The Philosophy of Composition: "The Philosophy of Composition" is an 1846 essay written by American writer Edgar Allan Poe that elucidates a theory about how good writers write when they write well. The essay states Poe's conviction that a work of fiction should be written only after the author has decided how it is to end and which emotional response, or "effect," he wishes to create, commonly known as the "unity of effect." Once this effect has been determined, the writer should decide all other matters pertaining to the composition of the work, including tone, theme, setting, characters, conflict, and plot. In this case, Poe logically decides on "the death... of a beautiful woman" as it "is unquestionably the most poetical topic in the world, and equally is it beyond doubt that the lips best suited for such topic are those of a bereaved lover." Some commentators have taken this to imply that pure poetry can only be attained by the eradication of female beauty.

Edgar Allan Poe: Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor, and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story, and is generally considered the inventor of the detective fiction genre. 死於Baltimore

The Raven: "The Raven" is a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe. The poem is often noted for its musicality, stylized language, and supernatural atmosphere. Poe claimed to have written the poem very logically and methodically, intending to create a poem that would appeal to both critical and popular tastes, as he explained in his 1846 follow-up essay "The Philosophy of Composition".

Baltimore Ravens(唯一一個以文學作品命名的球隊): The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland, playing in the North Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). The team's name was inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's poem The Raven—as Poe lived for a time in Baltimore, died and was buried there in 1849—and by the name of Major League Baseball's Baltimore Orioles.

The Tell-Tale Heart: "The Tell-Tale Heart" is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe first published in 1843. It is told by an unnamed narrator who endeavors to convince the reader of his sanity, while describing a murder he committed.

A Psalm of Life written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

“Art is long, and Time is fleeting,

And our hearts, though stout and brave,

Still, like muffled drums, are beating

Funeral marches to the grave.”

“Prophet!” from quotation the raven, “Nevermore.” 此議題　→ Trumpet of a prophecy (Percy Bysshe Shelley)

浪漫時期五大詩人：Percy Bysshe Shelley, William Wordsworth, Lord Byron, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, John Keats.

“And my soul from out that lies floating on the floor.” Shall be lifted - nevermore

I wandered as a lonely cloud. by William Wordsworth

擷取第一段

I wandered lonely as a cloud

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Annabel Lee: text "Annabel Lee" is the last complete poem composed by American author Edgar Allan Poe. Like many of Poe's poems, it explores the theme of the death of a beautiful woman.

To Helen抒情詩，古典的美麗

Helen, thy beauty is to me

   Like those Nicéan barks of yore,

That gently, o'er a perfumed sea,

   The weary, way-worn wanderer bore

   To his own native shore.

On desperate seas long wont to roam,

   Thy hyacinth hair, thy classic face,

Thy Naiad airs have brought me home

   To the glory that was Greece,     

   And the grandeur that was Rome.

Lo! in yon brilliant window-niche

   How statue-like I see thee stand,

The agate lamp within thy hand!

   Ah, Psyche, from the regions which

   Are Holy-Land!

The Fall of the House of Usher  門房之意

“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year…”

→alliteration