Edgar Allen Poe is an influential force in the literary world. Poe is known for his gruesome, depressing, and dark writing style, usually visible in the way he presents his work. Many of Poe's poems contain improbable twists and turns and are mysterious, depressing, and often based on human psychology. Readers often question Poe's sanity and question the meaning of his complex and complex poems. In order to understand Poe's mindset and why he presented and wrote his poetry in such a specific way, one must understand Poe himself, his lifestyle, and what motivated his dark writings . Poe's writings present readers with a range of situations requiring careful analysis of the writing in order to discover some of the common themes that Poe writes about, namely death, love, and (how) the human mind works under pressure . Edgar Allan Poe was a descendant of versatile people. “Edgar Poe's ancestors were farmers and artisans on the one hand, and actors on the other; and the paternal branch of the family had some right to military distinction (Meyers, 1). Poe's father and mother were both successful people until Edgar's father began facing criticism and favoritism, leading him to leave his family. “David Poe made his last appearance on stage in October 1809; in July 1811, when Edgar was two and a half years old, he had abandoned his wife and children and disappeared forever…David, after many poor performances and harsh criticism, was discouraged, frustrated, and professionally jealous (Meyers 5 .)” Shortly after his father left the family, his mother fell ill and died. "The abandonment of her husband, the arduous demands of her profession... the sole responsibility of her young children, her life of difficulties and p...... in the middle of paper...... he wrote his poems and made him a great poet. Works Cited Booth, Alison and Kelly J. Mays. New York: WW Norton, 2011. Print. and John Milton: 'The Nativity Ode' Like..." Anq 11.2 (1998): 29. Academic research completed. Internet. April 27, 2014. "Edgar Allen Poe: The Bells." Edgar Allen Poe: The Bells . Np, and Web. April 26, 2014. Fawver, Kurt. "Little Girls and Psychic Demons: Nabokov's Lolita as a Vampire Tale." April 2014.Graham, Jorie. “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe. Print.Poe, Edgar Allan “Annabel Lee Foundation.”.. 2014.