I saw thee on thy bridal day, When a burning blush came o'er thee, Though happiness around thee lay, The world all love before thee;
And in thine eye a kindling light 5 (Whatever it might be) Was all on Earth my aching sight Of loveliness could see.
That blush, perhaps, was maiden shame: As such it well may pass, 10 Though its glow hath raised a fiercer flame In the breast of him, alas!
Who saw thee on that bridal day, When that deep blush would come o'er thee, Though happiness around thee lay, 15 The world all love before thee.
SPIRITS OF THE DEAD
Thy soul shall find itself alone 'Mid dark thoughts of the gray tombstone; Not one, of all the crowd, to pry Into thine hour of secrecy.
Be silent in that solitude, 5 Which is not loneliness—for then The spirits of the dead, who stood In life before thee, are again In death around thee, and their will Shall overshadow thee; be still. 10
The night, though clear, shall frown, And the stars shall look not down From their high thrones in the Heaven With light like hope to mortals given, But their red orbs, without beam, 15 To thy weariness shall seem As a burning and a fever Which would cling to thee forever.
Now are thoughts thou shalt not banish, Now are visions ne'er to vanish; 20 From thy spirit shall they pass No more, like dewdrops from the grass.
The breeze, the breath of God, is still, And the mist upon the hill Shadowy, shadowy, yet unbroken, 25 Is a symbol and a token. How it hangs upon the trees, A mystery of mysteries!
TO ——
I heed not that my earthly lot Hath little of Earth in it, That years of love have been forgot In the hatred of a minute:
I mourn not that the desolate 5 Are happier, sweet, than I, But that you sorrow for my fate Who am a passer-by.
ROMANCE
Romance, who loves to nod and sing With drowsy head and folded wing Among the green leaves as they shake Far down within some shadowy lake, To me a painted paroquet 5 Hath been—a most familiar bird— Taught me my alphabet to say, To lisp my very earliest word While in the wild-wood I did lie, A child—with a most knowing eye. 10
Of late, eternal condor years So shake the very heaven on high With tumult as they thunder by, I have no time for idle cares Through gazing on the unquiet sky; 15 And when an hour with calmer wings Its down upon my spirit flings, That little time with lyre and rhyme To while away—forbidden things— My heart would feel to be a crime 20 Unless it trembled with the strings.
TO THE RIVER
Fair river! in thy bright, clear flow Of crystal, wandering water, Thou art an emblem of the glow Of beauty—the unhidden heart, The playful maziness of art 5 In old Alberto's daughter;
But when within thy wave she looks, Which glistens then, and trembles, Why, then, the prettiest of brooks Her worshipper resembles; 10 For in his heart, as in thy stream, Her image deeply lies— His heart which trembles at the beam Of her soul-searching eyes.
TO SCIENCE
A PROLOGUE TO "AL AARAAF"
Science! true daughter of Old Time thou art, Who alterest all things with thy peering eyes. Why preyest thou thus upon the poet's heart, Vulture, whose wings are dull realities? How should he love thee? or how deem thee wise, 5 Who wouldst not leave him in his wandering To seek for treasure in the jewelled skies, Albeit he soared with an undaunted wing? Hast thou not dragged Diana from her car, And driven the Hamadryad from the wood 10 To seek a shelter in some happier star? Hast thou not torn the Naiad from her flood, The Elfin from the green grass, and from me The summer dream beneath the tamarind-tree?
TO HELEN
Helen, thy beauty is to me Like those NicÆan barks of yore, That gently, o'er a perfumed sea, The weary, wayworn wanderer bore To his own native shore. 5
On desperate seas long wont to roam, Thy hyacinth hair, thy classic face, Thy Naiad airs, have brought me home To the glory that was Greece And the grandeur that was Rome. 10
Lo! in yon brilliant window-niche How statue-like I see thee stand, The agate lamp within thy hand! Ah, Psyche, from the regions which Are Holy Land! 15
ISRAFEL
And the angel Israfel, whose heart-strings are a lute, and who has the sweetest voice of all God's creatures.—KORAN
In Heaven a spirit doth dwell Whose heart-strings are a lute; None sing so wildly well As the angel Israfel, And the giddy stars (so legends tell), 5 Ceasing their hymns, attend the spell Of his voice, all mute.
Tottering above In her highest noon, The enamoured moon 10 Blushes with love, While, to listen, the red levin (With the rapid Pleiads, even, Which were seven) Pauses in Heaven. 15
And they say (the starry choir And the other listening things) That Israfeli's fire Is owing to that lyre By which he sits and sings, 20 The trembling living wire Of those unusual strings.
But the skies that angel trod, Where deep thoughts are a duty, Where Love's a grown-up God, 25 Where the Houri glances are Imbued with all the beauty Which we worship in a star.
Therefore thou art not wrong, Israfeli, who despisest 30 An unimpassioned song; To thee the laurels belong, Best bard, because the wisest: Merrily live, and long!
The ecstasies above 35 With thy burning measures suit: Thy grief, thy joy, thy hate, thy love, With the fervor of thy lute: Well may the stars be mute!
Yes, Heaven is thine; but this 40 Is a world of sweets and sours; Our flowers are merely—flowers, And the shadow of thy perfect bliss Is the sunshine of ours.
If I could dwell 45 Where Israfel Hath dwelt, and he where I, He might not sing so wildly well A mortal melody, While a bolder note than this might swell 50 From my lyre within the sky.
THE CITY IN THE SEA
Lo! Death has reared himself a throne In a strange city lying alone Far down within the dim West, Where the good and the bad and the worst and the best Have gone to their eternal rest. 5 There shrines and palaces and towers (Time-eaten towers that tremble not) Resemble nothing that is ours. Around, by lifting winds forgot, Resignedly beneath the sky 10 The melancholy waters lie.
No rays from the holy heaven come down On the long night-time of that town; But light from out the lurid sea Streams up the turrets silently, 15 Gleams up the pinnacles far and free: Up domes, up spires, up kingly halls, Up fanes, up Babylon-like walls,
Up shadowy long-forgotten bowers Of sculptured ivy and stone flowers, 20 Up many and many a marvellous shrine Whose wreathed friezes intertwine The viol, the violet, and the vine. Resignedly beneath the sky The melancholy waters lie. 25 So blend the turrets and shadows there That all seem pendulous in air, While from a proud tower in the town Death looks gigantically down.
There open fanes and gaping graves 30 Yawn level with the luminous waves; But not the riches there that lie In each idol's diamond eye,— Not the gaily-jewelled dead, Tempt the waters from their bed; 35 For no ripples curl, alas, Along that wilderness of glass; No swellings tell that winds may be Upon some far-off happier sea; No heavings hint that winds have been 40 On seas less hideously serene!
But lo, a stir is in the air! The wave—there is a movement there! As if the towers had thrust aside, In slightly sinking, the dull tide; 45 As if their tops had feebly given A void within the filmy Heaven! The waves have now a redder glow, The hours are breathing faint and low; And when, amid no earthly moans, 50 Down, down that town shall settle hence, Hell, rising from a thousand thrones, Shall do it reverence.
THE SLEEPER
At midnight, in the month of June, I stand beneath the mystic moon. An opiate vapor, dewy, dim, Exhales from out her golden rim, And, softly dripping, drop by drop, 5 Upon the quiet mountain-top, Steals drowsily and musically Into the universal valley. The rosemary nods upon the grave; The lily lolls upon the wave; 10 Wrapping the fog about its breast, The ruin moulders into rest; Looking like Lethe, see! the lake A conscious slumber seems to take, And would not, for the world, awake. 15 All beauty sleeps!—and lo! where lies Irene, with her destinies!
Oh lady bright! can it be right, This window open to the night? The wanton airs, from the tree-top, 20 Laughingly through the lattice drop; The bodiless airs, a wizard rout, Flit through thy chamber in and out, And wave the curtain canopy So fitfully, so fearfully, 25 Above the closed and fringÉd lid 'Neath which thy slumb'ring soul lies hid, That, o'er the floor and down the wall, Like ghosts the shadows rise and fall. Oh lady dear, hast thou no fear? 30 Why and what art thou dreaming here? Sure thou art come o'er far-off seas, A wonder to these garden trees! Strange is thy pallor: strange thy dress: Strange, above all, thy length of tress, 35 And this all solemn silentness!
