The Life of Edgar Allan Poe Essay -- Edgar Allan Poe Writers Authors E

The Life of Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe is considered to be the father of the short story by many. Over the course of his life, he wrote hundreds of short stories and poems. His writing style is unique and influenced by the tragedies that occurred over the course of his life. In fact, he is most well known for writing morbid stories and gruesome, dismal poems. Indeed his writing habits were heavily influenced by his life. His life was full of depression, angst, and woe. Many of the people he cared for fell victim to deadly plagues and diseases. To cope with this pain, Edgar Allan Poe sought comfort in the bottom of a bottle. In his times of depression he would drink heavily and become sick for days at a time. In between his fits of alcoholism and depression, he wrote. When he wrote, he wrote well. Edgar Allan Poe led a life full of tragedy and troubled times. Although he kept an air of dignity and pride around him, he often felt very lonely and depressed. This feeling of desperation greatly influenced his unique and often morbid writing style. Edgar Allan Poe had very humble beginnings. Within the first three years of his life, he lost both of his parents and was separated from his siblings. Edgar Allan Poe’s parents had a background that can be credited for his imagination and love of writing poems and short stories. His parents, David and Elizabeth Poe, were both actors and stage performers. Although poor, David and Elizabeth were well known on the stage, and played as important characters in assorted plays including comedies and Shakespearean dramas. David Poe preferred to take on minor roles in plays, but was credited by critics as good nonetheless. Elizabeth scored many lead actress roles, but still the two only had enough money to live poorly. They were too poor to care for their firstborn son, William Henry Poe, and had to send him off to his grandparents who were to care for him. On January 19, 1809, Edgar Poe was born. Edgar’s father was suffering heavily from alcoholism, and eventually left Elizabeth to care for her son alone. Elizabeth, however, was showing signs of tuberculosis and was pregnant with a third child. She was struggling to support her family by playing various theatrical roles for money. Soon she was too weak to continue acting. The owner of the theater company she worked for placed adds in newspapers to rais... ...aring, the man orders to bird to vacate his door and his life, and â€Å"Take thy beak from out my heart.† The bird does not leave and the poem ends describing how the bird’s looming shadow crushes the man’s soul beneath it, trapping the man forever in a state of gloom and misery. So it was that Edgar Allan Poe led a life filled with misery, depression, loss, and heartbreak. He sought respect from his foster father and fame among his peers. But because of the ravages of alcohol, he drank all of his blessings away, and what he was left with, abandoned him. His life long dream was to own his own magazine but his lifelong financial problems kept the dream always just out of reach. He did however manage to become the father of the short story, and the first comprehensive detective story author. During his time, his literary works were overlooked or slandered by his many enemies. But now, to this day, Edgar Allan Poe is a household name. His works such as â€Å"The Raven† are known to almost everyone for their rhythmic meter and captivating emotions. The tragedies in Edgar Allan Poe’s life left him lovesick and depressed, and compelled him to write about tales of beauty, love, and loss.

Long Walk to Remember Poem

Long walk to Forever I’m what they call A. W. O. L Was a private first class in the Artillery. Hitchhike since two days, On the fringe of a city, Near fields and woods and orchard. In the early afternoon, I knocked on Catharine’s front door. I want to give Henry a rosy bride, By taking a walk with Catharine. One foot in front of the other, Through leaves, over bridges. That will be my present. I’ve never done anything like this before, Time to time, I softly said to me,I love you. I have never kissed you, I would have before. So let’s take a walk, One foot in front of the other, Through leaves, over bridges. We had always been playful, but never talk of love. What happens next? I let you know I loved you.. â€Å"Too late†, she said. I started walking again. Involuntarily, she bursts into tears, and clenched her hands. A woman couldn’t hide love, As I was seeing love now. I kissed her. The bells in the tower of the school rang. Just dream of m e,Your wonderful Newt. Marry me, Catharine? Not Henry Stewart Chasens. There are many, many good things about me. We say goodbye, shake hands, part friends. I smiled, and walked away quickly. In long perspective of shadows and trees. I stopped, and turned, â€Å"Catharine. † She ran to me. â€Å"I’ll always remember you,† she said. I’m not disappointed. We take a walk, One foot in front of the other, Through leaves, over bridges. I’m sorry Catharine, Because I love you

