I am writing a Critical Work on Poe's literature and have to make referrence to current Criticism. Where can I find(on the Internet) reliable Literary analysies of Poe's "The Valley Nis" not "The Valley of Unrest" although they are sometimes referred to as the same poem? Please write with any other useful info.

-- Anonymous, January 02, 2003

Answers

"THE" internet website for Poe is www.eapoe.org, the Baltimore Poe Society. Has all the texts and much information including bibliographies. I have not searched around much but it is generally hard to find many commentaries on poems online. One of the best recently folded. The best book for historical info and references is still Thmas Ollive Mabbott's "Edgar Allan Poe: Complete Poems", University of Illinois Press, available in bookstores still in softcover, copyright 1969. Weak in actual discussion of poetics but invaluable for a poem like this one.

Landscape poem, based somewhat on Poe's own boyhood travels in Britain when he was schooling there. The place is likely the Hebrides and the unclear childhood recollections became intentionally more vague in later revisions for the purpose of that faraway mood. Hence some of the difficulties in digging out references or "meaning" that is so necessary to our generation, but at least legitimate for in depth scholarship. For example, Nis could likely be a mishearing of the Gaelis "innis". The section in mabbot is only a few pages if you need further details. Pair with "Silence-A Fable" and "The City in the Sea".

-- Anonymous, January 04, 2003

UR ARE A GAY LIL FAG

-- Anonymous, October 21, 2003