The lady sleeps. Oh, may her sleep, Which is enduring, so be deep! Heaven have her in its sacred keep! This chamber changed for one more holy, 40 This bed for one more melancholy, I pray to God that she may lie Forever with unopened eye, While the pale sheeted ghosts go by!
My love, she sleeps. Oh, may her sleep, 45 As it is lasting, so be deep! Soft may the worms about her creep! Far in the forest, dim and old, For her may some tall vault unfold: Some vault that oft hath flung its black 50 And winged pannels fluttering back, Triumphant, o'er the crested palls Of her grand family funerals: Some sepulchre, remote, alone, Against whose portal she hath thrown, 55 In childhood, many an idle stone: Some tomb from out whose sounding door She ne'er shall force an echo more, Thrilling to think, poor child of sin, It was the dead who groaned within! 60
LENORE
Ah, broken is the golden bowl! the spirit flown forever Let the bell toll!—a saintly soul floats on the Stygian river; And, Guy De Vere, hast thou no tear?—weep now or never more! See, on yon drear and rigid bier low lies thy love, Lenore! Come, let the burial rite be read—the funeral song be sung, 5 An anthem for the queenliest dead that ever died so young, A dirge for her the doubly dead in that she died so young.
"Wretches, ye loved her for her wealth and hated her for her pride, And when she fell in feeble health, ye blessed her—that she died! How shall the ritual, then, be read? the requiem how be sung 10 By you—by yours, the evil eye,—by yours, the slanderous tongue That did to death the innocence that died, and died so young?"
Peccanimus; but rave not thus! and let a Sabbath song Go up to God so solemnly the dead may feel no wrong. The sweet Lenore hath gone before, with Hope that flew beside, 15 Leaving thee wild for the dear child that should have been thy bride: For her, the fair and debonair, that now so lowly lies, The life upon her yellow hair but not within her eyes; The life still there, upon her hair—the death upon her eyes.
"Avaunt! avaunt! from friends below, the indignant ghost is riven— 20 From Hell unto a high estate far up within the Heaven— From grief and groan, to a golden throne, beside the King of Heaven! Let no bell toll, then,—lest her soul, amid its hallowed mirth, Should catch the note as it doth float up from the damnÉd Earth! And I!—to-night my heart is light!—No dirge will I upraise, 25 But waft the angel on her flight with a PÆan of old days."
THE VALLEY OF UNREST
Once it smiled a silent dell Where the people did not dwell; They had gone unto the wars, Trusting to the mild-eyed stars, Nightly, from their azure towers, 5 To keep watch above the flowers, In the midst of which all day The red sunlight lazily lay. Now each visitor shall confess The sad valley's restlessness. 10 Nothing there is motionless, Nothing save the airs that brood Over the magic solitude. Ah, by no wind are stirred those trees That palpitate like the chill seas 15 Around the misty Hebrides! Ah, by no wind those clouds are driven That rustle through the unquiet Heaven Uneasily, from morn till even, Over the violets there that lie 20 In myriad types of the human eye, Over the lilies there that wave And weep above a nameless grave! They wave:—from out their fragrant tops Eternal dews come down in drops. 25 They weep:—from off their delicate stems Perennial, tears descend in gems.
THE COLISEUM
Type of the antique Rome! Rich reliquary Of lofty contemplation left to Time By buried centuries of pomp and power! At length—at length—after so many days Of weary pilgrimage and burning thirst 5 (Thirst for the springs of lore that in thee lie), I kneel, an altered and an humble man, Amid thy shadows, and so drink within My very soul thy grandeur, gloom, and glory.
Vastness, and Age, and Memories of Eld! 10 Silence, and Desolation, and dim Night! I feel ye now, I feel ye in your strength, O spells more sure than e'er JudÆan king Taught in the gardens of Gethsemane! O charms more potent than the rapt Chaldee 15 Ever drew down from out the quiet stars!
Here, where a hero fell, a column falls! Here, where the mimic eagle glared in gold, A midnight vigil holds the swarthy bat; Here, where the dames of Rome their gilded hair 20 Waved to the wind, now wave the reed and thistle; Here, where on golden throne the monarch lolled, Glides, spectre-like, unto his marble home,
Lit by the wan light of the hornÉd moon, The swift and silent lizard of the stones. 25
But stay! these walls, these ivy-clad arcades, These mouldering plinths, these sad and blackened shafts, These vague entablatures, this crumbling frieze, These shattered cornices, this wreck, this ruin, These stones—alas! these gray stones—are they all, 30 All of the famed and the colossal left By the corrosive Hours to Fate and me?
"Not all"—the Echoes answer me—"not all! Prophetic sounds and loud arise forever From us, and from all Ruin, unto the wise, 35 As melody from Memnon to the Sun. We rule the hearts of mightiest men—we rule With a despotic sway all giant minds. We are not impotent, we pallid stones: Not all our power is gone, not all our fame, 40 Not all the magic of our high renown, Not all the wonder that encircles us, Not all the mysteries that in us lie, Not all the memories that hang upon And cling around about us as a garment, 45 Clothing us in a robe of more than glory."
HYMN
At morn—at noon—at twilight dim, Maria! thou hast heard my hymn. In joy and woe, in good and ill, Mother of God, be with me still! When the hours flew brightly by, 5 And not a cloud obscured the sky, My soul, lest it should truant be, Thy grace did guide to thine and thee. Now, when storms of fate o'ercast Darkly my Present and my Past, 10 Let my Future radiant shine With sweet hopes of thee and thine!
TO ONE IN PARADISE
Thou wast all that to me, love, For which my soul did pine: A green isle in the sea, love, A fountain and a shrine All wreathed with fairy fruits and flowers, 5 And all the flowers were mine.
Ah, dream too bright to last! Ah, starry Hope, that didst arise But to be overcast! A voice from out the Future cries, 10 "On! on!"—but o'er the Past (Dim gulf!) my spirit hovering lies Mute, motionless, aghast.
For, alas! alas! with me The light of Life is o'er! 15 No more—no more—no more— (Such language holds the solemn sea To the sands upon the shore) Shall bloom the thunder-blasted tree, Or the stricken eagle soar. 20
And all my days are trances, And all my nightly dreams Are where thy gray eye glances, And where thy footstep gleams— In what ethereal dances, 25 By what eternal streams.
Beloved! amid the earnest woes That crowd around my earthly path (Drear path, alas! where grows Not even one lonely rose), My soul at least a solace hath 5 In dreams of thee, and therein knows An Eden of bland repose.
And thus thy memory is to me Like some enchanted far-off isle In some tumultuous sea,— 10 Some ocean throbbing far and free With storms, but where meanwhile Serenest skies continually Just o'er that one bright island smile.
TO F——S S. O——D
Thou wouldst be loved?—then let thy heart From its present pathway part not: Being everything which now thou art, Be nothing which thou art not. So with the world thy gentle ways, 5 Thy grace, thy more than beauty, Shall be an endless theme of praise, And love—a simple duty.
TO ZANTE
Fair isle, that from the fairest of all flowers Thy gentlest of all gentle names dost take, How many memories of what radiant hours At sight of thee and thine at once awake! How many scenes of what departed bliss, 5 How many thoughts of what entombÉd hopes, How many visions of a maiden that is No more—no more upon thy verdant slopes! No more! alas, that magical sad sound Transforming all! Thy charms shall please no more, 10 Thy memory no more. AccursÉd ground! Henceforth I hold thy flower-enamelled shore, O hyacinthine isle! O purple Zante! "Isola d'oro! Fior di Levante!"
BRIDAL BALLAD
The ring is on my hand, And the wreath is on my brow; Satins and jewels grand Are all at my command, And I am happy now. 5
And my lord he loves me well; But, when first he breathed his vow, I felt my bosom swell, For the words rang as a knell, And the voice seemed his who fell 10 In the battle down the dell, And who is happy now.
