Sarah Helen Whitman
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Sarah Helen Power Whitman (19 January, 1803 - 27 June, 1878), was a poet, essayist, transcendentalist, Spiritualist and a romantic interest of Edgar Allan Poe.
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[edit] Early life
She was born in Providence, Rhode Island on January 19 - the same day as Poe, though a few years before him. In 1828, she married the poet and writer John Winslow Whitman. John had been co-editor of the Boston Spectator and Ladies' Album, which allowed Sarah to publish some of her poetry using the name "Helen." John died in 1833; he and Sarah never had children.
Sarah Helen Whitman allegedly had a heart condition that she treated with ether she breathed in through her handkerchief.[1]
Whitman was friends with Margaret Fuller and other intellectuals in New England. She became interested in transcendentalism through this social group and after hearing Ralph Waldo Emerson lecture in Boston, Massachusetts and in Providence. She also became interested in science, mesmerism, and the occult.[2]
[edit] Relationship with Edgar Allan Poe
A friend, Annie Lynch, had asked Whitman to write a poem for a Valentine's Day party in 1848. She agreed, and wrote one for the famous author Edgar Allan Poe. Poe heard about the tribute, and returned the favor by anonymously sending his previously-printed poem "To Helen". Whitman may not have known it was from Poe himself and she did not respond. Three months later, Poe wrote her an entirely new poem, "To Helen," referencing a moment from several years earlier where Poe allegedly saw her at a lecture he was giving.[3]
The two exchanged letters and poetry for some time before discussing marriage, finally signing an agreement in December 1848. Poe had also agreed to remain sober during their engagement - a vow he violated within only a few days. It was also discovered by Whitman's mother that Poe was also pursuing Annie Richmond and childhood sweetheart Sarah Elmira Royster. Even so, the wedding had come so close to occurring that, in January 1849, a newspaper in New London, Connecticut and others announced their union and wished them well.[4]
[edit] Later life
Her Hours of Life, and Other Poems was published in 1853. In 1860 she published a work in defense of Poe against his critics (including Rufus Wilmot Griswold), entitled Edgar Allan Poe and His Critics. She died at the age of 75 in 1878 at 133 Brown St. in Providence, and is buried in the North Burial Ground. In her will, she used the bulk of her estate to publish a volume of her own poetry and that of her sister. She also left money to the Providence Association for the Benefit of Colored Children and the Rhode Island Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.[5]
[edit] External link
[edit] References
- ^ Sova, Dawn B. Edgar Allan Poe: A to Z. Checkmark Books, 2001. p. 254.
- ^ Silverman, Kenneth. Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance. Harper Perennial, 1991. pp. 347-8.
- ^ Silverman, Kenneth. Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance. Harper Perennial, 1991. pp. 347-51.
- ^ Silverman, Kenneth. Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance. Harper Perennial, 1991. pp. 385-8.
- ^ Silverman, Kenneth. Edgar A. Poe: Mournful and Never-ending Remembrance. Harper Perennial, 1991. p. 521.
