What does Poe mean in his review of "The Vision of Poets"? is he having an outburst or is he keeping with his published views on it?

-- Anonymous, December 03, 2003

Answers

Though omitting any reference about this review, I presume you are alluding to Poe's 1845 (for the "Broadway Journal") comment on Miss E. B. Barrett's "Vision of Poets" while reviewing the American edition of her "Drama of Exile, and other Poems". What Poe expresses, as always on this topic, is that a poem has nothing to do with moral, or philosophy, or anything that can be better treated by mere prose. For Poe's views about Poetry exclusively devoted to Beauty alone, see his many statements of it as formulated when disserting on Drake's "Culprit Fay..." and Halleck's "Alnwick Castle...", on Moore's "Alciphron", on Longfellow's "Ballads...", on Horne's "Orion", &c...&c... and as well summarized in his 1848-49 lecture on the "Poetic Principle" (all texts available on line at www.eapoe.org , among Poe's "Works" -- Literary Criticism). And about allegories, Poe was always condemning them, excepted when, as with Fouqué's "Undine", they are concealed in an "under-current" of the narrative, never observable at first sight, and never necessary to understand anything of the work of art. I don't know if my hints are answering to your research, but let us remember that Poe is always the best one to comment on his own writings... Good luck. Yours sincerely, Raven's Shade (Belgium).

-- Anonymous, December 04, 2003