But he spoke to reassure me, And he kissed my pallid brow, While a reverie came o'er me, 15 And to the church-yard bore me, And I sighed to him before me, Thinking him dead D'Elormie, "Oh, I am happy now!"
And thus the words were spoken, 20 And this the plighted vow; And though my faith be broken, And though my heart be broken, Here is a ring, as token That I am happy now! 25
Would God I could awaken! For I dream I know not how, And my soul is sorely shaken Lest an evil step be taken, Lest the dead who is forsaken 30 May not be happy now.
SILENCE
There are some qualities, some incorporate things, That have a double life, which thus is made A type of that twin entity which springs From matter and light, evinced in solid and shade. There is a twofold Silence—sea and shore, 5 Body and soul. One dwells in lonely places, Newly with grass o'ergrown; some solemn graces, Some human memories and tearful lore, Render him terrorless: his name's "No More." He is the corporate Silence: dread him not: 10 No power hath he of evil in himself; But should some urgent fate (untimely lot!) Bring thee to meet his shadow (nameless elf, That haunteth the lone regions where hath trod No foot of man), commend thyself to God! 15
THE CONQUEROR WORM
Lo! 't is a gala night Within the lonesome latter years. An angel throng, bewinged, bedight In veils, and drowned in tears, Sit in a theatre to see 5 A play of hopes and fears, While the orchestra breathes fitfully The music of the spheres.
Mimes, in the form of God on high, Mutter and mumble low, 10
And hither and thither fly; Mere puppets they, who come and go At bidding of vast formless things That shift the scenery to and fro, Flapping from out their condor wings 15 Invisible Woe.
That motley drama—oh, be sure It shall not be forgot! With its Phantom chased for evermore By a crowd that seize it not, 20 Through a circle that ever returneth in To the self-same spot; And much of Madness, and more of Sin, And Horror the soul of the plot.
But see amid the mimic rout 25 A crawling shape, intrude: A blood-red thing that writhes from out The scenic solitude! It writhes—it writhes!—with mortal pangs The mimes become its food, 30 And seraphs sob at vermin fangs In human gore imbued.
Out—out are the lights—out all! And over each quivering form The curtain, a funeral pall, 35 Comes down with the rush of a storm, While the angels, all pallid and wan, Uprising, unveiling, affirm That the play is the tragedy, "Man," And its hero, the Conqueror Worm. 40
DREAM-LAND
By a route obscure and lonely, Haunted by ill angels only, Where an Eidolon, named Night, On a black throne reigns upright, I have reached these lands but newly 5 From an ultimate dim Thule: From a wild weird clime that lieth, sublime, Out of Space—out of Time. Bottomless vales and boundless floods, And chasms and caves and Titan woods, 10 With forms that no man can discover For the tears that drip all over; Mountains toppling evermore Into seas without a shore; Seas that restlessly aspire, 15 Surging, unto skies of fire; Lakes that endlessly outspread Their lone waters, lone and dead,— Their still waters, still and chilly With the snows of the lolling lily. 20
By the lakes that thus outspread Their lone waters, lone and dead,— Their sad waters, sad and chilly With the snows of the lolling lily; By the mountains—near the river 25 Murmuring lowly, murmuring ever; By the gray woods, by the swamp Where the toad and the newt encamp; By the dismal tarns and pools Where dwell the Ghouls; 30 By each spot the most unholy, In each nook most melancholy,— There the traveller meets aghast Sheeted Memories of the Past: Shrouded forms that start and sigh 35 As they pass the wanderer by, White-robed forms of friends long given, In agony, to the Earth—and Heaven.
For the heart whose woes are legion 'T is a peaceful, soothing region; 40 For the spirit that walks in shadow 'T is—oh, 't is an Eldorado! But the traveller, travelling through it, May not—dare not openly view it; Never its mysteries are exposed 45 To the weak human eye unclosed; So wills its King, who hath forbid The uplifting of the fringÉd lid; And thus the sad Soul that here passes Beholds it but through darkened glasses. 50 By a route obscure and lonely, Haunted by ill angels only, Where an Eidolon, named Night, On a black throne reigns upright, I have wandered home but newly 55 From this ultimate dim Thule.
THE RAVEN
Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of, forgotten lore,— While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door. "'Tis some visitor," I muttered, "tapping at my chamber door: 5 Only this and nothing more."
Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December, And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor. Eagerly I wished the morrow;—vainly I had sought to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore, 10 For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore: Nameless here forevermore.
And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain Thrilled me—filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before; So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating 15 "'T is some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door, Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door: This it is and nothing more."
Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer, "Sir," said I, "or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore; 20 But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping, And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door, That I scarce was sure I heard you"—here I opened wide the door:— Darkness there and nothing more.
Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, 25 Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortals ever dared to dream before; But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token, And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, "Lenore?" This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, "Lenore:" Merely this and nothing more. 30
Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning, Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before. "Surely," said I, "surely that is something at my window lattice; Let me see, then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore; Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore: 35 'T is the wind and nothing more."
Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter, In there stepped a stately Raven of the saintly days of yore. Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he; But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door, 40 Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door: Perched, and sat, and nothing more.
Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore,— "Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou," I said, "art sure no craven, 45 Ghastly grim and ancient Raven wandering from the Nightly shore: Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!" Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore."
Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly, Though its answer little meaning—little relevancy bore; 50 For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door, Bird or beast upon the sculptured bust above his chamber door, With such name as "Nevermore."
But the Raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only 55 That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour. Nothing further then he uttered, not a feather then he fluttered, Till I scarcely more than muttered,—"Other friends have flown before; On the morrow he will leave me, as my Hopes have flown before." Then the bird said, "Nevermore." 60
Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken, "Doubtless," said I, "what it utters is its only stock and store, Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore 65 Of 'Never—nevermore.'"
But the Raven still beguiling all my fancy into smiling, Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door; Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore, 70 What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore Meant in croaking "Nevermore."
This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom's core; This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining 75 On the cushion's velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o'er, But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o'er She shall press, ah, nevermore!
Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer Swung by seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor. 80 "Wretch," I cried, "thy God hath lent thee—by these angels he hath sent thee Respite—respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore! Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe, and forget this lost Lenore!" Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore."
"Prophet!" said I, "thing of evil! prophet still, if bird or devil! 85 Whether Tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore, Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted— On this home by Horror haunted—tell me truly, I implore: Is there—is there balm in Gilead?—tell me—tell me, I implore!" Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore." 90
"Prophet!" said I, "thing of evil—prophet still, if bird or devil! By that Heaven that bends above us, by that God we both adore, Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn, It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore: Clasp a rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore." 95 Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore."
"Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!" I shrieked, upstarting: "Get thee back into the tempest and the Night's Plutonian shore! Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken! Leave my loneliness unbroken! quit the bust above my door! 100 Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!" Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore."
And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door; And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming, 105 And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor: And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor Shall be lifted—nevermore.
EULALIE
I dwelt alone In a world of moan, And my soul was a stagnant tide, Till the fair and gentle Eulalie became my blushing bride, Till the yellow-haired young Eulalie became my smiling bride. 5
Ah, less—less bright The stars of the night Than the eyes of the radiant girl! And never a flake That the vapor can make 10 With the moon-tints of purple and pearl Can vie with the modest Eulalie's most unregarded curl, Can compare with the bright-eyed Eulalie's most humble and careless curl.
Now doubt—now pain Come never again, 15 For her soul gives me sigh for sigh; And all day long Shines, bright and strong, Astarte within the sky, While ever to her dear Eulalie upturns her matron eye, 20 While ever to her young Eulalie upturns her violet eye.
TO M.L.S—
Of all who hail thy presence as the morning; Of all to whom thine absence is the night, The blotting utterly from out high heaven The sacred sun; of all who, weeping, bless thee Hourly for hope, for life, ah! above all, 5 For the resurrection of deep-buried faith In truth, in virtue, in humanity; Of all who, on despair's unhallowed bed Lying down to die, have suddenly arisen At thy soft-murmured words, "Let there be light!" 10 At the soft-murmured words that were fulfilled In the seraphic glancing of thine eyes; Of all who owe thee most, whose gratitude Nearest resembles worship, oh, remember The truest, the most fervently devoted, 15 And think that these weak lines are written by him: By him, who, as he pens them, thrills to think His spirit is communing with an angel's.
