Annabel Lee (Poem by Edgar Allan Poe)

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 highborn 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 by 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 see 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 her sepulchre there by the sea — 

In her tomb by the side of the sea.

Note:

"Annabel Lee" was written early in 1849, and is evidently an expression of the poet's undying love for his deceased bride although at least one of his lady admirers deemed it a response to her admiration. Poe sent a copy of the ballad to the Union Magazine, in which publication it appeared in January 1850, three months after the author's death. Whilst suffering from "hope deferred" as to its fate, Poe presented a copy of "Annabel Lee" to the editor of the Southern Literary Messenger, who published it in the November number of his periodical, a month after Poe's death. In the meantime the poet's own copy, left among his papers, passed into the hands of the person engaged to edit his works, and he quoted the poem in an obituary of Poe in the New York Tribune, before any one else had an opportunity of publishing it.

Poem Analysis:

Edgar Allan Poe’s Annabel Lee is one of his most hauntingly beautiful poems, filled with themes of undying love, loss, and the supernatural. Written in 1849, shortly before Poe’s death, this poem is often interpreted as a lament for his late wife, Virginia Clemm, who died of tuberculosis at a young age. With its melancholic tone, musical repetition, and Gothic imagery, Annabel Lee captures the essence of Poe’s obsession with love and death, portraying a love so powerful that it transcends even mortality.

The Fairytale-Like Setting: “A Kingdom by the Sea”

The poem opens with a dreamlike setting:

It was many and many a year ago,

In a kingdom by the sea,

This phrase evokes the tone of a fairytale, suggesting that the story exists outside of time and reality. The setting—“a kingdom by the sea”—is both romantic and mysterious, reinforcing the fantastical nature of the love between the speaker and Annabel Lee. The use of the word “kingdom” elevates the story, making it seem grander and more significant than an ordinary love affair.

Idealized Love: “A Love That Was More Than Love”

The speaker describes his youthful love for Annabel Lee in an almost supernatural manner:

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;

The repetition of “child” emphasizes their innocence, portraying their love as pure and untouched by the complexities of adulthood. Yet, despite their youth, the speaker insists that their love was “more than love”—an extraordinary, almost divine connection.

The intensity of this love is further highlighted by the reference to celestial beings:

With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven

Coveted her and me.

Seraphs are high-ranking angels, and the idea that even they “coveted” the love between the speaker and Annabel Lee implies that their bond was so special that even heavenly beings envied it. This introduces the poem’s central conflict: the idea that external forces, including the supernatural, conspired to separate them.

The Death of Annabel Lee: A Love Stolen by Jealousy

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;

Poe often uses nature as an agent of doom, and here, the “wind” that comes “out of a cloud” is a metaphor for death. The passive voice (“A wind blew”) suggests an external, uncontrollable force at work, reinforcing the idea that Annabel Lee’s death was not natural but caused by envious supernatural powers.

So that her highborn kinsmen came

And bore her away from me,

To shut her up in a sepulchre

In this kingdom by the sea.

The reference to “highborn kinsmen” suggests that Annabel Lee came from an aristocratic family, possibly implying that social class played a role in their separation. However, given the earlier suggestion of angelic envy, these “kinsmen” may also symbolize fate or divine intervention rather than literal family members.

Regardless, the act of taking Annabel Lee away and imprisoning her in a “sepulchre” (tomb) signifies a cruel and unnatural separation, reinforcing the speaker’s belief that external forces conspired to keep them apart.

The Speaker’s Defiance: Love Beyond Death

Despite Annabel Lee’s death, the speaker refuses to accept that their love is over:

But our love it was stronger by far than the love

Of those who were older than we —

Of many far wiser than we —

Here, he dismisses societal norms and wisdom, claiming that their youthful love surpassed the love of older and supposedly wiser individuals. This reinforces the romanticized, almost obsessive nature of the speaker’s devotion.

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.

This is perhaps the most powerful declaration in the poem. The speaker insists that neither angels nor demons—forces of both good and evil—can separate their souls. This echoes Poe’s common theme of love persisting beyond death, a concept that appears in other works such as The Raven and Ulalume.

Obsession and Mourning: A Love That Never Dies

The final stanza shows the depth of the speaker’s grief and his inability to move on:

For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams

Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

And the stars never rise but I see the bright eyes

Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;

Here, nature becomes a constant reminder of Annabel Lee’s presence. The moon and stars, usually symbols of beauty and tranquility, instead serve as haunting reminders of loss. This suggests that the speaker is trapped in his mourning, unable to escape his memories of Annabel Lee.

The final lines take this to an even more unsettling level:

And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side

Of my darling, my darling, my life and my bride,

In her sepulchre there by the sea —

In her tomb by the side of the sea.

This suggests that the speaker literally sleeps beside Annabel Lee’s tomb, implying either a deep psychological attachment to death or possibly even madness. The repetition of “my darling, my darling, my life and my bride” heightens the intensity of his grief, showing that he still considers Annabel Lee his bride even in death.

Love, Death, and the Supernatural

Annabel Lee is a quintessential Poe poem, blending themes of love, loss, and the supernatural. The speaker’s undying devotion to Annabel Lee is both beautiful and tragic, as he refuses to accept death as a barrier between them. Through its rhythmic repetition, Gothic imagery, and fairytale-like setting, the poem captures the power of obsessive love and the pain of loss in a way that resonates deeply with readers.

Ultimately, Annabel Lee is not just a love poem—it is a lament for lost youth, a meditation on the cruelty of fate, and a haunting exploration of the fine line between devotion and obsession.