A Dream Within a Dream: The Life of Edgar Allan Poe As short fiction has become a more accepted genre in literary circles, the stories of Edgar Allan Poe become more popular. His story has been passed down again and again, and he is now considered by many to be the father of the short story. His stories were strong and powerful, they were called mystery. Not only his story, but also his life.Edgar Allan Poe was a famous author of detective novels, science fiction, horror fiction, stories of symbolism and stories of aestheticism in America, he was born on January 19, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts. Poe was the second child in his family, he had two siblings Henry and Rosalie. Both of Edgar's parents died when he was very young. Edgar's mother, Elizabeth, died in 1811, when Edgar was 2 years old. She was a very famous actress in early America, in the same theater as David Poe. She married David after the death of her first husband. When Edgar was 2 years old, his father left the family, his wife and children alone, and soon Elizabeth died of tuberculosis. The same year, David also died of the same illness as his wife. After Edgar's parents died, he was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. John Allan. The three children of the Poe family had been separated separately. John Allan was a wealthy tobacco merchant who provided Edgar with a very good environment and education. Mr. John Allan wanted Edgar to be a business, but Edgar just wanted to be a poet. He went to the University of Virginia in 1826 when he was elderly, he did very well in his classes and got good grades, but his father-in-law, Mr. John Allen, gave him only very less money for tuition. Edgar began drinking heavily and took to gambling to pay off his debts. He was already very poor before the first school...... middle of paper ......at writer. He had a very hard and terrible life that most people will not suffer. One could give up on life, but Poe didn't do that. In fact, the terrible life he had led made him an excellent master of the English short story as we see it today.BibliographyWilliam Fearing Gill. “The Life of Edgar Allan Poe.” Book. February 17, 2009. “Poetry, Edgar Allan Poe. » Wiki answer. 2014. Internet. March 3, 2010.James. "Edgar Allan Poe -" The Philosophy of Composition. Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore. 2014. Internet. October 30, 2013.Poestories. “Poe’s Childhood.” Biography of Edgar Allan Poe. 2014. Web. “Edgar Allan Poe: Death. » Shmoop University. 2014. Web. “Edgar Allan Poe Author and poet, drunk and gambler.” Poker player. Internet. October 24, 2005. “Edgar Allan Poe Quotes.” BrainyQuote. 2014. Web. “Quotes by author”. The quote page. 2013. Internet.