Knowra Rufus Wilmot Griswold Rufus Wilmot Griswold Rufus Wilmot Griswold was an American editor, anthologist, and literary critic whose poetry collections shaped the canon of American verse. His hostile memoir of Edgar Allan Poe became central to Poe’s posthumous reputation.
Edgar Allan Poe : Edgar Allan Poe was an American writer known for poetry, tales of mystery, and early detective fiction. Poe’s death made Griswold his literary executor and the author of a notorious memoir.
The Poets and Poetry of America : Rufus Wilmot Griswold’s 1842 anthology of American poetry, repeatedly revised and reprinted. This influential collection made Griswold a powerful selector of American poetic reputations.
Literary canon : A body of works and authors widely recognized as central to a literary tradition. Griswold’s repeated anthologies helped establish which American poets received lasting recognition.
Poe’s letters to Griswold : A surviving group of letters in which Edgar Allan Poe discussed literary work and dealings with Rufus Wilmot Griswold. The correspondence complicates claims that their relationship was only one of hostility.
Nathaniel Parker Willis : Nathaniel Parker Willis was an American writer, editor, and newspaper publisher. Willis employed Griswold and helped establish his place in American literary journalism.
The Female Poets of America : Rufus Wilmot Griswold’s 1848 anthology of poetry by American women. It extended his canon-making project to women poets, while revealing his editorial judgments about them.
American literature : Literature written in the United States and its colonial predecessors. Griswold’s collections promoted a distinct national body of writing.
Maria Clemm : Maria Clemm was Edgar Allan Poe’s aunt and mother-in-law, who supported him throughout much of his adult life. Her account of Poe’s final days differs from details circulated by Griswold and others.
James Russell Lowell : James Russell Lowell was an American poet, critic, and editor associated with the New England literary establishment. Lowell’s criticism challenged the standards and judgments Griswold promoted.
The Prose Writers of America : Rufus Wilmot Griswold’s anthology of American prose writers, first published in 1847. The companion volume broadened his attempt to map a national literature beyond poetry.
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