ULALUME
The skies they were ashen and sober; The leaves they were crispÉd and sere, The leaves they were withering and sere; It was night in the lonesome October Of my most immemorial year; 5 It was hard by the dim lake of Auber, In the misty mid region of Weir: It was down by the dank tarn of Auber, In the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir.
Here once, through an alley Titanic 10 Of cypress, I roamed with my Soul— Of cypress, with Psyche, my Soul. These were days when my heart was volcanic As the scoriac rivers that roll, As the lavas that restlessly roll 15 Their sulphurous currents down Yaanek In the ultimate climes of the pole, That groan as they roll down Mount Yaanek In the realms of the boreal pole.
Our talk had been serious and sober, 20 But our thoughts they were palsied and sere, Our memories were treacherous and sere, For we knew not the month was October, And we marked not the night of the year, (Ah, night of all nights in the year!) 25 We noted not the dim lake of Auber (Though once we had journeyed down here), Remembered not the dank tarn of Auber Nor the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir.
And now, as the night was senescent 30 And star-dials pointed to morn, As the star-dials hinted of morn, At the end of our path a liquescent And nebulous lustre was born, Out of which a miraculous crescent 35 Arose with a duplicate horn, Astarte's bediamonded crescent Distinct with its duplicate horn.
And I said—"She is warmer than Dian: She rolls through an ether of sighs, 40 She revels in a region of sighs: She has seen that the tears are not dry on These cheeks, where the worm never dies, And has come past the stars of the Lion To point us the path to the skies, 45 To the Lethean peace of the skies: Come up, in despite of the Lion, To shine on us with her bright eyes: Come up through the lair of the Lion, With love in her luminous eyes." 50
But Psyche, uplifting her finger, Said—"Sadly this star I mistrust: Her pallor I strangely mistrust: Oh, hasten!—oh, let us not linger! Oh, fly!—let us fly!—for we must." 55 In terror she spoke, letting sink her Wings until they trailed in the dust; In agony sobbed, letting sink her Plumes till they trailed in the dust, Till they sorrowfully trailed in the dust. 60
I replied—"This is nothing but dreaming: Let us on by this tremulous light! Let us bathe in this crystalline light! Its sibyllic splendor is beaming With hope and in beauty to-night: 65 See, it flickers up the sky through the night! Ah, we safely may trust to its gleaming, And be sure it will lead us aright: We safely may trust to a gleaming That cannot but guide us aright, 70 Since it flickers up to Heaven through the night."
Thus I pacified Psyche and kissed her, And tempted her out of her gloom, And conquered her scruples and gloom; And we passed to the end of the vista, 75 But were stopped by the door of a tomb, By the door of a legended tomb; And I said—"What is written, sweet sister, On the door of this legended tomb?" She replied—"Ulalume—Ulalume— 80 'T is the vault of thy lost Ulalume!"
Then my heart it grew ashen and sober As the leaves that were crisped and sere, As the leaves that were withering and sere, And I cried—"It was surely October 85 On this very night of last year That I journeyed—I journeyed down here, That I brought a dread burden down here: On this night of all nights in the year, Ah, what demon has tempted me here? 90 Well I know, now, this dim lake of Auber, This misty mid region of Weir: Well I know, now, this dank tarn of Auber, This ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir."
TO ——
Not long ago the writer of these lines, In the mad pride of intellectuality, Maintained "the power of words"—denied that ever A thought arose within the human brain Beyond the utterance of the human tongue: 5 And now, as if in mockery of that boast, Two words, two foreign soft dissyllables, Italian tones, made only to be murmured By angels dreaming in the moonlit "dew That hangs like chains of pearl on Hermon hill," 10 Have stirred from out the abysses of his heart Unthought-like thoughts, that are the souls of thought,— Richer, far wilder, far diviner visions Than even the seraph harper, Israfel (Who has "the sweetest voice of all God's creatures"), 15 Could hope to utter. And I—my spells are broken; The pen falls powerless from my shivering hand; With thy dear name as text, though hidden by thee, I cannot write—I cannot speak or think— Alas, I cannot feel; for't is not feeling,— 20 This standing motionless upon the golden Threshold of the wide-open gate of dreams, Gazing entranced adown the gorgeous vista, And thrilling as I see, upon the right, Upon the left, and all the way along, 25 Amid empurpled vapors, far away To where the prospect terminates—thee only.
AN ENIGMA
"Seldom we find," says Solomon Don Dunce, "Half an idea in the profoundest sonnet. Through all the flimsy things we see at once As easily as through a Naples bonnet— Trash of all trash! how can a lady don it? 5 Yet heavier far than your Petrarchan stuff, Owl-downy nonsense that the faintest puff Twirls into trunk-paper the while you con it." And, veritably, Sol is right enough. The general tuckermanities are arrant 10 Bubbles, ephemeral and so transparent; But this is, now, you may depend upon it, Stable, opaque, immortal—all by dint Of the dear names that lie concealed within 't.
TO HELEN.
I saw thee once—once only—years ago: I must not say how many—but not many. It was a July midnight; and from out A full-orbed moon, that, like thine own soul, soaring Sought a precipitate pathway up through heaven, 5 There fell a silvery-silken veil of light, With quietude and sultriness and slumber, Upon the upturned faces of a thousand Roses that grew in an enchanted garden, Where no wind dared to stir, unless on tiptoe: 10 Fell on the upturned faces of these roses That gave out, in return for the love-light, Their odorous souls in an ecstatic death: Fell on the upturned faces of these roses That smiled and died in this parterre, enchanted 15 By thee, and by the poetry of thy presence.
Clad all in white, upon a violet bank I saw thee half reclining; while the moon Fell on the upturned faces of the roses, And on thine own, upturned—alas, in sorrow! 20
Was it not Fate, that, on this July midnight— Was it not Fate (whose name is also Sorrow) That bade me pause before that garden-gate To breathe the incense of those slumbering roses? No footsteps stirred: the hated world all slept, 25 Save only thee and me—O Heaven! O God! How my heart beats in coupling those two words!— Save only thee and me. I paused, I looked, And in an instant all things disappeared. (Ah, bear in mind this garden was enchanted!) 30 The pearly lustre of the moon went out:
The mossy banks and the meandering paths, The happy flowers and the repining trees, Were seen no more: the very roses' odors Died in the arms of the adoring airs. 35 All, all expired save thee—save less than thou: Save only the divine light in thine eyes, Save but the soul in thine uplifted eyes: I saw but them—they were the world to me: I saw but them, saw only them for hours, 40 Saw only them until the moon went down. What wild heart-histories seem to lie enwritten Upon those crystalline, celestial spheres; How dark a woe, yet how sublime a hope; How silently serene a sea of pride; 45 How daring an ambition; yet how deep, How fathomless a capacity for love!
But now, at length, dear Dian sank from sight, Into a western couch of thunder-cloud; And thou, a ghost, amid the entombing trees 50 Didst glide away. Only thine eyes remained: They would not go—they never yet have gone; Lighting my lonely pathway home that night, They have not left me (as my hopes have) since; They follow me—they lead me through the years; 55 They are my ministers—yet I their slave; Their office is to illumine and enkindle— My duty, to be saved by their bright light, And purified in their electric fire, And sanctified in their elysian fire, 60 They fill my soul with beauty (which is hope), And are, far up in heaven, the stars I kneel to In the sad, silent watches of my night; While even in the meridian glare of day I see them still—two sweetly scintillant 65 Venuses, unextinguished by the sun.
