The first time "Annabel Lee" is read, it is almost carefree and childlike. In the second stanza, it is even written: "She was a child, and I was a child," (Poe, line7). Is Poe saying that their love was almost childlike in that they thought that no one could ever separate them? Were they naive and innocent as children always are? Maybe. But we find later on that he calls her his bride, and speaks of a love that certainly seems more then childish.

Poe writes that he and his Annabel Lee shared "a love that was more then just love" (Poe, line 9). Their love was so great, in fact, that the angels in Heaven were jealous of it. Hasn't that been said before to people in mourning? That the person they loved was taken from them because they were too beautiful/kind/loved etc. Poe believes that the re

ason she died was because the angels were so jealous of them and their love. So to ease their envy, they killed her. Perhaps this was the true reason for her death.

But wait! "the wind came out of the cloud, chilling and killing my Annabel Lee" (Poe, line 25&26). Could it also be inferred then, that Annabel Lee was kill by a simple cold or pneumonia? It was not uncommon in the 19th century to succumb to this fate. So maybe it wasn't a vengeful angel bent on murder...just a minor case of the common cold? It has been said in the past that some of what Poe writes in his morbid, gruesome stories is taken from his own tragic life. His own wife dying at a young age from pneumonia, Poe never really seems to recover. It can be observed even in Annabel Lee, traces of himself that Poe leaves behind for an avid reader to sniff out.

We can also observe the way in which the poem is written. The beginning of the poem starts off with only 6 lines or so per stanza. They are simple, sing-song almost. And if we look at the content, it is just like any other love poem. Starting stanza three however, the mood shifts abruptly from light and breezy to morbid and dark. Most credit for this is given to the words. But look at the arrangement of the stanza. The num

Some common words found in the essay are:
Annabel Lee, Lee Bonded, Lee Poe, annabel lee, Heaven Nor, poe line, annabel lee poe, dissever soul soul, soul beautiful annabel, soul soul beautiful, beautiful annabel lee, beginning poem, angels heaven, lee poe, soul soul, morbid gruesome, beautiful annabel, poe writes, soul beautiful,
Approximate Word count = 845
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)