In Search of Edgar Allan Poe

Poe's young wife suffers a fatal disease, compelling him to write "The Masque of the Red Death" and "The Raven." He strives to launch a literary magazine, pioneers science fiction, and pens a prose poem about the Universe, but dies tragically at age 40. This part examines Poe's final days.

Despite a difficult upbringing, Poe discovers his true calling as a writer, and marries his beloved Virginia. He creates the detective genre. He shapes the modern short story. Yet, he struggles with poverty, alcohol, and his “imp of the perverse.”