A VALENTINE
For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes, Brightly expressive as the twins of Leda, Shall find her own sweet name, that nestling lies Upon the page, enwrapped from every reader. Search narrowly the lines! they hold a treasure 5 Divine, a talisman, an amulet That must be worn at heart. Search well the measure— The word—the syllables. Do not forget The trivialest point, or you may lose your labor: And yet there is in this no Gordian knot 10 Which one might not undo without a sabre, If one could merely comprehend the plot. Enwritten upon the leaf where now are peering Eyes scintillating soul, there lie perdus Three eloquent words oft uttered in the hearing 15 Of poets, by poets—as the name is a poet's, too. Its letters, although naturally lying Like the knight Pinto, Mendez Ferdinando, Still form a synonym for Truth.—Cease trying! You will not read the riddle, though you do the best you can do. 20
FOR ANNIE
Thank Heaven! the crisis, The danger, is past, And the lingering illness Is over at last, And the fever called "Living" 5 Is conquered at last.
Sadly I know I am shorn of my strength, And no muscle I move As I lie at full length: 10 But no matter!—I feel I am better at length.
And I rest so composedly Now, in my bed, That any beholder 15 Might fancy me dead, Might start at beholding me, Thinking me dead.
The moaning and groaning, The sighing and sobbing, 20 Are quieted now, With that horrible throbbing At heart:—ah, that horrible, Horrible throbbing!
The sickness, the nausea, 25 The pitiless pain, Have ceased, with the fever That maddened my brain, With the fever called "Living" That burned in my brain. 30
And oh! of all tortures, That torture the worst Has abated—the terrible Torture of thirst For the naphthaline river 35 Of Passion accurst: I have drank of a water That quenches all thirst:
Of a water that flows, With a lullaby sound, 40 From a spring but a very few Feet under ground, From a cavern not very far Down under ground.
And ah! let it never 45 Be foolishly said That my room it is gloomy, And narrow my bed; For man never slept In a different bed: 50 And, to sleep, you must slumber In just such a bed.
My tantalized spirit Here blandly reposes, Forgetting, or never 55 Regretting, its roses: Its old agitations Of myrtles and roses;
For now, while so quietly Lying, it fancies 60 A holier odor About it, of pansies: A rosemary odor, Commingled with pansies, With rue and the beautiful 65 Puritan pansies.
And so it lies happily, Bathing in many A dream of the truth And the beauty of Annie, 70 Drowned in a bath Of the tresses of Annie.
She tenderly kissed me, She fondly caressed, And then I fell gently 75 To sleep on her breast, Deeply to sleep From the heaven of her breast.
When the light was extinguished, She covered me warm, 80 And she prayed to the angels To keep me from harm, To the queen of the angels To shield me from harm.
And I lie so composedly 85 Now, in my bed, (Knowing her love) That you fancy me dead; And I rest so contentedly Now, in my bed, 90 (With her love at my breast) That you fancy me dead, That you shudder to look at me, Thinking me dead.
But my heart it is brighter 95 Than all of the many Stars in the sky, For it sparkles with Annie: It glows with the light Of the love of my Annie, 100 With the thought of the light Of the eyes of my Annie.
THE BELLS
I
Hear the sledges with the bells, Silver bells! What a world of merriment their melody foretells! How they tinkle, tinkle, tinkle, In the icy air of night! 5 While the stars, that oversprinkle All the heavens, seem to twinkle With a crystalline deligit; Keeping time, time, time, In a sort of Runic rhyme, 10 To the tintinnabulation that so musically wells From the bells, bells, bells, bells, Bells, bells, bells— From the jingling and the tinkling of the bells.
II
Hear the mellow wedding bells, 15 Golden bells! What a world of happiness their harmony foretells! Through the balmy air of night How they ring out their delight! From the molten-golden notes, 20 And all in tune, What a liquid ditty floats To the turtle-dove that listens, while she gloats On the moon! Oh, from out the sounding cells, 25 What a gush of euphony voluminously wells! How it swells! How it dwells On the Future! how it tells Of the rapture that impels 30 To the swinging and the ringing Of the bells, bells, bells, Of the bells, bells, bells, bells, Bells, bells, bells— To the rhyming and the chiming of the bells! 35
III
Hear the loud alarum bells, Brazen bells! What a tale of terror, now, their turbulency tells! In the startled ear of night How they scream out their affright! 40 Too much horrified to speak, They can only shriek, shriek, Out of tune, In a clamorous appealing to the mercy of the fire, In a mad expostulation with the deaf and frantic fire, 45 Leaping higher, higher, higher, With a desperate desire, And a resolute endeavor Now—now to sit or never, By the side of the pale-faced moon. 50 Oh, the bells, bells, bells! What a tale their terror tells Of Despair! How they clang, and clash, and roar! What a horror they outpour 55 On the bosom of the palpitating air! Yet the ear it fully knows, By the twanging And the clanging, How the danger ebbs and flows; 60 Yet the ear distinctly tells, In the jangling And the wrangling, How the danger sinks and swells,— By the sinking or the swelling in the anger of the bells, 65 Of the bells, Of the bells, bells, bells, bells, Bells, bells, bells— In the clamor and the clangor of the bells!
IV
Hear the tolling of the bells, 70 Iron bells! What a world of solemn thought their monody compels! In the silence of the night How we shiver with affright At the melancholy menace of their tone! 75 For every sound that floats From the rust within their throats Is a groan. And the people—ah, the people, They that dwell up in the steeple, 80 All alone, And who tolling, tolling, tolling In that muffled monotone, Feel a glory in so rolling On the human heart a stone— 85 They are neither man nor woman, They are neither brute nor human, They are Ghouls: And their king it is who tolls; And he rolls, rolls, rolls, 90 Rolls A pÆan from the bells; And his merry bosom swells With the pÆan of the bells, And he dances, and he yells: 95 Keeping time, time, time, In a sort of Runic rhyme, To the pÆan of the bells, Of the bells: Keeping time, time, time, 100 In a sort of Runic rhyme, To the throbbing of the bells, Of the bells, bells, bells— To the sobbing of the bells; Keeping time, time, time, 105 As he knells, knells, knells, In a happy Runic rhyme, To the rolling of the bells, Of the bells, bells, bells: To the tolling of the bells, 110 Of the bells, bells, bells, bells, Bells, bells, bells— To the moaning and the groaning of the bells.
ANNABEL LEE
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 5 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; 10 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 15 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. 20
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, 25 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, 30 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; 35 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 darling—my darling—my life and my bride, In her sepulchre there by the sea, 40 In her tomb by the sounding sea.
TO MY MOTHER
Because I feel that, in the Heavens above, The angels, whispering to one another, Can find among their burning terms of love— None so devotional as that of "Mother," Therefore by that dear name I long have called you— 5 You who are more than mother unto me, And fill my heart of hearts where Death installed you In setting my Virginia's spirit free. My mother, my own mother, who died early, Was but the mother of myself; but you 10 Are mother to the one I loved so dearly, And thus are dearer than the mother I knew By that infinity with which my wife Was dearer to my soul than its soul-life.
ELDORADO
Gayly bedight, A gallant knight, In sunshine and in shadow, Had journeyed long, Singing a song, 5 In search of Eldorado.
But he grew old, This knight so bold, And o'er his heart a shadow Fell as he found 10 No spot of ground That looked like Eldorado.
And, as his strength Failed him at length, He met a pilgrim shadow: 15 "Shadow," said he, "Where can it be, This land of Eldorado?"
"Over the Mountains Of the Moon, 20 Down the Valley of the Shadow, Ride, boldly ride," The shade replied, "If you seek for Eldorado!"
s "Odyssey" to a drug offered to Helen in Egypt, the effect of which was to banish all grief and pain. Later the term was sometimes used for opium.
89. balm in Gilead. Gilead is a district on the banks of the Jordan and the "balm" an herb of reputed medicinal value. The allusion here is to Jeremiah viii.22: "Is there no balm in Gilead? is there no physician there?" The lover means to ask if there is any remedy for his sorrow, any consolation. Perhaps he means, "Is there any solace after death?" or "Is there any solace either in this world or the next?"
93. Aidenn: Eden, Paradise, from the Arabic form Adn; coined by Poe for the rhyme.
101. This line, Poe said in "The Philosophy of Composition," first betrays clearly the allegorical nature of the poem.
106. the lamp-light o'er him streaming. In answer to criticism on this line, Poe explained, "My conception was that of the bracket candelabrum affixed against the wall, high up above the door and bust, as is often seen in the English palaces, and even in some of the better houses of New York."
