A Modest Proposal: Renaming Poe - Poe International: The International Edgar A Poe Society

Garth · Veteran Member

RE: A Modest Proposal: Renaming Poe

Midnightdreary · Senior Member

You know, I've always thought that those who know more about Poe are part of some sort of exclusive club. Members of this secret society (if you will) are the only ones that know, for example: Poe's horror makes up only a small portion of his prose; that he was a member of a temperance society at one point; that he was not certifiably insane; that he most likely did not drink himself to death (whatever else it may have been). I've always felt that this knowledge was sort of a badge of pride for me, something that the general population was not privy to. Maybe this name of "Edgar Poe" instead of "Edgar Allan Poe" is the same -- another piece of the exclusivity granted only to members of the Poeist Elite. Like a secret handshake, only we know "Edgar Poe." In exchange, we are also granted the honor of scoffing or even giggling whenever we hear "Edgar Allan Poe" - perhaps even muttering under our breath, "amateur!"

Garth · Veteran Member

I have to admit that I wholeheartedly agree with your proposal, although the challenge in this "Poe rebranding" exercise is that the 3-part name has such strong brand recognition and iconic value that most people will still want to refer to him that way. And 'Edgar Allan Poe' does have a sort of rhythmic, polysyllabic quality that the blunt, three-syllable 'Edgar Poe' does not. Maybe Edgar A. Poe' is better for that reason, in spite of the fact that John Allan doesn't even deserve one letter of credit.

I suppose the answer is to start referring to him that way wherever possible, citing that Poe had almost never referred to himself as 'Edgar Allan Poe', then the tide might gradually turn. I won't be around for the 300th anniversary so I'll leave that torch for my grandchildren to carry. ^_^

Midnightdreary · Senior Member

Yes! Join the cause and take up arms!!

virginia · Newbie

Above all considerations, John Allan (wherever he is now) absolutely don´t deserve any kind of association with Poe, right?
Dears,
Finally, someone have had this wonderful idea!!!! I fully suport this!
Virginia

-- Edited by virginia at 10:39, 2009-03-09

Midnightdreary · Senior Member

I agree, Kingdom. "Edgar Allan Poe" is a character created by Griswold. All the more reason for us to abandon it for "Edgar Poe" or "Edgar A. Poe" - we cannot let Griswold win!

KingdombytheSea · Member

I like that idea, for a related but different reason. Edgar Allan Poe is not just the name, but the persona created by Griswold. It is a persona that, to be sure, brought Poe's work and his ideas plenty of publicity. But that came at the price of distorting people's understanding of this great writer, even admirers. Griswold's slanderous depiction of Poe as a man is only one aspect of this persona, but I would say it is time to move on from all of it. To the extent that the Edgar Allan Poe persona reflects Poe as a writer, the literary rather than the personal side, it is something from which he was rapidly growing away in his later years anyway.

Midnightdreary · Senior Member

Abridged and adapted from "Reclaiming Poe's Name":

I would like to make a simple proposal: We should rename Poe.

I suggest this for a couple of reasons. For one, the man often referred to as "Edgar Allan Poe" did not often use that name for himself. Most often, he was "Edgar Poe" or "Edgar A. Poe."

Remember, he was born Edgar Poe (no middle name) in 1809. The Allan family never formerly adopted him and that middle "Allan" was never official. Keeping it doesn't make much sense, considering that Poe would not purposely honor John Allan today. As Daniel Hoffman wrote in his fantastic Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe Poe (1972): "If there is a villain in Poe's destiny, a malign person insinuated into his fortunes by the machinations of that evil fairy who always spoils the christening party, it may have been his nonadoptive guardian."

Even Silverman immortalized this fact by daring to title his book Edgar A. Poe: A Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance - regardless of what you think of the book, the title is the most accurate one out there.

The name "Edgar Allan Poe" was so unusual during his lifetime, he had to actually explain what the "A." stood for in a letter to a relative!

I believe that the name "Edgar Allan Poe" was not cemented onto the collective tongue of the world until October 9, 1850, when Poe's most despised rival Rufus Wilmot Griswold wrote: "Edgar Allan Poe is dead." That's right, the name did not become popular until after Poe's death - and by his enemy. If we continue to call him by that three-letter name, Griswold has won.

As a Poeist myself, I also find the misspelling "Edgar Allen Poe" the equivalent of nails on a chaulkboard. The number of reputable scholars, publishers, and claimed diehard Poe fans that have made this mistake is astounding. If nothing else, we should rename Poe to make it easier on them.

So, here is my proposal: Strike out "Edgar Allan Poe" and forever claim "Edgar A. Poe." Will you join me in this cause?

-- Edited by Midnightdreary at 09:17, 2009-02-24