Neenah Public Library

The reason for the darkness of the night, Edgar Allan Poe and the forging of American science, John Tresch

eng

Includes bibliographical references and index

individual biography

illustrations

index present

non fiction

The reason for the darkness of the night

bibliography

1182584350

John Tresch

Edgar Allan Poe and the forging of American science

"A biography of Edgar Allan Poe with an emphasis on his engagement with the scientists and scientific discoveries of his era"--, Provided by publisherTresch reveals Poe's obsession with science and lifelong ambition to advance and question human knowledge. Even as he composed dazzling works of fiction, he remained an avid and often combative commentator on new discoveries, publishing and hustling in literary scenes that also hosted the era's most prominent scientists, semi-scientists, and pseudo-intellectual rogues. In showing that Poe lived, thought, and suffered surrounded by science, Tresch shows that many of his most renowned and imaginative works can best be understood in its company. -- adapted from jacket

Part I: From Allan to Poe. The Young Astronomer ; In Jefferson's Experiment ; Exile, Artificer, Cadet -- Part II: Setting Sail. A Baltimore Apprenticeship ; Richmond: The Palpable Obscure ; Delirious Design -- Part III: Philadelphia. The Athens of America ; Methods Grotesque and Arabesque ; Dizzy Heights ; The Tide Turns ; The March of Science and Quacks -- Part IV: New York City. The Market for Novelty ; A Man of Wonders ; The Imp of the Perverse -- Part V: To the Plutonian Shore. A Spectacle for Angels ; The Plots of God ; Falling Star -- Conclusion: From a Lighthouse

adult

Edgar Allan Poe and the forging of American science