Edgar Allen Poe, an American writer, was born in 1809.
埃德加·愛倫·坡是一個美國作家,出生于1809年。
His parents were actors.
他的父母都是演員。
Edgar was a baby when his father left the family.
埃德加還是嬰兒的時候,他的父親離開了家。
He was two years old when his mother died.
當(dāng)他兩歲時,他的母親去世了。
He was taken into the home of a wealthy businessman named John Allen.
他被一個名叫約翰·艾倫的富商領(lǐng)養(yǎng)到家里。
He then received his new name - Edgar Allen Poe.
于是有了一個新的名字——埃德加·愛倫·坡。
As a young man, Poe attended the University of Virginia.
年輕的時候,坡就讀于弗吉尼亞大學(xué)。
He was a good student, but he liked to drink alcohol and play card games for money.
他是一個優(yōu)秀的學(xué)生,但他喜歡喝酒,還熱衷于玩紙牌來賺錢。
As an unskilled game player, he often lost money.
因為牌技不佳,他經(jīng)常輸錢。
Since he couldn't pay off his gambling debt, he left university and began working for magazines.
因為無法償還賭債,他離開了大學(xué),開始在雜志社工作。
He worked hard, yet he was not well-paid, or well-known.
他工作很努力,但是沒有得到很好的報酬,且默默無聞。
At the age of 27, he got married.
在27歲時,他結(jié)婚了。
For a time it seemed that Poe would find some happiness,
一度坡似乎找到了幸福,
but his wife was sick for most of their marriage, and died in 1847.
但他的妻子在婚姻生活的多數(shù)時候都是生著病的,而后在1847年去世了
Through all his crises, Poe produced many stories and poems which appeared in different publications,
通過他遇到的所有危難,坡創(chuàng)作了許多故事和詩歌,并出現(xiàn)在不同的出版物中,
yet he didn't become famous until 1845, when his poem, The Raven, was published.
但當(dāng)時還未出名。直到1845年,他的詩歌《烏鴉》出版,他才聲名大噪。
There is a question, however, about Poe's importance in American literature.
然而,有一個問題是,坡對于美國文學(xué)到底有多重要。
Some critics say Poe was one of America's best writers,
一些評論家認為坡是美國最好的作家之一,
and even had a great influence on many French writers, but others disagree.
甚至對許多法國作家產(chǎn)生了很大的影響,但另外一些人不同意。
They say Poe's work is difficult to understand
他們認為坡的作品很難懂,
and most of his writing describes many unpleasant situations and events.
其中大部分描寫的是許多不愉快的情境和事件。
Edgar Allen Poe died in 1849 when he was 40 years old.
埃德加·愛倫·坡于1849年去世,享年40歲。
It is said that he was found dead after days of heavy drinking.
據(jù)說他是多日酗酒后被發(fā)現(xiàn)死亡的。