Edgar Allan Poe was considered the first great American literary critic.

Poe is considered America’s first great literary critic. During his lifetime, American authors were considered inferior to their British counterparts, and many American authors imitated British literature. Poe frequently attacked authors he considered guilty of imitation, and he was often the first to accuse an author of plagiarism if their work too closely resembled that of another author. The popular American poet Longfellow was a favorite target. In a review of Longfellow’s poetry, Poe wrote, “A few insist on his imagination—thus proving the extent of their own — and showing themselves to be utterly unread in the Old English and modern German literature of which, the author of “Outre Mer” is unquestionably indebted for whatever imagination or traces of invention his works may display.”

Poe was an author, poet, inventor of the Detective Story, and a pioneer of science fiction. Poe’s tales have influenced writer Steven King and filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock.