Poe

Edgar Allan Poe, to be exact. I've been reading his Tales of Mystery and Imagination by the light of my bedside lamp late into the night for the past week or so. And all I have to say is that he is a genius. He practically invented the mystery/detectice genre with his Dupin stories (read Murders in Rue Morgue, The Mystery of Marie Roget, or The Purloined Letter). And he also has the ability to create suspense like few other authors I've seen. After reading The Pit and the Pendulum, I contemplated for hours the imagination he must have had to come up with something so sinister. Horror movies like Hostel and Saw got nothing on Poe. Although, Poe creates horror without resorting to descriptions of gore. I think that is what I appreciate the most. I also feel some affinity with Poe as his love for the French (and especially Paris) shines through in his works. Speaking of French, not only does he throw out random French phrases without translating them, he throws out German, Latin, and Greek phrases as well. Frankly, he makes me feel extremely unlearned. He also is constantly making references to classical mythology that are so far removed from the education we receive today that the only reason I had an inkling of what he was speaking was because of a course I took on the Ancient Historians, and class which maybe 20 people have taken out of the entire population at Point Loma. In addition to this, he employs words which I am positively sure he must have invented. It thrills me when I come across a word that I don't know, but it is a little excessive with Mr. Poe. I don't have the ability to leave my apartment, trek to the teacher's lounge and search the dictionary every time I encounter a new word (which happens frequently when reading Poe). He is also excessively fond of the word "Phantasmagoric". Go figure. But don't think that he is all sinister stories of horror...His "Loss of Breath" was one of the funniest things I've read in a good long while...following almost in the tradition of Twain. Anyhoo, I'm sure you didn't check my blog to read a book report, but I just wanted to share what's been on my mind lately...and I've been thinking about Mr. Poe quite a bit. Hope this finds everyone quite well!