Romance, Edgar Allan Poe: Summary, Analysis & Themes
"Romance" first appeared as "Preface" in Poe's 1829 collection Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane, and Minor Poems , and was later retitled "Introduction" in his 1831 volume Poems by Edgar A. Poe . The final version appeared in 1843, under the title "Romance" , in the Philadelphia Saturday Museum . The poem reflects Poe’s lifelong relationship with the romanticized ideal of love, infused with darker undertones. Notably, it is considered somewhat autobiographical, as the speaker mentions an inability to love without the presence of death—possibly alluding to the illness and loss experienced in Poe's personal life, such as the death of his wife, Virginia, and other women he loved.
"Romance" Poem Text by Edgar Allan Poe 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
Hath been—a most familiar bird—
Taught me my alphabet to say—
To l…