Audiobook · read by volunteers
Edgar Allan Poe Poems
Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849)
Read by Shurtagal · 48 chapters · 1 h 21
About the book
Edgar Allan Poe is famous for tales of terror, but he was also a poet of longing, grief and tenderness. This collection brings together forty-eight of his poems, from the solemn music of The Raven and The Bells to the quieter sorrow of Alone and the pure devotion of A Valentine. Here are the haunting rhythms that made some of his verse unforgettable, the melancholy beauty of his imagery, and the musical quality he prized above all, with a strong metre and rhyme running through every piece. A single LibriVox volunteer reads the whole book, in about an hour and a half, so the listener follows one voice through the poet's changing moods, from dread to tenderness to despair. It is an easy way to meet Poe the poet, and a reminder that the master of horror had a gentle and romantic voice too.
Introduction
Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) was born in Boston and lived a short, restless and often difficult life. He is remembered chiefly as a pioneer of the modern short story, the detective tale and the tale of horror, but he considered himself first of all a poet, and he wrote a thoughtful body of criticism on what poetry ought to be. For Poe, a poem should be musical, concentrated and aimed at beauty, and many of his own verses show how seriously he held that view.
His poetry was admired in his lifetime, especially The Raven, and its influence was considerable abroad. In France it was translated by Baudelaire and Mallarmé, and it helped to shape the Symbolist movement. The poems typically deal with death, memory, loss and the longing for an ideal that cannot be reached, and their atmosphere is dreamlike rather than realistic.
This collection contains forty-eight poems, all read by a single LibriVox volunteer, and the whole runs for about an hour and twenty-five minutes. One voice carries the listener through a body of work that varies from the solemn to the tender. It is a rewarding introduction to Poe's verse, and a good companion for an evening when you want something short, atmospheric and musical. The poems vary in length from a few lines to longer, more elaborate pieces, so the collection moves along quickly. It is an excellent choice for an evening, for a walk, or for anyone who wants to hear what Poe sounds like away from the tales that made him famous.
Public domain
Edgar Allan Poe died in 1849: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text