Edgar Allan Poe and the Art of Pretention

Let me start this by saying that I do not hate Edgar Allan Poe or his writing. In fact, I quite enjoy the things I have read that he has written. Instead, I hate how America has turned his name and works into a shorthand for “intelligent” or “gothic” (Hot Topic gothic, not art/architecture gothic). This has become such a pandemic that just hearing the name Edgar Allan Poe makes me groan in exasperation. Yes, his writing is interesting and deserves analysis, but why has this racist, obsessive, alcoholic become Hollywood’s poster boy for those quirky intelligent types that they love?

I understand why society might have chosen him. Everybody recognizes his name, he can be difficult to understand for people not used to literary analysis, and his writing is usually very dark and intimidating. Do you also know why I don’t understand it? Because everyone and their mother has read him, everyone has watched or made some sort of parody/interpretation of “The Raven”, everyone likes his writing. This is not a unique thing anymore. We can’t separate the goths from the populars by their appreciation of Edgar Allan Poe anymore. Lets, as a society, stop pretending that he is some sort of genius that only the most macabre can understand.

The use of Edgar Allan Poe in the way that I have described is my definition of pretentiousness. Your TV show does not become more intelligent because you added some slight allusion to “The Fall of the House of Usher”, your character is not more sympathetic because they carry around a copy of “Annabel Lee”, and you movie certainly is not worthy of praise just because its some action-ized remake of “The Telltale Heart”. I am not going to sit here and pat you on the back because of these things. If you actually did something new and interesting with it, then I might consider it, but until then, you still have a lot to prove to me.

I think the thing that pisses me off the most is that I can no longer read an author’r work without feeling like a pretentious asshole for liking it. So America, save me and start using other amazing literary works for your metaphors. Want your character to look intelligent? Have them read Faulkner. Want to add some darkness to you plot? Base it off of HP Lovecraft. Need some witty allusions? Feel free to use James Joyce. There is so much out there to work with, so why don’t you? I will stand by the sidelines waiting while you make some oh-so romantic reference to “Romeo and Juliet”.