Lenore, Edgar Allan Poe: Summary, Analysis & Themes
"Lenore" was first titled "A Pæan" when it appeared in an 1831 collection of Poe’s poems. The original version was substantially different from the final version, lacking the name "Lenore" and containing only 11 quatrains. In 1843, when it was revised and published under its current title in The Pioneer , Poe introduced the name Lenore, and the poem evolved into a more refined reflection on death, love, and mourning. Both versions are often considered separate poems due to their distinct differences.
"Lenore" Poem Text by Edgar Allan Poe How shall the burial rite be read?
The solemn song be sung?
The requiem for the loveliest dead,
That ever died so young?
Her friends are gazing on her,
And on her gaudy bier,
And weep!—oh! to dishonor
Dead beauty with a tear!
They loved her for her wealth—
And they hated her for her pride—
But she grew in feeble health,
And they love her—that she died.
They tell me (while they speak
Of her “costly broider’d pall”) …