stories and be a sane man? Still today dabates and arguemnets are madeabout Poes’ sanity while composing. These twisted and exciting stories were composed by aman that loved to describe detail after detail, drawing the audience further and further into hisplot. Which allowed his imagination to run wild and deep and his ability as a writer to transferonto paper. That others might get a glimpse of Poes’ imagination and his abilities. His ability tocreate different types of wrintings was beyond many. Poe had an ability that allowed him todesribe a fictional scene so detailed and real it was hard not to believe that it really happened. His ability allowed him to introduce to the world fictional detective stories and fictional horrortales.
The horror tales Poe wrote were gruesome, intrigging, and appealing to a largeaudience. His audiences often asked themselves, “Is this real or not?” Wondering for hours if itwas fact or fiction, finally settling that indeed it was all invented by Poes’ unbelievableimagination. Poes’ imagination allowed him to develope terrifying stories that still appeals to anumerous amount of readers today. His terrifying tales appeal to so many that enjoy the thrill ofhorror and shock.Excitment, love, and fear or terror are closey knitted emotions.The same kindof emotion that is a result of “fun fear”. Fun fear is an emotion that developes from a love offear. Fear and love are emotions easily confused for one another. “There are two types of love:the sacred and profane kind and the spiritual and sensual”(Lawrence 112). The sensual kind oflove applys to those who enjoy the terror of Poes stories. In Spiritual love contact is purelynervous. Fear of the lovers are set vibrating in unison, like two instruments. The excitement,of fear, can rise higher and higher, but carry this too far and the excitement will break andbleed. A form of death will set in (Lawrence 112). Death in Poe’s writings appeals to many whoread Poes’ tales.
Poes’ writings are still very appealing to all types of people today. His influence on theworld has been strong and important. Especially to those who enjoy feeling the thrill of terror,excitment, that Poes’ unique writng style has provided. Still toady, all around the world manylove to read Edgar Allan Poes’ writings.
Works CitedElliot,Thomas S.,Fyodor M. Dostoeusk,David H. Lawrence. The Recognition of Edgar AllanPoe. Michigan: The University of Michigan,1966.
