One of Edgar Allan Poe’s most famous poems, Annabel Lee, was created in 1849; the last poem written by Poe before his death, speaks of a young woman that the narrator is infatuated with and is mourning the death of. Using romanticism techniques, Poe creates an ideal interpretation of a relationship that faces both love and loss. Edgar Allan Poe’s vivid imagery of the love that the narrator has for Annabel Lee is used to parallel Poe’s unconditional affection he feels toward his deceased wife, Virgina.
Upon the introduction of Annabel Lee, Poe describe the narrator’s relationship with his bride, Annabel Lee, as a compassionate mutual bond. The relationship is presented as genuine with both the narrator and Annabel Lee have undeniable affection
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With the repetition of the word love, Poe seems to create a rhythm and feeling of true devotion that the narrator and his bride share. “The rhythms and rhyme reflect the speaker's obsession with his childhood love” (Spacey). These feelings similarly mirror Poe’s childhood love and future partner, Virginia Clemm Poe. Though Virginia was Poe’s cousin and they married when she was only thirteen years old, they felt that they were truly soulmates. “This poem is one of Poe’s way of asserting that though Virginia was a child when they met, their love of one another was deep and real” (“Edgar Allan Poe”). Annabel Lee then suddenly display a more melancholic attitude. By illustrating the death of Annabel Lee, Poe creates a somber tone depicting this scene of unexpected tragedy. Poe vividly describes a cold wind “chilling and killing” Annabel Lee. The emphasis that Poe put on the verbs help display the devastation that the narrator feels about his wife’s death. “[Poe] expresses the speakers