Annabel Lee

. Study Guide Compiled by Michael J. Cummings.. 2005 Setting: The narrator (persona) writes about a fictional kingdom along the ocean shore. It is an idyllic, beautiful, land of enchantmenta paradise on earthwhere he and Annabel Lee fell in love as adolescents. One can imagine that they
strolled the beaches, hand in hand, in gentle breezes while the sun went down and the tide rushed in. This kingdom, where love ruled their hearts, remains dear to the memory of the poet after Annabel Lee dies, for his soul remains united with hers. Characters Narrator (persona): A man of deep sensibility who extolls a young maiden with whom he fell deeply in love. Annabel Lee: Beautiful young maiden loved by the poet. She was of noble birth, as Line 17 of Stanza 1 suggests when it says she had highborn relatives. Annabel Lee probably represents Poe's wife, who died at a young age. Seraphs: Members of the highest order of angels around the throne of God. According to the Bible, they each had three pairs of wings. In the poem, the seraphs are so envious of the love between the narrator and Annabel Lee that they cause Annabels death. Relative of Annabel Lee: A highborn kinsman (Line 17, Stanza 1) who carries away and entombs her body. Date of Publication: "Annabel Lee" was published on October 9, 1849, in the New York Daily Tribune. Theme Eternal love. The love between the narrator and Annabel Lee is so strong and beautiful and pure that even the seraphs, the highest order of angels in heaven, envy it. They attempt to kill this love by sending a chilling wind that kills Annabel Lee. However, the love remains aliveeternalbecause the souls of the lovers remain united. The death of a beautiful woman is a common theme in Poes writing. Romeo and Juliet Motif: Like Shakespeares Romeo and Juliet, the narrator and Annabel Lee are both very young when they fall deeply in love. In addition, like Shakespeares star -crossed lovers, Poes lovers become victims of forces beyond their control. Finally, the narrator and Annabel Leelike Romeo and Julietexperience a love beyond the understanding of older persons. (See the opening lines of the second stanza.) The Real Annabel Lee: The model for Annabel Lee was probably Poes wife, Virginia Clemm, whom he married when she was only 13. Their marriage was a very happy one. Unfortunately, she died of tuberculosis in January 1847 when she was still in her twenties. Poedied two years and nine months later on October 7, 1849. Annabel Lee was his last poem. Rhyme, Rhythm, Repetition: Poe uses three Rsrhyme, rhythm, and repetitionin Annabel Lee to create a harmony of sounds that underscore the exquisite harmony of the narrators relationship with his beloved. Rhyme and Repetition Throughout the poem, Poe repeats the soud of long "e." For example, in the first stanza, Line 2 ends with sea, Line 4 with Lee, and Line 6 withme. Stanzas 2 and 3 repeat the sea, Lee, me pattern, although Stanza 3 adds a second endrhyming sea. Stanza 4 alters the pattern to me, sea, and Lee. Stanza 5 uses we, we, sea, and Lee; the last stanza uses Lee, Lee, sea, and sea. A notable example of internal rhyme occurs in the last line of Stanza 4: Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee. Rhythm and Repetition The lines of the poem alternate in length between a long line (usually with 9 to 11 syllables) and a short line (usually with 6 to 8 syllables), as in the first stanza: It was many and many a year ago, (11 syllables) In a kingdom by the sea, (7 syllables) That a maiden there lived whom you may know (10 syllables) By the name of Annabel Lee (8 syllables) And this maiden she lived with no other thought (11 syllables) Than to love and be loved by me. (8 syllables) Poe repeats this rhythmic pattern throughout the poem, perhaps to suggest the rise and fall of the tides. He also repeats key phrasessuch as in this kingdom by the sea and my Annabel Lee (or my beautiful Annabel Lee)to create haunting refrains. In addition, Poe sometimes repeats words or word patterns within a single line, as in (1) many and many a year ago, (2) we loved with a love that was more than love, and (3) my darlingmy darling. Poe further enhances the rhythm of the poem with the repetition of consonant sounds (alliteration). Notice, for example, the repetition of the w and l so unds in this line in Stanza 2: But we loved with a love that was more than love." Poe sometimes couples repetition of consonant sounds with repetition of vowel sounds, as in many and many, love and be loved, and those who were older than we.

