All clues lead to Poe's pioneering spirit
Edgar Allan Poe is duly credited as the author who pioneered the detective fiction genre.
One of his most representative crime fictions, The Fall of the House of Usher, was published in 1839 - 20 years before the birth of Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes. Poe successfully transformed Gothic mystery tales into modern horror, centred around the human mind and experiences.
The Tell-Tale Heart, published in 1843, was written in first person by 'I' who committed the crime.
'I' was disturbed by an elderly man's 'evil eye' and killed him. The police were coming. So what should the killer do with the body? Here, the monologue of 'I' is not a confession but his desire to prove his sanity.
The story is short, like Poe's life, and has a lot of interesting twists throughout.
Poe was born to an acting family in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1809. His mother, Elizabeth Arnold Poe, was a leading lady. Her prominence, however, contrasted with the dull career of her husband, David Poe Jr, on the stage.
When his father dumped the family and his mother died, Poe was separated from his siblings and placed at the home of a childless couple, the Allans.
In his writings, Poe could always construct a single, intense mood in his reader's mind. This ability may have grown out of the turmoil he himself experienced in life.
He was educated at prestigious boarding schools in England. An excellent student, Poe was also a good swimmer and marksman.
However, he was not popular. Fellow students poked fun at him for being the son of actors. Acting was not a reputable profession at the time.
At 17, Poe took to gambling. His early literary career was unsuccessful. He could not even find regular work as a writer. He was at least once fired for drunkenness.
It was not until the publication of the poem The Raven in 1845 that Poe's work became popular.
Poe died at the age of 40 in 1849, two years after his wife's death. The nature of his death remains a mystery.
