Edgar Allan Poe Project

Group Project requirements

• Each member of your group is responsible for contributing
• Each member is responsible for a different portion of this assignment
• Each member is required to do honest work - no plagiarism

Different Tasks

• Poster
• PowerPoint
• Research on different diseases
• Research on Poe's life
• Possibly scenario for the week of his death - timeline.
• Presentation

Possible Causes of Death

On October 3, 1849, Dr. Joseph E. Snodgrass received the following note:

Baltimore City, Oct. 3, 1849

Dear Sir,

There is a gentleman, rather the worse for wear, at Ryan's 4th ward polls, who goes under the cognomen of Edgar A. Poe, and who appears in great distress, & he says he is acquainted with you, he is in need of immediate assistance.

Yours, in haste,

JOS. W. WALKER

To Dr. J.E. Snodgrass.

Edgar Allan Poe Project

• This is the first verifiable evidence available of Poe's whereabouts since departing Richmond in the early morning of September 27.
• His intended destination had been Philadelphia, where he was to edit a volume of poetry for Mrs. St. Leon Loud.
• Dr. Snodgrass found Poe semiconscious and dressed in cheap, ill-fitting clothes so unlike Poe's usual mode of dress that many believe that Poe's own clothing had been stolen.
• Poe was taken to Washington College Hospital on the afternoon of October 3 and did not regain consciousness until the next morning.
• For days he passed from delirium to unconsciousness, but never recovered well enough to tell how he had arrived in such a condition.
• For no known reason he started calling loudly for "Reynolds" on the fourth night.
• In the early morning hours of October 7, Poe calmly breathed a simple prayer, "Lord, help my poor soul," and died.
• His cause of death was ascribed to "congestion of the brain." No autopsy was performed, and the author was buried two days later.
• In dying under such mysterious circumstances, the father of the detective story has left us with a real-life mystery which Poe scholars, medical professionals, and others have been trying to solve for over 150 years.

Group Project - English

Causes of Death

• The following is a bibliography of some of the theories of Poe's cause of death that have been published over the years:
• Beating (1857)
• The United States Magazine Vol.II (1857): 268.
• Epilepsy (1875)
• Scribner's Monthly Vo1. 10 (1875): 691. and in (1999) Archives of Neurology June 1999: 646, 740.
• Dipsomania (1921)
• Robertson, John W. Edgar A. Poe A Study. Brough, 1921: 134, 379.
• Hypoglycemia (1979)
• Artes Literatus (1979) Vol. 5: 7-19.
• Diabetes (1977)
• Sinclair, David. Edgar Allan Poe. Roman & Litt1efield, 1977: 151-152.
• Alcohol Dehydrogenase (1984)
• Arno Karlen. Napo1eon's Glands. Little Brown, 1984: 92.
• Porphryia (1989)
• JMAMA Feb. 10, 1989: 863-864.
• Delerium Tremens (1992)
• Meyers, Jeffrey. Edgar A1lan Poe. Charles Scribner, 1992: 255.
• Rabies (1996)
• Maryland Medical Journal Sept. 1996: 765-769.
• Murder (1998)
• Walsh, John E., Midnight Dreary. Rutgers Univ. Press, 1998: 119-120.
• Carbon Monoxide Poisoning (1999)
• Albert Donnay

Powerpoint:

• Your powerpoint/prezi should be approx. 10 slides in length.
• Should include a brief bio of Poe
• Include the cause of death your team has selected
• Give evidence to support your decision
• Give evidence to support why the others are not viable options
• Give a detailed description/Timeline of the week of his death - including your chosen cause.
• Conclusion of your project information
• Bibliography of your information
• Information on which student completed which task.
• 1-2 students are required to speak during the presentation

Poster:

Helpful Links:

• Should include information about your chosen cause of death
• Information about Poe
• Information about the week of his death
• Timeline for the week of his death
• Your conclusion and summary

• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1900/19021100.htm
• http://www.nytimes.com/1996/09/15/us/poe-s-death-is-rewritten-as-case-of-rabies-not-telltale-alcohol.html
• http://www.eapoe.org/geninfo/poedeath.htm
• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1851/18780301.htm
• http://www.eapoe.org/pstudies/ps1960/p1968211.htm#m07
• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1851/18751028.htm
• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1851/jjm18850.htm
• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1921/quinnc19.htm
• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc2000/JS200402.htm
• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/psbbooks/pb20061p.htm
• http://www.eapoe.org/papers/misc1851/18670300.htm
• https://www.poemuseum.org/index.php