107, 108. In these last lines the allegory is fully revealed.
EULALIE (Page 29)
Published in 1845 with the subtitle, "A Song."
19. Astarte. See note on line 37 of "Ulalume," page 189.
TO M.L. S——- (Page 30)
Published March 13, 1847, and addressed to Mrs. Marie Louise Shew, who had been a veritable angel of mercy in the Poe home. She relieved the poverty and helped to care for Virginia (who died January 29), and afterward nursed Poe himself during his severe illness. Mrs. Shew had had some medical training and probably saved Poe's life. This brief poem is instinct with a gratitude and reverence easy to understand, and is, for Poe, unusually spontaneous.
ULALUME (Page 30)
Published in December, 1847, and in January, 1848. The earlier form contained an additional stanza, afterward wisely omitted. Read the comment on the poem in the Introduction, pages xxiv-xxv.
5. Immemorial: properly means extending indefinitely into the past. Poe may mean that the year has seemed endless to him, but apparently he uses the word in the sense of memorable.
6, 7. Auber rhymes with October, Weir with year; the names were coined by Poe for rhyme and tone color. Note the resemblance of "Weir" to "weird."
8. tarn: a small mountain lake. It is used provincially in England to mean a boggy or marshy tract. Poe used the word to signify a dark, stagnant pool. Cf. "The Fall of the House of Usher," page 49.
11. cypress. What is its significance?
12. Psyche: soul. Cf. note on line 14 of "To Helen," page 183.
14. scoriac: a very rare word, from scoria (lava).
16. Yaanek: another specially coined word.
35. crescent: suggesting hope.
37, 39. Astarte: a Phoenician goddess, as the deity of love corresponding to Venus (Aphrodite), and as moon goddess to Dian, or Diana (Artemis). But Diana was chaste and cold to the advances of lovers, which explains "she (Astarte) is warmer than Dian."
43. where the worm never dies: implies the gnawing of unending grief. Cf. Isaiah lxvi. 24, and Mark ix. 44, 46, 48.
44. The Lion: the constellation Leo.
64. sibyllic: usually "sibylline," prophetic; from "sibyl." Consult Gayley's "Classic Myths."
179. legended tomb: having on it an inscription.
TO —— —— (Page 33)
Published in March, 1848, and is another tribute to Mrs. Shew. See note on "To M.L. S——-," page 188.
9-10. The quotation is from George Peele's "David and Bethsabe," an English drama published in 1599:
Or let the dew be sweeter far than that That hangs, like chains of pearl, on Hermon hill.
14-15. Cf. the poem "Israfel," and the notes on it.
AN ENIGMA (Page 34)
Published in March, 1848. To find the name, read the first letter of the first line, the second letter of the second line, and so on. In form this is a sonnet irregular in rhyme scheme.
1. Solomon Don Dunce: a fanciful name for a stupid person.
6. Petrarchan stuff: of or by Petrarch (1304-1374), a famous Italian writer of sonnets.
10. tuckermanities: a contemptuous allusion to the poetic efforts of Henry T. Tuckerman, a New England writer of the day.
14. dear names: Sarah Anna Lewis, a verse writer of the day, whom Poe admired.
TO HELEN (Page 35)
Published in November, 1848; addressed to Mrs. Sarah Helen Whitman (see Introduction, page xvii). Although her engagement to marry Poe was broken off, she continued to admire him and was faithful to his memory after his death. The poem was written before Poe met Mrs. Whitman, and is said to have been suggested by the poet's having caught a glimpse of the lady walking in a garden by moonlight.
48. Dian: Diana, the moon goddess.
66. Venuses: refers at once to the planet Venus and to Venus, goddess of love.
A VALENTINE (Page 37)
Published in 1849. The name is found as in "An Enigma," by reading the first letter of the first line, the second of the second, and so on.
2. twins of Leda: Castor and Pollux, two stars in the constellation Gemini. For the myth consult Gayley's "Classic Myths."
3. her own sweet name: Frances Sargent Osgood. See note on the lines "To F—— ," page 185.
10. Gordian knot. Explain this; consult an encyclopedia.
14. perdus: lost, a French word introduced to rhyme with "too."
17. lying: used in a double sense.
18. Mendez Ferdinando Pinto, a Portuguese traveler (1509-1583), was said to have been the first white man to visit Japan. He wrote an account of his travels, which at the time was considered mere romancing.
FOR ANNIE (Page 37)
Published in 1849, and addressed to Mrs. Richmond of Lowell, Massachusetts. This is the "Annie" so frequently referred to in biographies of Poe, who also figures in his correspondence. Of all the women associated with Poe's later years (see Introduction, pages ), "Annie" was the object of his most sincere and ardent friendship, and was his confidant in all his troubles,—including the courtship of Mrs. Whitman. Poe and Mrs. Clemm were frequent visitors at her home, and the latter found shelter there for a time after her "Eddie's" death.
This poem is usually regarded as one of the author's poorest, though it has a distinctly individual character that must be recognized. Thus Professor C.F. Richardson, in his "American Literature," quoting several stanzas, remarks, "This is doggerel, but it is Poe's special doggerel." Some of the lines really deserve this severe epithet, but hardly the entire poem. Its theme seems to be peace in death through the affection of Annie, following a life of passion and sorrow, and so regarded, it has some strength.
THE BELLS (Page 41)
Published in 1849. Read the comment on this poem in the Introduction, page xxv. Though not especially characteristic of him, this is one of Poe's most remarkable poems, as well as one of the most popular. A very interesting account of its composition may be found in Woodberry's biography, pages 302-304, or in Harrison's biography, pages 286-288, or in the Stedman-Woodberry edition of Poe's Works, Vol. X, pages 183-186.
10. Runic. Runes are the characters of the alphabet of the early Germanic peoples. The allusion is intended to suggest mystery and magic. Consult an unabridged dictionary or an encyclopedia.
23. gloats. What does the word mean here? Cf. line 76 of "The Raven," and corresponding notes.
ANNABEL LEE (Page 44)
Published in the _New York Tribune, _October 9, 1849, two days after the poet's death. Read the comment in the Introduction, page xxv. Note the mid-rhymes in line 26, "chilling and killing," and in line 32, "ever dissever"; point out other examples in "The Raven" and other poems.
TO MY MOTHER (Page 46)
Published in 1849; in form, a regular Shakespearean sonnet. It is a sincere tribute addressed to Mrs. Clemm, mother of Poe's girl wife, Virginia, a woman who was more than worthy of it. The tenderest affection existed between the two, and Mrs. Clemm cared for him after Virginia's death and grieved profoundly at his own. She lived until 1871.
ELDORADO (Page 46)
This first appeared in the Griswold edition of 1850; no earlier publication is known. It was probably Poe's last composition, and this story of the knight's quest, its failure, and his gaze turned to "the Valley of the Shadow," is a fitting finale for the ill-starred poet (see comment in the Introduction, page xxv).
Eldorado: a fabled city or country abounding in gold and precious stones, and afterward any place of great wealth. The word is often used figuratively. In a preface to an early volume of his poetry, Poe alludes quite incidentally to "the poet's own kingdom—his El Dorado," and in this sense the metaphor may be accepted here.
Note the varying sense of the recurring rhyme, shadow. In the first stanza it is simply contrasted with the "sunshine" or happiness of life, in the second it implies the coming of discouragement and despair, in the third it is the shadow of death cast before, in the fourth the Valley of the Shadow of Death.
THE HAUNTED PALACE (Page 59)
Published in the Baltimore Museum in April, 1839, and in September of the same year in Burton's Gentleman's Magazine as part of the tale "The Fall of the House of Usher"; afterwards published in 1840, 1843, and 1845. It was altered very slightly in revision. Lowell wrote that he knew of no modern poet who might not justly be proud of it (see Introduction, pages xxiii-xxiv).
