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Thomas Holley Chivers (October 18, 1809 – December 18, 1858) was an American doctor-turned-poet from the state of Georgia. He is best known for his friendship with Edgar Allan Poe and his controversial defense of the poet after his death. Born into a wealthy Georgia family, Chivers became interested in poetry at a young age. After he and his first wife separated, he received a medical degree from Transylvania University but focused his energy on publishing rather than medicine. In addition to submitting poems to various magazines and journals, Chivers published several volumes of poetry, including ''The Lost Pleiad'' in 1845, as well as plays. Edgar Allan Poe showed an interest in the young poet and encouraged his work. Chivers spent the last few years of his life defending the reputation of Poe, who had died in 1849, though he also thought Poe had been heavily influenced by his own poetry. Chivers died in Georgia in 1858. As a literary theorist, Chivers believed in divine inspiration. He encouraged the development of a distinctive American style of literature and especially promoted young writers. His poems were known for religious overtones with an emphasis on death and reunions with lost loved ones in the afterlife. Though he built up a mild reputation in his day, he was soon forgotten after his death. ==Life and work== Chivers was born on October 18, 1809,〔Nelson, 47〕 at Digby Manor, his father's plantation near Washington, Georgia.〔Ehrlich, Eugene and Gorton Carruth. ''The Oxford Illustrated Literary Guide to the United States''. New York: Oxford University Press, 1982: 260. ISBN 0-19-503186-5〕 At age seven, he was introduced to poetry when he read William Cowper's "The Rose".〔Parks, 166〕 In 1827, Chivers married his 16-year-old cousin Frances Elizabeth Chivers. The two soon separated due to alleged meddling by Frances Chivers Albert, the wife of the poet's uncle, prior to the birth of their daughter in 1828.〔Watts, 113–114〕 It has also been suggested their separation was due to abuse, though these rumors originated from the same uncle.〔Lombard, 13〕 After this incident, Chivers compared himself to Lord Byron, whose wife had also left him.〔Hubbell, 551〕 Chivers went on to receive a degree in medicine in 1830 from Transylvania University in Kentucky. His thesis was titled "Intermittent and Remittent Fevers".〔 Chivers wandered throughout the West and North of the United States, publishing poetry in various places before returning to Georgia.〔 In 1832, Chivers published ''The Path of Sorrow'', a collection of poetry based on the events of his troubled first marriage. Two years later, he published ''Conrad and Eudora; or, The Death of Alonzo'', the first fictionalized account of the actual 1825 murder case nicknamed the "Kentucky Tragedy". The work was later renamed ''Leoni, The Orphan of Venice''.〔Whited, 404–405〕 On November 21, 1834, Chivers married Harriet Hunt of Springfield, Massachusetts and the couple had four children, though all died young.〔Lombard, 14–15〕 Chivers and his first wife never legally divorced—one such suit was dismissed in court in 1835—but Georgia law invalidated marriage after a spouse's absence of five years or more.〔Lombard, 12〕 Though Chivers contributed to various newspapers and magazines, his poetry was turned down for publication by the ''Southern Literary Messenger'' in March 1835, which suggested he return to medicine and the "lancet and pill-box".〔 Though the poems were not printed, unsigned commentary on them was presented in an editorial, referring to verses submitted by "T. H. C., M. D."〔Lombard, 14〕 ''The Lost Pleiad'' was self-published in New York in 1845 to initial success, though sales rapidly declined.〔Lombard, 46〕 In 1837, Chivers self-published ''Nacoochee; or, the Beautiful Star, With Other Poems''. The volume was dedicated to his mother, who died a year later.〔Lombard, 38〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Thomas Holley Chivers」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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