A VAlentine

A VALENTINE

Edgar Allen Poe

For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes,
Brightly expressive as the twins of Leda,
Shall find her own sweet name, that nestling lies
Upon the page, enwrapped from every reader.
Search narrowly the lines!- they hold a treasure
Divine- a talisman- an amulet
That must be worn at heart. Search well the measure-
The words- the syllables! Do not forget
The trivialest point, or you may lose you    Which one might not undo without a sabre,
If one could merely comprehend the plot.
Enwritten upon the leaf where now are peering
Eyes scintillating soul, there lie perdus
Three eloquent words oft uttered in the hearing
Of poets, by poets- as the name is a poet’s, too,
Its letters, although naturally lying
Like the knight Pinto- Mendez Ferdinando-
Still form a synonym for Truth- Cease trying!
You will not read the riddle, though you do the best you can do.

This is a lyrical poem, written in the form of acrostic. Other than a poem, “A Valentine” is actually a riddle that Poe made to reveal his secret lover. Edgar Allen Poe composed “A Valentine” to express his affection for a woman, but he’s too afraid to directly tell her because she’s already married. The subject matter is about Poe’s challenge for the readers, to solve the riddle within this poem. Through the puzzle that the writer gives out to the reader, he also blends in the implication for his lover’s beauty. Poe’s love for this woman is a secret affair. He can only express it in discreet, through the meaning of this poem, because it is wrongful to be infatuated with a married woman. The theme of this poem is about a woman’s magnificence to a man when he’s falling in love, and the mysteriousness of this secret love they’re having. Poe wrote this poem under his personal context of being in love, in a secret love affair. The historical context of “A Valentine” is in the 1846, so it is evident that the language used is formal. The tone applied for this poem is very romantic, when refer to the woman and stimulating, in terms of the mystery for the reader. The writing purpose of Poe is to stimulate the readers with an interesting puzzle about his lover. The regular rhyme scheme of this poem is abab cdcd, but sometimes the pattern change unexpectedly due to the appearance of an odd line with no rhyme.