Word Choice: Poe carefully chose the words of the poem to evoke a dreamland or fairytale atmosphere. It was many and many a year ago, for example, echoes the traditional fairytale opening of once upon a time. The words kingdom, maiden, andchild then lead the reader into the never-never land, with kingdom suggesting chivalry and

romance, maiden suggesting innocence, and child suggesting the wonderment of youth. Although he first uses sepulchre (Stanza 3) to refer to Annabel Lee's burial chamber then repeats it in the seventh line of Stanza 6he uses tombin the last line of the poem to refer to her resting place. Tomb has a more ominous connotation, suggesting finality. It also has a more deathly ring, like the cavernous toll of a funeral bell. Use of Alliteration:Poe relies heavily on alliteration in "Annabel Lee" to create pleasing sound patterns. Following are examples of alliteration in the poem:

That the wind came out of the cloud by night, Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee......................(Alliterating words: came, cloud, killing)
But our love it was stronger by far than the love Of those who were older than we Of many far wiser than we................................(Alliterating words: was, were, we, wiser, we. Who does not alliterate because it has an hsound.)

ImageryDarkness and Light: Implied and explicit images of darkness and light occur throughout the poem. Poe implies
that the kingdom by the sea is a bright, cheerful place where the sun shines on two young lovers, the narrator and Annabel Lee. Ironically, in another realm of dazzling lightheaventhe highest order of angels, the Seraphim, grow dark with envy of the young couple. Under cover of night, they send a cold wind that kills Annabel Lee: "The wind came out of the cloud by night, / Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee." But the narrator says he remains in a realm of light, for hissoul and the soul of Annabel Lee are one. In the last stanza, Poe emphasizes this point with light imagery: 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. Thus, his beloved becomes the moon and the stars shining down on him from the sepulchral night sky.

Annabel Lee
By Edgar Allan Poe

Complete Text With Annotation and Endnotes by Michael J. Cummings

1 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. Notice the recurrence of the m, n, l, and b sounds (alliteration). 2 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 wingd seraphs of heaven Coveted her and me. Poe uses child twice in the first line, mimicking the use of many twice in the first line of the previous stanza. He also reserves the fourth line for a reference to Annabel Lee, as he did in the first stanza and as he does in Stanza 3. Coveted: envied, resented

3 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 highborn kinsman came And bore her away from me, To shut her up in a sepulchre In this kingdom by the sea.

this was the reason: the seraphs' envy long ago: these words echo many a year ago in Line 1, Stanza 1. a cloud: Using these words instead of the sky infuses foreboding and gloom while symbolizing the dark envy of the
seraphs.

selpulchre: British spelling of sepulcher. Britain, of course, has always had a monarchy, the type of government that would
rule in a "kingdom by the sea."

4 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 by night, Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

out of a cloud by night: Use of this phrase emphasizes the dark envy of the angels and their sneaky scheme (which unfolds
under the cover of night). chilling and killing: an example of internal rhyme

5 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. The narrator here focuses on three worlds: (1) earth, the realm of humans; (2) heaven, the realm of angels; and (3) hell, the realm of demons. The love between him and Annabel is stronger than any other earthly love and can survive the sinister efforts of the angels and the demons to sabotage it. ever, dissever: internal rhyme

6 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 darlingmy darlingmy life and my bride, In the sepulchre there by the sea, In her tomb by the sounding sea. Poe stresses imagery of light in this stanza, associating moonbeams with dreams about his beloved and the radiance of stars with her eyes. In the sixth line, he uses a figure of speech called anaphora when he writes the word my four times.

