Writing a research essay?

I have to write a research essay on Edgar Allan Poe. Basically, my topic is that i'm using his life experiences to see how it effected his poetry. I never wrote a research essay before and i'm wondering how do they differ from the usual ytical essay, where it's just intro > detail > explanation? I want to prove that his work is influenced by how his life was and that his best work is based on his mother, wife, death, and other things that were close to him. I don't want it to sound persuasive because it's a research topic but I don't know how to write an essay like this!