Poe, Edgar Allen."To— — —. Ulalume: A Ballad".

Summary

In is an October night by the dim lake Auber in the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir (suggests weird). The speaker wanders with his soul, their speech is serious and sober, but their thoughts are sere. They do not realize which night of year it is and they do not recognize their surroundings.

A light appears, it is the crescent of the goddess of moon. The speaker fancies she has come to bring them far away from the sorrow of this world, to show them the way to heaven. His soul, Psyche, described as a butterfly, warns him, but the speaker persuades her to pursue the light. At the end of their way they encounter a tomb and the soul reads the inscription which says "Ulalume". The speaker realizes this is the tomb of his lost Ulalume and realizes what day it is.

The speaker entertains an idea that it could have been the woodlandish ghouls that banned their way from the secret which lies hidden in these woods.

Analysis

- a narrative poem of the speaker's mysterious guest

- Romantic features: preoccupied with mystery, legend, the supernatural, etc.

- Gothic features: the gloomy setting, hints of danger, the tomb, etc.