How did Edgar Allan Poe's alcoholism effect his writing and did it cause a downfall?

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

Answers

Sonia In my opinion- it didn't help, inspire or sustain any creative acheivement. See Stephen King's reflections on writing and drinking in his latest work "On Writing." More to the point, It seemed whenever a crisis or career move came up any "fortification" led Poe to say or do exactly what it took to mess things up, though he was by no means disorderly. it seems he didn't do much that was new during his bad spells, but I could be wrong. His one expereince with DT visions never made it into a story so we might assume, despite the popular urge to equate creative imagination with substance abuse, that his works reflect his unique mind and personal psychology.

There is an essay on this page "The Human Thirst for Self-Torment" that speciifically details(as much as might be surmised)how alcoholism may have precipitated Poe's death.

-- Anonymous, May 09, 2001

It put sth better, u just have to read. Like Baudelaire... It caused... his death (it was opium but oh well). Alcoholism, right, but which sort of it? Loneliness, too... Anways, it makes me cry (sob). Ciao...

-- Anonymous, May 13, 2001

His alcoholism did not affect his writing because he never wrote under the influence. It is a know fact. His downfall was the last days of his life that no one seems to know what happened to him.

-- Anonymous, May 14, 2001