Biography of Edgar Allan Poe This is a short biography. Unlike many biographies that just seem to go on and on, I've tried to compose one short enough to read in a single sitting. Poe's Childhood Edgar Poe was born in Boston on January 19, 1809. That makes him Capricorn, on the cusp of Aquarius. His parents were David and Elizabeth Poe. David was born in Baltimore on July 18, 1784. Elizabeth Arnold came to the U.S. from England in 1796 and married David Poe after her first husband died in 1805. They had three children, Henry, Edgar, and Rosalie. Elizabeth Poe died in 1811, when Edgar was 2 years old. She had separated from her husband and had taken her three kids with her. Henry went to live with his grandparents while Edgar was adopted by Mr. and Mrs. John Allan and Rosalie was taken in by another family. John Allan was a successful merchant, so Edgar grew up in good surroundings and went to good schools. When Poe was 6, he went to school in England for 5 years. He learned Latin and French, as well as math and history. He later returned to school in America and continued his studies. Edgar Allan went to the University of Virginia in 1826. He was 17. Even though John Allan had plenty of money, he only gave Edgar about a third of what he needed. Although Edgar had done well in Latin and French, he started to drink heavily and quickly became in debt. He had to quit school less than a year later. Poe in the Army Edgar Allan had no money, no job skills, and had been shunned by John Allan. Edgar went to Boston and joined the U.S. Army in 1827. He was 18. He did reasonably well in the Army and attained the rank of sergeant major. In 1829, Mrs. Allan died and John Allan tried to be friendly towards Edgar and signed Edgar's application to West Point. While waiting to enter West Point, Edgar lived with his grandmother and his aunt, Mrs. Clemm. Also living there was his brother, Henry, and young cousin, Virginia. In 1830, Edgar Allan entered West Point as a cadet. He didn't stay long because John Allan refused to send him any money. It is thought that Edgar purposely broke the rules and ignored his duties so he would be dismissed. A Struggling Writer In 1831, Edgar Allan Poe went to New York City where he had some of his poetry published. He submitted stories to a number of magazines and they were all rejected. Poe had no friends, no job, and was in financial trouble. He sent a letter to John Allan begging for help but none came. John Allan died in 1834 and did not mention Edgar in his will. In 1835, Edgar finally got a job as an editor of a newspaper because of a contest he won with his story, "The Manuscript Found in a Bottle". Edgar missed Mrs. Clemm and Virginia and brought them to Richmond to live with him. In 1836, Edgar married his cousin, Virginia. He was 27 and she was 13. Many sources say Virginia was 14, but this is incorrect. Virginia Clemm was born on August 22, 1822. They were married before her 14th birthday, in May of 1836. In case you didn't figure it out already, Virginia was Virgo. As the editor for the Southern Literary Messenger, Poe successfully managed the paper and increased its circulation from 500 to 3500 copies. Despite this, Poe left the paper in early 1836, complaining of the poor salary. In 1837, Edgar went to New York. He wrote "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym" but he could not find any financial success. He moved to Philadelphia in 1838 where he wrote "Ligeia" and "The Haunted Palace". His first volume of short stories, "Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque" was published in 1839. Poe received the copyright and 20 copies of the book, but no money.

Sometime in 1840, Edgar Poe joined George R. Graham as an editor for Graham's Magazine. During the two years that Poe worked for Graham's, he published his first detective story, "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" and challenged readers to send in cryptograms, which he always solved. During the time Poe was editor, the circulation of the magazine rose from 5000 to 35,000 copies. Poe left Graham's in 1842 because he wanted to start his own magazine. Poe found himself without a regular job once again. He tried to start a magazine called The Stylus and failed. In 1843, he published some booklets containing a few of his short stories but they didn't sell well enough. He won a hundred dollars for his story, "The Gold Bug" and sold a few other stories to magazines but he barely had enough money to support his family. Often, Mrs. Clemm had to contribute financially. In 1844, Poe moved back to New York. Even though "The Gold Bug" had a circulation of around 300,000 copies, he could barely make a living. In 1845, Edgar Poe became an editor at The Broadway Journal. A year later, the Journal ran out of money and Poe was out of a job again. He and his family moved to a small cottage near what is now East 192nd Street. Virginia's health was fading away and Edgar was deeply distressed by it. Virginia died in 1847, 10 days after Edgar's birthday. After losing his wife, Poe collapsed from stress but gradually returned to health later that year. Final Days In June of 1849, Poe left New York and went to Philadelphia, where he visited his friend John Sartain. Poe left Philadelphia in July and came to Richmond. He stayed at the Swan Tavern Hotel but joined "The Sons of Temperance" in an effort to stop drinking. He renewed a boyhood romance with Sarah Royster Shelton and planned to marry her in October. On September 27, Poe left Richmond for New York. He went to Philadelphia and stayed with a friend named James P. Moss. On September 30, he meant to go to New York but supposedly took the wrong train to Baltimore. On October 3, Poe was found at Gunner's Hall, a public house at 44 East Lombard Street, and was taken to the hospital. He lapsed in and out of consciousness but was never able to explain exactly what happened to him. Edgar Allan Poe died in the hospital on Sunday, October 7, 1849. The mystery surrounding Poe's death has led to many myths and urban legends. The reality is that no one knows for sure what happened during the last few days of his life. Did Poe die from alcoholism? Was he mugged? Did he have rabies? A more detailed exploration of Poe's death can be found here.