The Raven And Annabel Lee By Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe

What was Edgar Allan Poe’s inspiration? Was it his sadness, or his anger? Throughout his poems and his works he shows his feelings, revealing his true self, letting us look deeper into the meaning of his works. We will review his backstory, the differences in sadness and anger, analyze his poem The Raven and Annabel Lee, as well as go deeper into the meaning of his first published and most depressing work Tamerlane. In the end I will conclude that Poe’s inspiration for all of his works was both a mix of sadness and anger.

On January 19th, 1809 in the town of Boston, Massachusetts, Edgar Allan Poe was born. He was born into a quite theatrical family. His father, who was David Poe was a lawyer who soon became an actor, and his

The raven was actually a bird that Poe’s friend Charles Dickens had. He had studied the raven and eventually wrote The Raven. “"Sir," said I, "or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore; 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.” (Poe, The Raven) Poe says that he hears a tapping at his door of his room as he’s trying to sleep. As he opens the door there’s nothing, only darkness. “But the Raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only 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."” (Poe, The Raven) Poe is now starting to get upset with the raven at this point, and is most likely imagining the raven talking, since birds cannot actually talk. Now, take into consideration that Poe was a drunk, so him seeing things like this and getting upset about them must have happened more than only once. In The Raven Poe is very angry, the tone gets heavier and more serious, but as for Annabel Lee, the tone was very sad and wasn’t as

She was the only family he became close to after his parents died. She treated him as her own, and he saw her as his mother, especially after he married her daughter, Virginia. Poe had been very lonely after his late wife Virginia died and his aunt was the only person that he really had less. “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.” (Poe, Annabel Lee) Poe mentions how the wind came and killed his Annabel Lee, with Annabel lee would most likely be his late wife. “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.” (Poe, Annabel Lee) Poe then says how the moon never shows without him having dreams of her. Saying that he dreams about her still every night, even after her death. He’s always reminded of her because of his aunt whom was his wife’s mother. Annabel Lee and The Raven have their differences, one having a depressing tone, and the other a more upset tone. Yet, Poe’s first published and most darkest work