Stephen King is often compared to Edgar Allan Poe, a master of 19th century horror tales. Poe had a troubled life, losing both parents as a child and later being disowned by his guardian. Despite his troubles, he wrote some of his most famous works such as The Raven and The Tell-Tale Heart. He also lost his wife Virginia to tuberculosis. Poe's death in 1849 remains a mystery, as he was found delirious in Baltimore and died days later, though the actual cause was never determined.

1. 1
Everyone Loves a Horror
Story

2. Masters of Horror
 Stephen King is
often compared to
the 18th century
weaver of horror
tales, Edgar Allan
Poe
http://home.tiscalinet.de/steph
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king/assets/images/sehr_schon
es_bild_von_king.jpg
http://opioids.com/opium
/poe.jpg

3. Poe’s Life
 Best known for poetry
and short fiction pieces
 Life span: 1809-1849
 Created detective story
and refined
psychological thriller
 World-wide influence
on literature
http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/travel/baltimo
re/photos/Westminster-Poe's
%20grave.jpg

4. Poe’s Childhood
 Parents: David Poe
Elizabeth Atkins
 Parents died before
Poe was 3
 Adopted by John Allan
 Poe was baptized
Edgar Allan Poe
http://www.poemuseum.org/poes_life/in
dex.html

5. Poe’s Young Adult Years
 Poe quarreled with
John Allan
 Attended University of
Virginia
 Incurred gambling
debts and left UV
 Enlisted in US Army
http://www.jfhermant.com/logo_uva.gif

6. Trouble Follows Poe
 After Allan died, Poe
was discharged from
Army
 Poe was expelled from
West Point
 Throughout his
troubles, Poe continued
to writehttp://www.ava.org/clubs/WestPoin
t/westpointlogo_color_50.gif

7. Poe’s Romance
 Lived with Aunt, Maria
Clemm, and cousin
Virginia
 Dated Virginia and
married her (13 year
old cousin when he was
26)
 Began writing for
newspapers/magazines
 Moved to Philadelphiahttp://www.epfl.net/exhibits/poe/poep0
04/poep004r.jpg

8. Poe’s Masterpieces Written
 Poe published some of
best known works:
 The Raven
 The Tell-Tale Heart
 The Black Cat
 The Bells
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/2000755085.JPG

9. Death in Poe’s Life
 Lost mother to
“coughing
sickness”/tuberculosis
 Lost Virginia to
“coughing
sickness”/tuberculosis

10. Mystery of Poe’s Death
 Found delirious in Baltimore on
October 3, "in great distress,
and... in need of immediate
assistance", according to the
man who found him, Joseph
W. Walker.
 Found in someone else's
clothing
 Found on Election Day
 Died October 7
http://images.amazon.com/images/P/0
312227329.01.LZZZZZZZ.jpg

11. 11
Poe was never coherent long enough to
explain how he came to be in his dire
condition
Some sources say Poe's final words were
"Lord help my poor soul."
All medical records, including his death
certificate, have been lost. Newspapers at
the time reported Poe's death as "congestion
of the brain" or "cerebral inflammation",
common euphemisms for deaths from
disreputable causes such as alcoholism.

12. 12
The actual cause of death remains a mystery.