The Man Who Was Poe

Edmund runs to Mrs. Whitman’s house and explains his task to the servant, Catherine, who agrees to let him in if he promises not to make anything dirty. Mrs. Whitman does not immediately recognize Mr. Dupin’s name, but after a moment she realizes who he is. She was unaware Dupin was in Providence, and Edmund reminds her that he delivered a letter to her late last night. She expresses concern about Dupin’s drinking, explaining to Edmund that Dupin is “a genius” and “the most passionate, the most romantic of men” (63). She tells him not to speak about this letter to anyone and sends him off with Catherine to get some food from the kitchen. 

At the courthouse, Dupin wonders if Aunty’s “beauty had made her dead” or vice versa (65). He notices that no one seems to care about her inquest hearing, other than one spectator paying particularly close attention. Fortnoy explains in his testimony that he finished his watchman shift aboard The Lady Liberty and saw the woman in the water. Dupin sees a vision of Aunty before falling asleep. The judge rules Aunty’s death a “willful murder,” but the perpetrator remains unknown. A court officer wakes Dupin up once everyone else is gone, and he experiences “a sense of inescapable death” (67).