59. 24. Porphyrogene: from Greek words meaning "purple" and "begotten," hence, born in the purple, royal. This term, or "porphyrogenitus," was applied in the Byzantine empire to children of the monarch born after his accession to the throne. It is not clear whether the word is used here as a descriptive adjective or as the name of the monarch.
TALES
THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER (Page 49)
Published first in 1839, and several times reprinted with revisions. Read the comment in the Introduction, page xxvii. Lowell said of this story: "Had its author written nothing else, it would alone have been enough to stamp him as a man of genius, and a master of a classic style."
This tale is one of the best to study as an example of the application of Poe's critical theory of the short story (see Introduction, page xxvi). What is the "effect" sought? Is the main incident of the tale well adapted to produce this effect? Are the parts skillfully related to one another and to the whole? Is the setting suitable to the theme? What is the effect of the first sentence? Pick out a number of rather unusual words which Poe seems particularly to like; observe their effect. The adjectives are especially worth study; in the first sentence try the effect of substituting for "soundless," "quiet," or "silent," or "noiseless."
49. Quotation: "His heart is a suspended lute; as soon as it is touched it resounds." P.J. BÉranger (1780-1857), a popular French lyric poet.
50. 12. black and lurid tarn: see note to line 8 of "Ulalume," page 189. Tarn is one of several words Poe particularly liked.
58. 10. low cunning. See if the reason for this encounter appears later.
58 31. ennuyÉ: a French word meaning "wearied," "bored."
54. 5-24. The description of Usher is in the main a remarkably good portrait of Poe himself.
55. 20-30. Observe the extreme to which Poe goes in this study of terror; it is the fear of fear that oppresses Usher.
56. 2. too shadowy here to be re-stated. Note the effect of making this weird suggestion instead of a clear statement.
57. 26. Von Weber (1786-1826), a famous German composer.
58. 5. Henry Fuseli, or Fuesli (1742-1825), as he was known in England, was born in Zurich, Switzerland, and named Johann Heinrich Fuessli. He was a professor in the Royal Academy and painted a series of highly imaginative pictures illustrating Shakespeare and Milton.
59. The Haunted Palace. For notes see page 192.
60. 30-31. Richard Watson (1737-1816), Bishop of Llandaff, was for a time professor of chemistry at Cambridge University and wrote popular essays on that subject. James Gates Percival (1795-1856) was an American poet, musician, linguist, surgeon, and scientist; it is possible the reference is to Thomas Percival (1740-1804), an English physician. Lazzaro Spallanzani (1729-1799) was an Italian naturalist, distinguished in experimental physiology.
61. 22-31. All of these titles have been traced, except the last, which Poe either invented, or, in quoting, altered. Some of the works named he apparently had not read, since their character is not suited to his purpose. Jean Baptiste Louis Gresset (1709-1777) was a French poet and playwright; the two works mentioned are poems,—the first, a tale of an escaped parrot who stopped at a convent and shocked the nuns by his profanity. Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) was a famous Italian historian and statesman, who wrote a celebrated treatise called "The Prince"; "Belphegor" is a satire on marriage. Emanuel Swedenborg (1688-1772) was an eminent Swedish theologian and religious mystic. Ludvig Holberg (1684-1754) was a great Danish poet and novelist; the work mentioned is one of his best known poems and has been translated into the principal languages of Europe. Flud, Robert Fludd (1574-1637), was an English physician, inventor, and mystic philosopher. Jean D'IndaginÉ (flourished in the first half of the sixteenth century) was a priest of Steinheim, Germany, who wrote on palmistry and similar subjects. Marin Cureau de la Chambre (1594-1675), physician to Louis XIV, who was an adept in physiognomy, and wrote a work on "The Art of Judging Men." Ludwig Tieck (1773-1853) was a German romantic novelist. Tommaso Campanella (1568-1639) was an Italian monk and philosopher, who suffered persecution by the Inquisition. Eymeric, Nicolas Eymericus (1320-1399), was a native of Gerona, Spain, who entered the Dominican order and rose to the rank of chaplain to the Pope and Grand Inquisitor; his famous "Directorium Inquisitorum" is an elaborate account of the Inquisition. Pomponius Mela was a Latin writer of the first century A.D., who wrote a famous work on geography "De Situ Orbis" (Concerning the Plan of the Earth).
61. 31. Satyrs and Ægipans: in classic mythology the satyrs and minor deities of wood and field, with the body of a man and the feet, hair, and horns of a goat; Ægipans is practically equivalent to, and is also an epithet of Pan, the satyr-like rural god.
61. 33-34. curious book in quarto Gothic: printed in the black-faced letters of mediÆval times.
61. 35. The Latin title, which has not been found, means "Vigils for the Dead according to the Choir of the Church of Mayence."
66. 1-2. The "Mad Trist" of Sir Launcelot Canning has not been found; undoubtedly the title was coined and the quotations invented to fit the text, as they do perfectly.
69. 24-25. It was the work of the rushing gust. Note the fine effect of the momentary suspense, the instant's disappointment carried by this clause.
WILLIAM WILSON
First published in a magazine in 1840 (see comment in the Introduction, page xxvii).
71. Quotation. William Chamberlayne, an English poet and physician (1619-1689), who in 1659 published "Pharronida, a Heroic Poem."
71. 18. Elah-Gabalus: usually Elagabulus, emperor of Rome from 218-222, who indulged in the wildest debaucheries.
72. 26-73 2. The description here is based on fact, apparently being a true picture of the English school attended by Poe himself (see Introduction, page xii).
73. 31. Draconian Laws: Draco was an Athenian legislator, who codified the laws of his city in 621 B.C. The penalty for every offense was death, and the laws were, therefore, said to be written in blood, not ink.
75. 5. peine forte et dure: "punishment severe and merciless"; a penalty formerly imposed by Enlish law upon persons who refused to plead on being arraigned for felony. It consisted in laying the accused on his back on a bare floor and placing a great iron weight on his chest until he consented to plead or died. There is one instance of the infliction of this punishment in American colonial history: Giles Cory, accused of witchcraft, was pressed to death in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692.
75. 33. exergues: the exergue is a term in numismatics to signify the space under the principal figure on the reverse of a coin, usually containing the date or place of coining.
76. 7. "Oh, le bon temps, que ce siÈcle de fer!" "Oh! the good time, the age of iron."
86. 11. Herodes Atticus: a Greek born about A.D. 101, who inherited from his father, of the same name, great wealth, to which he added by marriage. He was a noted teacher of rhetoric and became a Roman consul.
A DESCENT INTO THE MAELSTRÖM (Page 94)
First published in a magazine in 1841 (see comment in the Introduction, pages xxvii-xxviii).
94. Quotation. Joseph Glanville, or Glanvill (1636-1680), an English clergyman and author of several works on philosophy and religion. The quotation has been found in the writings of Glanvill by Professor Woodberry, but Poe quoted rather carelessly, and his extract varies slightly from the original. The Democritus referred to was a famous Greek philosopher, born about 470 B.C., who taught the atomic theory.
94. 1-3. Note the effect of the opening sentences in seizing attention and arousing interest at once.
95. 21. Nubian geographer … Mare Tenebrarum. The same allusion occurs in "Eleonora," and in "Eureka" Poe speaks of "the Mare Tenebrarum,—an ocean well described by the Nubian geographer, Ptolemy Hephestion." Apparently he refers to Claudius Ptolemy, a celebrated philosopher who flourished in Alexandria in the second century A.D.
His theory, known as the Ptolemaic System, remained the standard authority in astronomy to the end of the Middle Ages, while his geography was accepted until the era of the great discoveries opened in the fifteenth century. Ptolemy is thought to have been born in Egypt, and it is impossible to say what grounds Poe had for calling him Nubian. Mare Tenebrarum means "sea of darkness," the Atlantic.
96. 10-15. This is a real description of the geography of the region of the Lofoden islands. Refer to a good map of Norway.
97. 27. MaelstrÖm: from Norwegian words meaning "grind" and "stream." The swift tidal currents and eddies of the Lofoden islands are very dangerous, but the early accounts are greatly exaggerated, and Poe's description is, aside from being based on these accounts, purely imaginative.