What Is the Definition of the Golden Ratio

The Golden Ratio is a term used to describe how elements within a piece of art can be placed in the most  aesthetically pleasing way. However, it is not merely a term, it is an actual ratio and it can be found in many pieces of art. Golden Ratio The Golden Ratio has many other names. You might hear it referred to as the Golden Section, Golden Proportion, Golden Mean,  phi  ratio, Sacred Cut, or Divine Proportion. They all mean the same thing. In its simplest form, the Golden Ratio is 1:phi.  This is not  pi as in Ï€ or 3.14... and is not pronounced pie. This is phi  and is pronounced fie.   Phi is represented by the lower-case Greek letter φ. Its numeric equivalent is 1.618...which means its decimal stretches to infinity and never repeats (much like pi). The DaVinci Code had it wrong when the protagonist assigned an exact value of 1.618 to phi. Phi also performs amazing feats of derring-do in trigonometry and quadratic equations. It can even be used to write a recursive algorithm when programming software. But lets get back to aesthetics. What the Golden Ratio Looks Like The easiest way to picture the Golden Ratio is by looking at a rectangle with a width of 1, and a length of 1.168... If you were to draw a line in this plane so that one square and one rectangle resulted, the squares sides would have a ratio of 1:1. And the leftover rectangle? It would be exactly proportionate to the original rectangle: 1:1.618. You could then draw another line in this smaller rectangle, again leaving a 1:1 square and a 1:1.618... rectangle. You can keep doing this until youre left with an indecipherable blob; the ratio continues on in a downward pattern regardless. Beyond the Square and Rectangle Rectangles and squares are the clearest examples, but the Golden Ratio can be applied to any number of geometric forms including circles, triangles, pyramids, prisms, and polygons. Its just a question of applying the correct math. Some artists are very good at this, while others are not. The Golden Ratio in Art Millennia ago, an unknown genius figured out that what would become known as the Golden Ratio was extraordinarily pleasing to the eye. That is, as long as the ratio of smaller elements to larger elements is maintained.   To back this up, there is now have scientific evidence that our brains are indeed hard-wired to recognize this pattern. It worked when the Egyptians built their pyramids, it has worked in sacred geometry throughout history, and it continues to work today. While working for the Sforzas in Milan, Fra Luca Bartolomeo de Pacioli (1446/7 to 1517) said,  Like God, the Divine Proportion is always similar to itself.   It was Pacioli who taught Florentine artist Leonardo Da Vinci  how to mathematically calculate proportions. Da Vincis The Last Supper is often given as one of the best examples of the Golden Ratio in art. Other works where you will notice this pattern include Michelangelos The Creation of Adam in the Sistine Chapel, many of Georges Seurats paintings (particularly the placement of the horizon line), and Edward Burne-Jones The Golden Stairs. The Golden Ratio and Facial Beauty There is also a theory that if you paint a portrait using the Golden Ratio, it is much more pleasing. This is contradictory to the art teachers common advice of splitting the face in two vertically and in thirds horizontally.   While that may be true, a study published in 2010  found that what is perceived as a beautiful face is slightly different than the classic Golden Ratio. Rather than the very distinct phi, researchers theorize that the new golden ratio for a womans face is the average length and width ratio. Yet, with every face being distinct, that is a very broad definition. The study goes on to say that for any particular face, there is an optimal spatial relation between facial features that will reveal its intrinsic beauty. This optimal ratio, however, does not equal phi. A Final Thought The Golden Ratio remains a great topic of conversation. Whether in art or in defining beauty, there is indeed something pleasing about a certain proportion between elements. Even when a person doesnt or cant recognize it, he or she is attracted to it. With art, some artists will carefully compose their work following this rule. Others do not pay it any attention at all but somehow pull it off without noticing it. Maybe that is due to their own inclination toward the Golden Ratio. At any rate, it certainly is something to think about and gives everyone one more reason to analyze art. Source Pallett PM, Link S, Lee K. New Golden Ratios for Facial Beauty. Vision Research. 2010;50(2):149.