"Eulalie," or "Eulalie - A Song," is a poem by Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...

, first published in the July 1845

1845 in literature

The year 1845 in literature involved some significant new books.-Events:*April 24 - Alfred de Musset and Honoré de Balzac are awarded the Légion d'honneur.* Robert Browning begins his correspondence with his future wife, Elizabeth Barrett....

 issue of The American Review

American Review: A Whig Journal

The American Review, alternatively known as The American Review: A Whig Journal and The American Whig Review, was a New York City-based monthly periodical. Published by Wiley and Putnam, it was owned and operated by George H. Colton.-History:...

and reprinted shortly thereafter in the August 9, 1845 issue of the Broadway Journal

Broadway Journal

The Broadway Journal was a short-lived New York City-based periodical founded by Charles Frederick Briggs and John Bisco in 1844. A year later, the publication was bought by Edgar Allan Poe, becoming the only magazine he ever owned, though it failed after only a few months under his...

.

Summary

The poem is a bridal song about a man who overcomes his sadness by marrying the beautiful Eulalie. The woman's love here has a transformative effect on the narrator, taking him from a "world of moan" to one of happiness.

Analysis

The poem utilizes Poe's frequent theme of "the death of a beautiful woman

The Philosophy of Composition

"The Philosophy of Composition" is an 1846 essay written by American writer Edgar Allan Poe that elucidates a theory about how good writers write when they write well. He concludes that length, "unity of effect" and a logical method are important considerations for good writing. He also makes the...

", which he considered to be "the most poetical topic in the world." The use of this theme has often been suggested to be autobiographical by Poe critics and biographers, stemming from the repeated loss of women throughout Poe's life, including his mother Eliza Poe

Eliza Poe

Elizabeth Arnold Hopkins Poe was an English-born American actress and the mother of the American author Edgar Allan Poe.-Life and career:...

 and his foster mother Frances Allan. If autobiographical, "Eulalie" may be referring to Poe's relationship with his wife Virginia

Virginia Eliza Clemm Poe

Virginia Eliza Clemm Poe was the wife of American writer Edgar Allan Poe. The couple were first cousins and married when Virginia Clemm was 13 and Poe was 27...

. It seems to express that she lifted his spirits and washed away his feelings of loneliness. After Virginia's death in 1847, Poe scribbled on a manuscript copy of "Eulalie" a couplet

Couplet

A couplet is a pair of lines of meter in poetry. It usually consists of two lines that rhyme and have the same meter.While traditionally couplets rhyme, not all do. A poem may use white space to mark out couplets if they do not rhyme. Couplets with a meter of iambic pentameter are called heroic...

, now known as "Deep in Earth." It is unclear if Poe intended this to be part of "Eulalie," an unfinished new poem, or just a personal note.

The name Eulalie emphasizes the letter "L

L

Ł or ł, described in English as L with stroke, is a letter of the Polish, Kashubian, Sorbian, Łacinka , Łatynka , Wilamowicean, Navajo, Dene Suline, Inupiaq, Zuni, Hupa, and Dogrib alphabets, several proposed alphabets for the Venetian language, and the ISO 11940 romanization of the Thai alphabet...

," a frequent device in Poe's female characters such as "Annabel Lee

Annabel Lee

"Annabel Lee" is the last complete poem composed by American author Edgar Allan Poe. Like many of Poe's poems, it explores the theme of the death of a beautiful woman. The narrator, who fell in love with Annabel Lee when they were young, has a love for her so strong that even angels are jealous. He...

," "Lenore

Lenore

"Lenore" is a poem by the American author Edgar Allan Poe. It began as a different poem, "A Paean", and was not published as "Lenore" until 1843.- Interpretation :...

," and "Ulalume

Ulalume

"Ulalume" is a poem written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1847. Much like a few of Poe's other poems , "Ulalume" focuses on the narrator's loss of a beautiful woman due to her death. Poe originally wrote the poem as an elocution piece and, as such, the poem is known for its focus on sound...

."

Publication history

The poem was first published as "Eulalie - A Song" in the July 1845 issue of the American Review

American Review: A Whig Journal

The American Review, alternatively known as The American Review: A Whig Journal and The American Whig Review, was a New York City-based monthly periodical. Published by Wiley and Putnam, it was owned and operated by George H. Colton.-History:...

- it was the only new poem Poe published that year, other than "The Raven

The Raven

"The Raven" is a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe, first published in January 1845. It is often noted for its musicality, stylized language, and supernatural atmosphere. It tells of a talking raven's mysterious visit to a distraught lover, tracing the man's slow descent into madness...

".

See also

• "Bridal Ballad"
• "Ulalume
  Ulalume
  "Ulalume" is a poem written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1847. Much like a few of Poe's other poems , "Ulalume" focuses on the narrator's loss of a beautiful woman due to her death. Poe originally wrote the poem as an elocution piece and, as such, the poem is known for its focus on sound...
  
  "
• Poems by Edgar Allan Poe
  Poems by Edgar Allan Poe
  This article lists all known poems by American author and critic Edgar Allan Poe , listed alphabetically with the date of their authorship in parentheses.-An Acrostic :...