97. 32. Jonas Ramus. Professor Woodberry, whose study of Poe's text has been exhaustive, has an interesting note to this effect: Poe used an article in an early edition of the EncyclopÆdia Britannica, in which a passage was taken from Pontoppidan's "The Natural History of Norway" without acknowledgment, this in turn having been taken (with proper acknowledgment) from Ramus. The Britannica, in the ninth edition, after giving Poe credit for "erudition taken solely from a previous edition of this very encyclopedia, which in its turn had stolen the learning from another, quotes the parts that Poe invented out of his own head." See "Whirlpool" in the Britannica.
98. 26-27. Norway mile: a little over four and a half English miles.
99. 19. Phlegethon: a river of Hades in which flowed flames instead of water.
100. 4. Athanasius Kircher (1601-1680) was a learned Roman Catholic writer, a native of Germany. See "Whirlpool" in the Britannica.
105. 2. what a scene it was to light up! Interest in the narrative should not hurry the reader too much to appreciate this scene,—the magnificent setting of the adventure.
109. 10. tottering bridge, etc.: Al Sirat, the bridge from earth over the abyss of hell to the Mohammedan paradise. It is as narrow as a sword's edge, and while the good traverse it in safety, the wicked plunge to torment.
111. 35. Archimedes of Syracuse (i.e. 287—212) was the greatest of ancient mathematicians; the work to which Poe refers deals with floating bodies.
THE MASQUE OF THE RED DEATH (Page 113)
First published in Graham's Magazine for May, 1842 (see comment in the Introduction, page xxvii).
113. The "Red Death" is a product of Poe's own imagination; there is no record of such a disease in medical history.
113. 3. avatar: a word from Hindoo mythology, in which it means an incarnation. The word is used here in its secondary sense,—a visible manifestation.
113. 11. This paragraph suggests the circumstances under which Boccaccio represents the stories of his famous "Decameron." A comparison will be interesting.
116. 3. decora: possibly used as a plural of "decorum," propriety; probably it is intended to suggest ornamentation.
116. 14. Hernani: a well-known tragedy by the great French writer, Victor Hugo (1802-1885).
THE GOLD-BUG (Page 120)
First published in the Dollar Newspaper of Philadelphia in June, 1843, as the $100 prize story (see comment in the Introduction, page xxviii). This is the best and most widely read of the stories regarding Captain Kidd's treasure. Read an account of Captain Kidd in an encyclopedia or dictionary of biography.
Is the main incident of the story the discovery of the treasure or the solution of the cryptogram? Would the first satisfy you without the second? The plot is worthy of careful study. Consider the following points, for example: the significance of the chilly day, how Lieutenant G—— affects the course of events, the incident of the dog rushing in, the effect of introducing the gold-bug and making it the title of the story. If Poe's purpose was to make a story of cryptography, think of some of the innumerable plots he might have used, and see what you think of the effectiveness of the one chosen.
120. Quotation. Arthur Murphy (1727-1805), an English actor and playwright, wrote a comedy called "All in the Wrong," but Professor W.P. Trent, who examined the play, failed to find Poe's quotation.
120. 15. Poe, while serving in the army, was stationed at Fort Moultrie, and should have known the region well, but his description is said to be inaccurate.
121. 11. Jan Swammerdamm (1637-1680), a Dutch naturalist, who devoted most of his time to the study of insects.
122. 7. scarabÆus: Latin for "beetle," and the scientific term in entomology. While there are various golden beetles, Poe's was a creation of his own.
122. 26. This is one of the early attempts to use negro dialect. Poe's efforts are rather clumsy, considering his long residence in the South. The reader will notice a number of improbable expressions of Jupiter's, introduced for humorous effect, but the general character of the old negro is portrayed, in the main, very well.
124. 5. scarabÆus caput bominis: man's-head beetle.
127. 17. brusquerie: brusqueness, abruptness.
127. 20. solus: Latin for "alone." The Latin word is altogether unnecessary. Poe was often rather affected in the use of foreign words and phrases.
128. 22. empressement: French for "eagerness," cordiality.
132. 31. Liriodendron Tulipifera: the scientific name for the tulip tree, which sometimes attains a height of 140 feet and a diameter of 9 feet.
138. 25-26. curvets and caracoles: rare terms belonging to horsemanship; the first is a low leap, the second a sudden wheel.
142. 13. counters: pieces of money, coins; or the meaning may be imitation coins for reckoning or for counting in games.
142. 16. No American money. Why?
142. 31. Bacchanalian figures: figures dancing and drinking wine at a celebration of the worship of Bacchus, god of wine.
143. 29. parchment. What is the difference?
147. 20. aqua regia: "royal water," so called because it dissolves gold, is a mixture of nitric and hydrochloric acids.
150. 15. Golconda: a ruined city of India, once famous as a place for the cutting and polishing of diamonds; used figuratively in the sense of a mine of wealth.
150. 30. Read Poe's article on "Cryptography," included in his collected works.
151. 13. Spanish main: that part of the Caribbean Sea adjacent to the coast of South America. It was part of the route of Spanish merchant vessels between Spain and her new-world possessions, and was infested with pirates.
THE PURLOINED LETTER (Page 160)
First published in 1845 (see comment on the detective stories in the Introduction, page xxviii). This story is peculiarly original in its incidents and subtle in its reasoning. "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" should certainly be read also, and perhaps it will prove of more sustained interest to the majority of readers.
160. Quotation. Lucius AnnÆus Seneca (B.C. 4-A.D. 65) was a celebrated Roman philosopher and tutor of the Emperor Nero. The quotation means: "Nothing is more hateful to wisdom than excessive acumen."
160. 3. Dupin: introduced in "The Murders in the Rue Morgue."
160. 4-5. Au troisiÈme: French, literally, "on the third," but the meaning is the fourth floor, because the count is begun above the ground floor; Faubourg St. Germain: an aristocratic section of Paris.
160. 15-16. Monsieur G——: introduced in "The Murders in the Rue Morgue."
164. 3. Hotel: in French usage, a dwelling of some pretension,—a mansion.
164. 7. au fait: French for familiar, expert.
168. 26. John Abernethy (1764-1831), an eminent English surgeon, was noted for his brusque manners and his eccentricities.
171. 15-16. FranÇois, Due de la Rochefoucauld (1613-1680) was a French moralist, author of the famous "Maxims"; Jean de la BruyÈre (1645-1696) was a French essayist; see notes on Machiavelli and Campanella under "The Fall of the House of Usher," page 194.
172. 19. recherchÉ: French for "sought after," selected with care.
173. 1. non distributio medii: "undistributed middle," a term in logic for a form of fallacious reasoning. Consult an encyclopedia, articles on "Logic," "Syllogism," and "Fallacy," or the Century Dictionary under "Fallacy."
173. 16. Nicholas Chamfort (1741-1794), a Frenchman, was said to be the best conversationalist of his day, and wrote famous maxims and epigrams. The quotation means, "It is safe to wager that every popular idea, every received convention, is a piece of foolishness, because it has suited the majority."
173. 27-28. ambitus: a going round, illegal striving for office; religio: scrupulousness, conscientiousness; homines honesti: men of distinction.
174. 17. Jacob Bryant (1715-1804), an Englishman; his work on mythology is of no value.
175. 5. intriguant: an intriguer.
176. 3. vis inertiÆ: force of inertia.
180. 5. facilis descensus Averni: "the descent to Avernus is easy." Virgil's "Aeneid," VI, 126; Cranch's translation, VI, 161-162. Lake Avernus was, in classical mythology, the entrance to Hades. Consult Gayley's "Classic Myths."
180. 6. Angelica Catalani (1780-1849), a famous Italian singer.
180. 9. monstrum horrendum: a dreadful monster.
180. 23-24. "A design so baneful, if not worthy of Atreus, is worthy of Thyestes." Atreus and Thyestes were brothers to whom, in classic story, the most terrible crimes were attributed.
180. 25. Prosper J. de CrÉbillon (1674-1762), a noted French tragic poet. The quotation is from "AtrÉe et Thyeste."
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