“Annabel Lee” is said to be the last poem Edgar Allan Poe ever wrote. Published soon after his death in 1849, the poem speaks to the death of a lady love.
Could Poe have penned these lines about his own wife, Virginia? Poe was widowed in 1847, when Virginia died of tuberculosis. Was she chilled and killed by the wind by the sea?
Annabel Lee, by Edgar Allan Poe
It was many and many a year ago,
In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
Than to love and be loved by me.
I was a child and she was a child,
In this kingdom by the sea:
But we loved with a love that was more than love --
I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her high-born kinsmen came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and me --
Yes! that was the reason (as all men know,
In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud one night,
Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we --
Of many far wiser than we --
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling -- my darling --my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea --
In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Related Items:
- Poets on Poetry - Edgar Allan Poe
- Poetry Analysis: "Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May" by Robert Herrick
- His Perfect Passion
- A Daughter's First Love
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Image/s:
Virginia Poe
Public Domain/Wikipedia Commons Photos
“Annabel Lee” in Poe’s own handwriting
1849 Fair Copy – Public Domain
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One of my favorite EAP poems!! :)
ReplyDeleteHello, Fellow Challenger, from #424-Rockin'Chair Reflections! Good question. I think it may be so. Definitely love his soft side.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely love this poem. My mother used to read it to us when we were children (it's one of her favorites as well.)
ReplyDeleteI don't know if Poe was writing about his wife, but he certainly channeled his emotions from her loss into these words.
ReplyDeleteLovely and haunting, this.
What a sad, wonderful entry for A. Thanks for sharing.
A/American Road
Young Edgar Allan Poe is a character in my historical fantasy, THE RIVAL, where he calls the ghoul, Alice Wentworth, 'Annabel Lee.' If you visit my post of today, you will see why he called her that! Lovely poem and post, Roland
ReplyDeleteI love Poe's poems. He's got such a flow in them.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read that poem in ages. Thank you for posting it and what a wonderful theme for your challenge. I'll be checking back to see what's next.
ReplyDeleteAnnabel Lee is one of my favorite pieces of literature bar none. absolutely love that poem, always have.
ReplyDeleteI'm here to say hi and welcome you to the Challenge!
KarenG
What a lovely poem, it must have been about his wife!
ReplyDeleteThis is me, Duncan D. Horne, visiting you from the A-Z challenge, wishing you all the best throughout April and beyond.
Duncan In Kuantan
I love Poe, and this is such a haunting poem. When we visited Baltimore a few years ago we saw his grave; his wife and mother-in-law are buried there, as well. It's nice to think that they're all together. Thanks for posting this. As a poetry lover, I'll be following you!
ReplyDeleteMy all-time favorite by Poe! A great "A" post! Thanks so much for sharing! Good luck this April!
ReplyDeleteDusty