During the 18th century the gothic horror genre became popular with stories such as 'Frankenstein' and 'Dracula.' By using the conventions of the Gothic horror to his advantage and also expressing a recognisable individual style, Poe has become one of the, most respected writers of his genre. To study the extent that Poe conforms, the conventions of the genre must first be identified. A dictionary definition of Gothic Horror states that it is 'of …showed first 75 words of 2477 total…

…showed last 75 words of 2477 total…himself or herself unique. However, overall I have to go on the evidence that I have, and whilst reading 'The Tell-Tale Heart' and 'The Black Cat' I have found many examples of writing that fit the conventions of gothic horror and therefore I believe that Edgar Allen Poe did conform to the conventions of gothic horror. However, I don't believe that this makes his work any less original or worthy of the respect it deserves.