Arthur Poe
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| Arthur Poe | |
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| A Series of Unfortunate Events character | |
| First appearance | The Bad Beginning |
| Portrayed by | Timothy Spall |
| Date of death | (possibly) burned alive[1] |
| Occupation | banker |
| Family | Polly Poe (wife) Edgar Poe (son) Albert Poe (son) Eleanora Poe (sister) |
Arthur Poe (usually referred to as Mr. Poe) is a fictional character from the A Series of Unfortunate Events book series by Lemony Snicket. He is a banker in charge of the affairs of the Baudelaire orphans. He was their guardian for a short time in The Bad Beginning before it was arranged the Baudelaires would go and live with Count Olaf. In the The Bad Beginning, Mr. Poe is said to be a family friend of the Baudelaires and pays frequent visits to the Baudelaires, which enable them to recognize him the moment they see him.
He is notable for having a recurring cough. The reason for Mr. Poe's cough is stated in The Bad Beginning, as he always has a cold. In the Unauthorized Autobiography, Poe's sister Eleanora mentions that he has had his cough since they were young.
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[edit] Personality
Although his primary responsibility is to help the Baudelaires, he is rarely of any useful assistance (Lemony Snicket describes him as being as helpful as a jar of mustard)[2]. His focus on his banking career seems to make him completely oblivious to the hardships and danger of the Baudelaires. Though the Baudelaires are much more intelligent than him, he completely dismisses and ignores everything they say as ramblings of little children. Some fans of the series believe that Poe is being deliberately unhelpful and ignorant - (that he is actually a villain or a member of V.F.D., although there is no evidence in the books to suggest this), this could also just be a result of his incompetence. On many occasions he expresses a thought which is the exact opposite of what the Baudelaires are imagining[3].
[edit] Career
Poe's employer is Mulctuary Money Management. The word "mulct" means "to embezzle funds." This may indicate that Poe is after the Baudelaire fortune, and has purposely placed them in peril. However, it could merely a satirical comment on the general perception of banks.
In several of the books, he seems to be very excited about receiving a promotion. His title at Mulctuary Money Management in The Bad Beginning is not stated, but at the start of The Miserable Mill, while on a train to Paltryville, he announces to the children that he is now Vice-President in Charge of Coins. Then in the sixth book in the series, The Ersatz Elevator, he becomes Vice-President in Charge of Orphan Affairs. Esmé Squalor deems him an "unstylish banker". After making a short appearance when he lets the Baudelaires choose a town at a new program where they let a entire village be a guardian of an orphan/orphans. Since then, he loses touch with the Baudelaires until a brief appearance of him in end of The Grim Grotto on Briny Beach, right before the Baudelaires meet Kit Snicket.
Count Olaf reveals that Poe had adoption papers hidden under his hat at some point after his promotion to Vice President in Charge of Orphan Affairs (which occurs before the start of The Ersatz Elevator); Mr. Poe is implied in rare edition of The Bad Beginning to have something hidden under his hat. Olaf also mentions that "at the time" Mr. Poe was better known under his stage name, implying that Poe also works as an actor.
[edit] Death(?)
Mr. Poe was staying at the Hotel Denouement- investigating the robbery of his bank by Mrs. Bass - when it was burned down during The Penultimate Peril, but it is unknown whether he escaped. Also, some people believe he is killed or will be killed with a harpoon gun, with evidence drawn from The Penultimate Peril [1]. It may also merely be Lemony Snicket's pessimistic writing style - the books offer no further information. In The End, Mr. Poe does not appear, but an islander called Sadie seems to know Mr. Poe and of his occupation.
[edit] Family
See also: List of A Series of Unfortunate Events characters#Poe family
Mr. Poe has a wife, Polly, and two children, Edgar and Albert, but they appear only in The Bad Beginning. The names of his two children is a reference to Edgar Allan Poe, keeping with the trend throughout the books of literary allusions. He also has a sister named Eleonora Poe, a reporter for the Daily Punctilio, which references to the short story Eleonora written by Edgar Allan Poe himself.
[edit] Film portrayal
In the film, Poe remains a buffoon and generally unintelligent. He never says anything explicitly patronizing, though it is implied and gives an unhelpful attitude towards the Baudelaires. He was played by Timothy Spall, who also plays Peter Pettigrew in another best-selling set of novels, Harry Potter by J.K.Rowling.
[edit] Appearances
- The Bad Beginning
- The Reptile Room
- The Wide Window
- The Miserable Mill
- The Austere Academy
- The Ersatz Elevator
- The Vile Village
- The Grim Grotto
- The Penultimate Peril
[edit] Notes
- ^ Snicket says "it wasn't Mr. Poe's destiny to be killed by a harpoon gun, at least not this evening in particular." This could mean that Mr. Poe will be killed by a harpoon gun on some other occasion or simply he just did not die on this occasion.
[edit] References
- ^ In the fire of Hotel Denouement
- ^ In The Miserable Mill
- ^ Such as in The Austere Academy when the Baudelaires interpret the term "cakesniffer" as an insult but Poe interprets it as a "nice term that reminds him of pastry".
| Preceded by Mr. and Mrs. Baudelaire |
Guardian of Violet, Klaus and Sunny Baudelaire | Succeeded by Count Olaf (The Bad Beginning) |
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