Excerpt from The Poems of Edgar Allan Poe: Edited

This edition of ipoe's Poems includes all the poems collected either by the poet himself or by his literary executor, Rufus 'w. Griswold. I have endeavored to give also a complete and accu rate record of the multifarious revisions made by the poet in republishing his verses a matter of extreme importance for the understanding of his art; and I have departed from former editors in presenting these at the foot of the page along with the text to which they refer, where alone they may be easily consulted. In the Notes - and here, again, I have departed from former edi tors I have given a full and detailed commentary on each of the poems. From the vast body of material, biographical, historical, critical, and interpretative, that has been written about Poe, I have endeavored to garner whatever will contribute to a truer under standing of his poems or to a juster appreciation of them. And where comment from others was wanting or seemed inadequate, I have attempted to supply the deficiency by researches of my own. In particular, I have addressed myself to the following matters: the circumstances of composition and publication of each of the poems, the relation of the poems to each other and to the tales, the poet's relation to other poets and to his time, the autobiographical element in his verses, and the judgments passed on his work by his contemporaries.

In the Introduction I have set forth the main facts of the poet's life, adding certain details of my own discovery; and I have also dealt there with questions of authenticity and authority of text, with the nature and the worth of the poet's textual revisions, with his sources, and with the diversity of opinion respecting his achieve ment as poet.

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