“Annabelle Lee”
by Edgar Allan Poe
A Guided Highlighted Reading activity.
Annabel Lee
1 It was many and many a year ago,
2 In a kingdom by the sea,
3 That a maiden there lived whom you may know
4 By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
5 And this maiden she lived with no other thought
6 Than to love and be loved by me.
7
8
9
10
11
12
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 loveI and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
21
22
23
24
25
26
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and meYes!- 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.
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than weOf many far wiser than weAnd neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
34 For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
35 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
36 And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
37 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
38 And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
39 Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
40 In the sepulchre there by the sea,
41 In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Edgar Allan Poe
Prompts for Vocabulary – Annabelle Lee
In line 11, highlight the two word term that describes angels.
In line 12, highlight the verb that means to desire wrongfully, or without due regard for the
rights of others.
In line 15, highlight the verb that means to become very cold.
In line 17, highlight the adjective that describes someone of noble or aristocratic birth .
In line 17, highlight the noun that means a blood relative, especially a male.
In line 18, highlight the verb that means to force through or carry through.
In line 19, highlight the noun that is another word for a burial vault, tomb, or grave .
In line 22, highlight the verb that describes a longing to possess something awarded to or
achieved by another.
In line 32, highlight the verb that describes to divide into parts.
In line 41, highlight the noun that is another name for a monument for housing or
commemorating a dead person.
Annabel Lee
1 It was many and many a year ago,
2 In a kingdom by the sea,
3 That a maiden there lived whom you may know
4 By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
5 And this maiden she lived with no other thought
6 Than to love and be loved by me.
7
8
9
10
11
12
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 loveI and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
21
22
23
24
25
26
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and meYes!- 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.
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than weOf many far wiser than weAnd neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
34 For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
35 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
36 And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
37 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
38 And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
39 Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
40 In the sepulchre there by the sea,
41 In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Edgar Allan Poe
Prompts for Summary –” Annabelle Lee” by Edgar Allan Poe
In line 1, highlight the words that describe when this happened.
In line 2, highlight where this happened?
In lines 3 and 4, highlight who lived there and her name.
In line 6, highlight what was “no other thought”.
In line 7, highlight the age of both the narrator and the maiden.
In line 11 highlight why they were coveted and who coveted them.
In line 15, highlight what “chilled” Annabelle Lee.
In line 17, underline who came to take her away.
In line 19, highlight what they did with body.
In lines 21 and 22, highlight why the angels did what they did.
In lines 25 and 26, highlight what killed Annabelle Lee.
In lines 27 – 29, highlight the adjective that describes their love, and the two groups
of people that it was “by far” than.
In lines 30 and 31, highlight who can never dissever their souls from each other.
In line 40, highlight where he will “lie down by the side of my darling…”.
Annabel Lee
1 It was many and many a year ago,
2 In a kingdom by the sea,
3 That a maiden there lived whom you may know
4 By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
5 And this maiden she lived with no other thought
6 Than to love and be loved by me.
7
8
9
10
11
12
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 loveI and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
21
22
23
24
25
26
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and meYes!- 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.
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than weOf many far wiser than weAnd neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
34 For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
35 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
36 And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
37 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
38 And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
39 Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
40 In the sepulchre there by the sea,
41 In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Edgar Allan Poe
Prompts for Craft – “Annabelle Lee” Edgar Allan Poe
In line 2, Poe defines a place that is much like something in a fairy tale. Highlight or underline where that place is
located.
In line 3, highlight the words the poet uses to pull us into the poem – that we have familiarity with or know
Annabelle Lee.
In line 5, highlight the hyperbole, a statement or an extravagant statement or figure of speech not intended to be
taken literally, as “to wait an eternity.”
In lines 11 and 12, Poe creates a contradiction by describing the winged seraphs of heaven as something other than
kind an loving. Highlight what it is they do that is not in character for an angel.
In lines 17 and 18, Poe creates a conflict between maturity and youth when Annabelle Lee is taken. Highlight how
he describes the way her kinsman took her from him.
In line 19, Annabelle Lee is no longer the maiden in the Kingdom by the sea, but rather something else. This is the
point in the poem when Poe admits that she has died. Highlight what has happened to her.
In line 21, highlight the letters that are part of an alliteration – repetition of sounds such as “ simple Simon says stay
still”.
In line 26, highlight or underline the two words that are images of death.
In lines 30 and 31, Poe says that the demons and angels can separate his soul from hers. Highlight where each is
located.
In line 34, highlight the personification or human characteristics that Poe gives the moon.
A metaphor is something used, or regarded as being used, to represent something else; emblem; symbol. In line
36, what is metaphorically stated as being her eyes.
In line 37, highlight the 3rd refrain of a line – i.e., the 3rd repetition of that line in the poem.
At the beginning of the poem, the Kingdom by the Sea represented life. In line 39 and 40, highlight what has
replaced the Kingdom and now represents death.
In line 41, highlight the two words that have the same beginning sound and are an example of alliteration.
Annabel Lee
1 It was many and many a year ago,
2 In a kingdom by the sea,
3 That a maiden there lived whom you may know
4 By the name of ANNABEL LEE;
5 And this maiden she lived with no other thought
6 Than to love and be loved by me.
7
8
9
10
11
12
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 loveI and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
Coveted her and me.
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
And this was the reason that, long ago,
In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
In this kingdom by the sea.
21
22
23
24
25
26
The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
Went envying her and meYes!- 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.
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than weOf many far wiser than weAnd neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.
34 For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
35 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
36 And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
37 Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
38 And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
39 Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
40 In the sepulchre there by the sea,
41 In her tomb by the sounding sea.
Edgar Allan Poe
Now, write a 4-6 line summary of the poem based on what you’ve learned
from your reading of the text and from what you’ve highlighted. Be sure to
use appropriate words as necessary and include as many explicit details as
possible.