“To the glory that was Greece": Hellenic patterns in Poe's poetry

Abstract

Edgar Allan Poe’s poetry has repeatedly drawn the attention of many literary critics since his poems have meticulously been delved into from different perspectives. Undeniably, a multitude of references that allude to ancient Greek mythology and classical literature are present within his verses. These have been noticed and delineated by noteworthy Poe scholars such as Scott Peeples, Kenneth Silverman, Daniel Hoffman and Kevin Hayes in several of their researches in the past. However, despite the wide range of studies that have been published, one cannot encounter any mention regarding the existence of Hellenic motifs or even a reference to an apparent Hellenism in Poe’s poetry. In an effort to outline what has already been affirmed with respect to this topic and to unearth additional links between Poe’s works and Greece, the present essay aims to determine the presence of Hellenic motifs in Poe’s “To Helen” and “Lenore”.

La poesía de Edgar Allan Poe ha llamado la atención de muchos críticos literarios ya que sus poemas han sido meticulosamente analizados desde distintas perspectivas. De forma innegable, una multitud de diferencias que aluden a la mitología griega y a la literatura clásica están presentes en sus versos. Estas referencias han sido detectadas por académicos notorios de Poe como Scott Peeples, Kenneth Silverman, Daniel Hoffman y Kevin Hayes. Sin embargo, a pesar de la amplia variedad de estudios hasta la fecha, nadie ha establecido mención alguna sobre la existencia del elemento griego o incluso sobre el aparente helenismo de la poesía de Poe. En un esfuerzo por delinear lo que ya ha sido dicho con respecto al tema y por descubrir vínculos adicionales entre la obra de Poe y Grecia, el presente ensayo tiene como objetivo determinar la presencia del elemento griego en la poesía de Poe en “To Helen” y “Lenore”.