爱伦坡(1809～1849年)
Poe, Edgar Allan
美国诗人、评论家和短篇小说家。生於波士顿，1811年其母死後在维吉尼亚州里奇蒙由养父母抚养长大。曾入维吉尼亚大学短期学习，後返回波士顿，并於1827年在那里出版了一本拜伦风格的青年诗歌。1835年以前他在里奇蒙的《南方文学使者》报社当编辑，那是他编辑撰稿的数份期刊中的第一份。在里奇蒙他与十三岁的表妹结婚，1847年丧妻。他曾数度迁居巴尔的摩、纽约和费城。酒精与无规律的放荡生活的毒害造成了他的早逝，死时年仅四十岁。其作品以其对神秘和恐怖的渲染而闻名。所写的故事包括〈厄舍古厦的倒塌〉、〈红死病的面具〉、〈黑猫〉、〈泄密的心脏〉、〈陷阱与钟摆〉、〈莫格街凶杀案〉和〈失窃的信〉开创了现代侦探小说的先河。他的诗歌（现在的评价不如以往那麽高）如〈钟铃集〉中所展现的那样，优美而富有韵律感，集音韵效果之大�桑黄渲屑扔杏膳硕し⒘楦械亩耸ㄈ纭窗材缺炊�.李〉），也有风格离奇之作（如〈乌鸦〉）。
English version：
1809～1849年
Poe, Edgar Allan
U.S. poet, critic, and short-story writer. Born in Boston, Poe was raised by foster parents in Richmond, Va., following his mother's death in 1811. He briefly attended the University of Virginia and then returned to Boston, where in 1827 he published a pamphlet of youthful Byronic poems. By 1835 he was in Richmond as editor of the Southern Literary Messenger, the first of several periodicals he was to edit or write for. There he married a 13-year-old cousin, who would die in 1847. At various times he lived in Baltimore, New York, and Philadelphia. Alcohol, the bane of his irregular and eccentric life, caused his death at 40. His works are famous for his cultivation of mystery and the macabre. Among his tales are “The Fall of the House of Usher,” “The Masque of the Red Death,” “The Black Cat,” “The Tell-Tale Heart,” and “The Pit and the Pendulum.” “The Murders in the Rue Morgue” and “The Purloined Letter” initiated the modern detective story. His poems (less highly regarded now than formerly) are musical and sensuous, as in “The Bells,” a showcase of sound effects; they include touching lyrics inspired by women (e.g., “Annabel Lee”) and the uncanny (e.g., “The Raven”).