Greatness is not something you are born with; it's something you get. Many people have the power to be great. The easiest way to define how great someone is is by what they've done. People who are significant or stand out are great because they are known for their contributions. For example, Edgar Allan Poe is a great man. He is a great person and amazing for the way he has contributed to literature. He is widely known for his literature and poems which have survived many years after his collage. He was an excellent critic, so much so that people would ask him to review their work, whether it was poetry, a novel they had been working on, or any written work. Poe is considered great because without him our world would be devoid of the detective genre. Edgar Allan Poe can be considered great through his work, the life he lived, and the way he died. His workPoe's work and his introduction to the detective genre have contributed greatly to the world of literature. He is sometimes considered one of the first science fiction writers after October 14, 1844, when Poe invented a story in the New York Sun about an adventurer crossing the Atlantic Ocean in a hot air balloon ("Uncovering Edgar Allan..." 1 ). Most of his work usually involves scientific references. “Poe's knowledge of science and engineering probably came from his studies at West Point where he was a cadet in 1830” (1). For example, in Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," there was a scene where the Sherlock Holmes-type character looks at the Orion Nebula, now known as the birthplace of new stars and solar systems ( 1). His work is not only based on scientific references, Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most influential figures in modern European literature...... middle of paper ...... he is like an exciting figure , but just because he existed, we can be grateful for The Raven, The Fall of The House of Usher, The Masque of Red Death, and The Pit and The Pendulum, some of his plays. Mr. Poe inspired many people after his death to write and find their deepest interest in literature. If a person can inspire hundreds of people after his death, he deserves the title "great." Since Edgar Allan Poe impacts generations, he is great. This world is full of great people, Poe being one in a million, who will surface and make a name for themselves. One day in the near future we will know that we all have the potential to become a great person. “As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in our ability to remake the world – that is the myth of the atomic age – as in our ability to remake ourselves,” says another great character well known, Mahatma Gandhi..