"Much of the beautiful, much of the wanton, much of the bizarre, something of the terrible, and not a little of that which might have excited disgust. To and fro in the seven chambers stalked a multitude of dreams."
Today in Writing History January 19, 1809: Edgar Allan Poe was born. “The Raven” made Poe an overnight sensation. Yet, he spent much of his life in poverty. Poe originally considered having an owl or parrot, rather than a raven, quote “Nevermore.” Poe was a binge drinker who sometimes remained sober for months before falling off the wagon again. His alcoholism worsened as he got older. He died in 1849, mostly likely from alcoholism. His grave remained unmarked until 1865. For 60 years, from 1949 until 2009, the “Poe Toaster” left a bottle of cognac and three roses on Poe’s grave every January 19th.
"Wretch," I cried, "thy God hath lent thee—by these angels he hath sent thee
Respite—respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore;
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe and forget this lost Lenore!"
Quoth the Raven "Nevermore."
Edgar Allan Poe, "The Raven"
🎨 Gustave Doré #BookWormSat
"[The revelers] died each in the despairing posture of his fall. And the life of the ebony clock went out.... And the flames of the tripods expired. And Darkness and Decay and the Red Death held illimitable dominion over all."
Edgar Allan Poe, "The Masque of the Red Death"
🎨 Harry Clarke #BookWormSat
Man how fucking incredible is the Simpsons rendition of The Raven though?
Obviously James Earl Jones seals the deal as the narrator, but Homer's delivery of "Take thy beak from out my heart and take they form from off my door!!" is haunting.
And lessened not one iota despite them immediately shifting into a gag