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Baylor University.

Poe as a critic.

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

Edgar Allan Poe is generally accepted as the first important American critic. He was the first to establish definite principles of criticism, and he applied them to his own work as well as to his criticism of the work of others. He set forth these principles in The Philosophy of Composition, The Poetic Principle, and The Rationale of Verse, and supplemented them in later critiques. The greatest single influence on Poe was Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Poe also reflects the manner and method of Blackwood’s Magazine. He follows the romantic tendencies of the period. Poe’s critiques deal chiefly with the works of such contemporary authors as Longfellow, Hawthorne, Dickens, Tennyson, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Halleck, and Drake. In these critiques he enlarges upon his own principles of criticism. In the Literati he reveals literary America of this century. The Marginalia shows his remarkable power of commentary. Through his criticisms, by which he first became known, Poe caused writers to have a greater consciousness of literary merit. Perhaps as a critic he has contributed more than any other writer to an appreciation of art-for-art's sake.

Degree

thesis:*
Name thesis:degree_name
M.A.
Level thesis:degree_level
Masters
Grantor
Baylor University.
Year dc:date.issued
1948

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Ballard, Ruby Thompson, 1906-
Advisor dc:contributor.advisor
  • Courtney, Luther W. (Luther Weeks)

Subjects

dc:subject × 1

Rights

dc:rights
Statement dc:rights
  • Baylor University works are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. Contact libraryquestions@baylor.edu for inquiries about permission.
Language dc:language.iso
en

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Handle dc:identifier.uri
https://hdl.handle.net/2104/14487
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:baylor-ir.tdl.org:2104/14487

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Baylor University
Base URL
baylor-ir.tdl.org/server/oai/request
Last updated
2026-07-24
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Ballard, Ruby Thompson, 1906-. Poe as a critic.. Masters thesis, Baylor University., 1948. https://hdl.handle.net/2104/14487