Edgar Allan Poe in Context (Literature in Context)

Cambridge University Press
Edition: Illustrated, 10/29/2012
EAN 9781107009974, ISBN10: 1107009979

Hardcover, 430 pages, 22.9 x 15.2 x 2.9 cm
Language: English

Edgar Allan Poe mastered a variety of literary forms over the course of his brief and turbulent career. As a storyteller, Poe defied convention by creating Gothic tales of mystery, horror and suspense that remain widely popular today. This collection demonstrates how Poe's experience of early nineteenth-century American life fueled his iconoclasm and shaped his literary legacy. Rather than provide critical explications of his writings, each essay explores one aspect of Poe's immediate environment, using pertinent writings - verse, fiction, reviews and essays - to suit. Examining his geographical, social and literary contexts, as well as those created by the publishing industry and advances in science and technology, the essays paint an unprecedented portrait of Poe's life and times. Written for a wide audience, the collection will offer scholars and students of American literature, historians and general readers new insight into Poe's rich and complex work.

List of illustrations
Notes on contributors
Preface
Part I. Geographical Contexts
1. Great Britain Christopher Gair
2. The south James Hutchisson
3. The American west Nathaniel Lewis
4. The sea David Dowling
5. France Andrea Goulet
6. The Near East Travis Montgomery
7. The polar regions Mark Canada
Part II. Social Contexts
8. The urban environment Bran Nicol
9. Curiosity Lindsey Hursh
10. Alcohol, addiction, and rehabilitation Paul Fisher
11. Fashion, furnishings, and style Patricia A. Cunningham
12. The American stage Philip E. Phillips
13. Lions and bluestockings Anne Boyd Rioux
14. Slavery and abolitionism Paul Christian Jones
15. The cult of mourning Therese M. Rizzo
Part III. The Contexts of Publishing
16. The literary profession John Evelev
17. Magazines Jeffrey Andrew Weinstock
18. Gift books Kathryn K. Shinn
19. Literary piracy Michael Everton
20. The art of reviewing Jonathan Hartmann
21. The politics of publishing Amy Branam
Part IV. Literary Contexts
22. Ancient classics Gregory Hays
23. Rabelais and Lesage Lois Davis Vines
24. The Gothic movement Alan Brown
25. Byron Chris Beyers
26. Folk narrative Katherine Kim
27. Transcendentalism Heidi Silcox
28. Charles Dickens Tara Moore
29. Nathaniel Hawthorne and the art of the tale Meghan A. Freeman
Part V. Scientific and Pseudoscientific Contexts
30. Phrenology Brett Zimmerman
31. Photography Satwik Dasgupta
32. Mesmerism Bruce Mills
33. Architecture Alvin Holm
34. Fiction science Peter Swirski
35. Cosmology and cosmogony Jonathan Taylor
36. Forensic science Benjamin F. Fisher
37. Technology John Tresch
Further reading.