POEcast: The Poe Studies Association Podcast

Richard Kopley joins me for an illuminating big picturediscussion of his major critical biography, Edgar Allan Poe: A Life (University of Virginia Press, 2025), a remarkable work of scholarly labor and love. We begin with a broad discussion of Richard’s view of his biography (1:07). We then move on to talk about the concept of genius (2:40), the letters of Flora Lapham Mack (used here for the first time) (6:05), the three major arcs that tie together the book (14:00), Poe’s relationships to alcohol and women (23:45), the role of the biographer (27:13), and some recommendations for teaching (32:08).

Alexandra Urakova joins me for a deep dive into “The Man of the Crowd” and her Gargano-Award-winning essay “‘Penetrating into the Secrets of the Afflicted Heart’: ‘The Man of the Crowd’ and Antebellum Philanthropic Discourse,” published in The Edgar Allan Poe Review in 2023. We discuss Alexandra’s Poe scholarship (1:31), the critical framework of her essay (7:55), her interpretation of the story in relation to philanthropic discourse (13:56), the way her essay departs from notable previous readings (20:21), how teachers could (and why they should!) bring “The Man of the Crowd” into the classroom (29:26), and her current Poe-related works-in-progress (40:10).

In our eighth episode, I talk to Amy Branam Armiento and Travis Montgomery, the co-editors of Poe and Women: Recognition and Revision (Lehigh University Press and Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, 2023). Over the course of the discussion, Amy and Travis talk about their research backgrounds (1:47), illuminate the project’s origins and inspirations (5:36), and offer a breakdown of the book’s two sections with attention to each chapter (8:48), including Amy’s “Fifty Years of Women’s Scholarship on Poe” (10:08) and Travis’s “Afterword: Maureen Cobb Mabbott and The Collected Works of Edgar Allan Poe” (35:47). The conversation ends with a focus on the role of the Poe Studies Association in their scholarship (42:25) and some exciting announcements about their future work (45:40).

Dr. John Gruesser and Dr. Norlisha (Tish) Crawford join me to discuss their co-edited special issue of Poe Studies, titled African American Authors Respond to Poe (2023). After I introduce the guests, John and Tish explain the origin and inspiration of the project (3:05). From there, they talk about the format of the issue (with its mix of creative responses, interviews, and critical essays) (6:18), read and reflect on Poe’s “Alone” and Linda D. Addison’s “On My Own” (10:58), and comment on the interviews and articles (19:46). Closing thoughts on the special issue revolve around scholarly attention to genre fiction and the construction of the canon (36:47). In the end, John and Tish preview some upcoming projects and publications (49:36). Like the special issue, this engaging interview highlights new perspectives on Poe and his work.  

Dr. John Tresch, Mellon Chair and Professor of History of Art, Science, and Folk Practice at the Warburg Institute, joins me in an exciting conversation focused on The Reason for the Darkness in the Night: Edgar Allan Poe and the Forging of American Science (Straus and Giroux, 2021). We discuss the origins of the project and its unexpected track to becoming a biography (1:42), Poe’s early life and immersion in science (8:27), “Sonnet to Science” (13:22), “The Tell-Tale Heart” (18:28), the intersections between Poe and Alexander Dallas Bache and Joseph Henry (24:32), the parallel tracks that Poe and those men pursued in an attempt to institutionalize their fields (33:42), and Eureka (42:40). We close by talking about the upcoming special issue in Poe Studies focused on science, for which he wrote the introduction (52:59). The conversation is full of surprises and ideas that can inspire new perspectives and investigations for Poe studies!

Dr. Scott Peeples, Professor of English at the College of Charleston, joins me to talk about his recent book, The Man of the Crowd: Edgar Allan Poe and the City (Princeton University Press, 2020). We discuss the origins of the project and his previous work on Poe and place (1:19), the structure of the book and the focus on the city (13:34), some major arcs in his narrative (15:43), Poe and New York City (20:21), and the desperate itineracy that marked the last fifteen months of Poe’s life (25:49). We close by turning to the research and writing process (29:14), the evolving role of Michelle Van Parys’s photography in The Man of the Crowd (34:28), and his current work on Bob Dylan (37:18). Like The Man of the Crowd, this sit-down with Scott proves both engaging and illuminating.

Dr. J. Gerald Kennedy, Emeritus Boyd Professor of English at Louisiana State University, joins me in an intriguing conversation about some of his major publications and edited collections and his upcoming cultural biography on Poe. (Our talk also includes shout-outs to our previous guests, Richard Kopley, Kelly Ross, Emron Esplin, and Margarida Vale de Gato!) We start with a discussion of Poe, Death, and the Life of Writing and its relation to his current work (1:15). We then turn to three of his “greatest hits”—Romancing the Shadow: Poe and Race (18:10), Strange Nation: Literary Nationalism and Cultural Conflict in the Age of Poe (25:16), and The Oxford Handbook of Edgar Allan Poe (38:06). We close with continued attention to Jerry’s work-in-progress biography (44:57). As you’ll hear, the work promises to dig deep into Poe’s search for meaning in life and his yearning for the beyond.

In our third episode, I talk to Emron Esplin and Margarida Vale de Gato about Poe and his global influence, as well as the fields of translation and anthology studies. We discuss their research backgrounds (1:02), the origins of their working relationship and their first edited collection Translated Poe (6:46), major takeaways from and their individual chapters in Translated Poe (14:45), their second edited collection Anthologizing Poe and the importance of a critical focus on anthologies (40:05), the process of putting together an edited collection (51:26), and their future work (58:10). -Caleb Doan, host of POEcast

In our second episode, I talk to Kelly Ross, Associate Professor at Rider University, about Poe and her critical triangulation of slavery, surveillance, and detective fiction, as detailed in her recent book, Slavery, Surveillance, and Genre in Antebellum United States Literature (Oxford UP, 2023). Over the course of our conversation, we discuss the origins of her book (1:12); modes of detection (2:33); genre (9:02); the second chapter of her book, which comparatively analyzes The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym and Charles Ball’s Slavery in the United States (11:04); Poe’s Dupin stories (22:00); “Hop-Frog” (29:58); her advice to researchers and writers (32:20); connections between antebellum period and today (35:11); and recent trends in Poe scholarship (38:40). --Caleb Doan, host of POEcast

In our first episode, I talk to Richard Kopley, Professor Emeritus of English at Penn State DuBois, about his upcoming critical biography Edgar Allan Poe: A Life, under contract with University of Virginia Press. In the interview, Richard discusses the primary inspiration for the project: a box of letters by Flora Lapham Mack (a member of the extended family of John H. MacKenzie, one of Poe’s lifelong friends) containing a series of stories about Poe previously unknown to the world (5:02). After previewing one of these new stories (10:02), we turn our attention to the research and writing process, focusing on his archival research experiences and insights, connections between biography and literary criticism, his work's relation to other Poe biographies, writing strategies, and more. --Caleb Doan, host of POEcast

Welcome to POEcast: The Poe Studies Association Podcast, where we discuss Edgar Allan Poe and track recent trends in Poe studies. In this trailer, Caleb Doan introduces listeners to the pod and previews the first episode with Dr. Richard Kopley, which will be available to stream on Friday, September 15, 2023. This podcast is hosted by Dr. Caleb Doan, Visiting Professor of English at Grand Valley State University, and produced by GVSU's Digital Studio. Our intro and closing music comes from "The Raven" by Destroyer. For more information on the Poe Studies Association, please visit our website at https://www.poestudiesassociation.org/. If you have questions for the host or ideas for future guests and episodes, please write to Caleb at [email protected].