A Valentine
For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes,
Brightly expressive as the twins of Loeda,
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 your labor!
And yet there is in this no Gordian knotWhich 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.
Meanings of A Valentine
Although the poem “A Valentine” by Edgar Allen Poe goes on a personal level, he has beautifully universalized his feelings of love for Osgood through acrostic verses. He demonstrates her significance for him yet does not name her openly. The main idea of the poem is the riddling of love and its impact on the overall life of a person.
Meanings of Stanza -1
For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes,
Brightly expressive as the twins of Loeda,
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 your labor!
And yet there is in this no Gordian knot
The poet, who himself is the speaker of the poem, states that he has written this poem in the name of a lady whose eyes are very bright and that she is expressive like the twin sons of Leda, the Spartan Queen. The poet is clear that her name is in the verses, somewhere wrapped in words, and that every reader has the power to find it out. Therefore, he advises the readers to go through the lines and see behind them. They have this treasure. This is akin to a talisman, a divine amulet, or a treasure that he has hidden in the verses. He states solemnly that this amulet must be worn around the neck at the heart. The name has beautiful words and beautiful syllables but even the most ordinary things in it must not be missed or the entire hard work of the reader would go down the drain in case he misses these simple points. The poet is also clear that finding her name in the poem is not as difficult as untying a Gordian knot. Therefore, the readers must find out how he has kept the name of his beloved in the verses. The stanza contributes to the main idea of love and obsession in love.
Meanings of Stanza -2
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.
The riddle, the poet says, may not open without using the sword. He means that if a person could understand what the plot is, he can easily unravel it and find the name of his beloved. Otherwise, he would have to use the sword. He leaves several hints in these verses about the name. The first is that it is written everywhere and that it has three eloquent words. The second is that the person whose name is lying here in the verses is a poet. The third is that the words are natural, like that of Knight Pinto’s beloved, whose name also starts with the same letter. Knight Pinto was a popular Portuguese writer and mariner, and his real name was Ferdinand Mendez Pinto. By the end, he advises the readers that this name means truth as of Pinto and that it is not a riddle though the reader has done his best to read it like a riddle. In fact, the name Frances Sargent Osgood occurs in each line at the same place as the number of the line. This stanza leaves several hints for the reader to make up the issue clear about the love and obsession of the poet with his beloved. Therefore, it completes the main idea of the poem.
Summary of A Valentine
- Popularity of “A Valentine”: Written by Edgar Allan Poe, a popular American poet, and writer, “A Valentine” is a lyrical poem. It was first published in 1846 in the form of a riddle. The speaker discreetly expresses his love for a lady. The poem shows how hard it gets for a person to accept that the love of his life is already shared. The poem gained accolades due to its unique form and structure, which explicitly expresses the writer’s feelings.
- “A Valentine” As a Representative of Hidden Love: “A Valentine” is an amazingly creative piece of art. The writer dedicates this poem to the lady whom he loves secretly. It begins when the speaker expresses his feelings for her. He says that he holds her close to his heart like a talisman. Instead of calling her by name, he makes her name a secret, hiding it in the poem like an acrostic. Using an acrostic style, he hides the lady’s name in a particular order. For him, her name is a divine treasure he never wants to lose. After expressing his love, the writer hints how we can scan the lady’s name between the words, lines, or syllables. To find her name, one needs to have a meticulous approach as it is like a Gordian knot. As the poem continues, the writer tells three words of her name, hidden in the text. The reader comes to know that her name starts with the letter F. The poem ends with a humorous note; the writer throws a challenge to readers, claiming that they would not be able to guess the name of the lady.
- Major Themes in “A Valentine”: Love, expression and the art of writing are the major themes of the poem. Poe wrote this poem to indirectly express his affection for a woman. The poem highlights the woman’s magnificence to a man and the mysteriousness of their secret love. This simple poem reflects that love follows no boundaries, limits, or principles. When it decides to enter someone’s heart, it simply makes its way. This is what happens in the speaker’s case. Despite knowing that the lady is married, he burns the candle of her love. However, when it comes to expression, he fearfully outpours his feelings in the form of a riddle in this poem. Not only does the poem express the untold love of the speaker, but it also shows the respectful stance of the speaker toward the lady. He does not want to call her name publicly. Instead, he prefers hiding it under cover of words, letters, and syllables. However, the name of the woman the speaker tells about runs parallel in the text, Frances Sargent Osgood.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in A Valentine
literary devices add quality, meaning, and richness to simple texts. Poe has added various literary devices in the poem whose analysis is as follows.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line such as the sound of /e/ in “For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes” and the sound of /o/ in “The trivialest point, or you may lose your labor.”
- Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick succession such as the sound of /s/ in “Eyes scintillating soul.”
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line such as the sound of /d/ in “I wait until I hear a gate latch lift” and the sound of /p/ in “Of poets, by poets—as the name is a poet’s, too.”
- Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;
“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.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Poe has used imagery in this poem, such as “For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes” and “Upon the page, enwrapped from every reader.”
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects that are different in nature. The poet compares the lady with various objects in the first stanza, such as “ Search narrowly the lines!—they hold a treasure/Divine—a talisman—an amulet.”
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem uses symbols such as affection, hidden love, wonder, and challenge.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in “A Valentine”
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Edgar Allen Poe used end rhyme in this poem such as “eyes/lies”, “treasure/measure” and “peering/hearing.”
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows the ABAB CDCDCD rhyme Scheme, and this pattern continues until the end.
- Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are two stanzas in this poem, with each comprising ten verses.
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful in lectures to discuss how writers make their love eternal using their poetic intellect.
“For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes,
Brightly expressive as the twins of Loeda,
Shall find her own sweet name, that, nestling lies
Upon the page, enwrapped from every reader.”
