AP Lit and Comp
Mrs. Strege
29 April 2016
Poe(try)
The name Poe often brings to mind stories about murderers, burials, and mysterious, but unfortunately dead, women. Well-known for his tales of terror and haunting poetry, Edgar Allan Poe is considered both a major figure in world literature and an inventor of the modern short story. His works are still widely read today, as Poe’s spine-chilling style continues to surprise and impress readers. Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 19, 1809. Tragedy hit early on, and by the age of three Poe had lost both parents. He was thereafter raised in Richmond, Virginia, by a tobacco merchant named John Allan and his wife Frances. Although Allan taught Poe to be a businessman, …show more content…
Poe usually does this through a first person narration by a young man who mourns the death of his beloved. “To Helen” has been called one of the most beautiful love poems in the English language. Written in first person, the narrator compares his love Helen’s beauty to the classical glory of ancient Greece and Rome: “Thy Naiad airs have brought me home / To the glory that was Greece, / And the grandeur that was Rome” (“Helen” 8-10). Poe’s choice of first person narration allows him to dig deep into the feelings of love and adoration that are present in this poem. Poe also utilizes an allusion to further convey the narrator’s deep admiration for his beloved. The name in the title of the poem, Helen, could be an allusion to Helen of Troy in Greek mythology. Helen, the wife of King Menelaus of Greece, was considered the most beautiful woman in the world (“Poem of the Week”). Poe’s allusion is yet another declaration of the subject’s beauty. The poem “Lenore” also displays feelings of love and admiration, although present during a time of …show more content…
Most acknowledge the poem to be written in memory of Poe’s wife, Virginia Clemm. The work returns to Poe’s frequent theme: the loss of beauty in the death of young women. One important factor of this poem is the Gothic setting. Poe opens the poem with “It was many and many a year ago, / In a kingdom by the sea,” (“Annabel” 1-2). The kingdom is a lonely but mysterious location, and Poe adds to this by describing an image of Annabel Lee’s tomb at the end of the poem. Together, these elements create a dark and creepy setting that reflects the death and decay that surround the basis of this poem. Essentially, the poem revolves around the death of a young girl named Annabel Lee. Like a number of Poe’s poems, the narrator mourns the loss of his beloved and tries to make sense of her untimely death. However, one important difference is the specifically mentioned youth of the narrator and of Annabel Lee. Poe
Mrs. Strege
29 April 2016
Poe(try)
The name Poe often brings to mind stories about murderers, burials, and mysterious, but unfortunately dead, women. Well-known for his tales of terror and haunting poetry, Edgar Allan Poe is considered both a major figure in world literature and an inventor of the modern short story. His works are still widely read today, as Poe’s spine-chilling style continues to surprise and impress readers. Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 19, 1809. Tragedy hit early on, and by the age of three Poe had lost both parents. He was thereafter raised in Richmond, Virginia, by a tobacco merchant named John Allan and his wife Frances. Although Allan taught Poe to be a businessman, …show more content…
Poe usually does this through a first person narration by a young man who mourns the death of his beloved. “To Helen” has been called one of the most beautiful love poems in the English language. Written in first person, the narrator compares his love Helen’s beauty to the classical glory of ancient Greece and Rome: “Thy Naiad airs have brought me home / To the glory that was Greece, / And the grandeur that was Rome” (“Helen” 8-10). Poe’s choice of first person narration allows him to dig deep into the feelings of love and adoration that are present in this poem. Poe also utilizes an allusion to further convey the narrator’s deep admiration for his beloved. The name in the title of the poem, Helen, could be an allusion to Helen of Troy in Greek mythology. Helen, the wife of King Menelaus of Greece, was considered the most beautiful woman in the world (“Poem of the Week”). Poe’s allusion is yet another declaration of the subject’s beauty. The poem “Lenore” also displays feelings of love and admiration, although present during a time of …show more content…
Most acknowledge the poem to be written in memory of Poe’s wife, Virginia Clemm. The work returns to Poe’s frequent theme: the loss of beauty in the death of young women. One important factor of this poem is the Gothic setting. Poe opens the poem with “It was many and many a year ago, / In a kingdom by the sea,” (“Annabel” 1-2). The kingdom is a lonely but mysterious location, and Poe adds to this by describing an image of Annabel Lee’s tomb at the end of the poem. Together, these elements create a dark and creepy setting that reflects the death and decay that surround the basis of this poem. Essentially, the poem revolves around the death of a young girl named Annabel Lee. Like a number of Poe’s poems, the narrator mourns the loss of his beloved and tries to make sense of her untimely death. However, one important difference is the specifically mentioned youth of the narrator and of Annabel Lee. Poe