Dec 24, 2009
“Israfel” is a lyrical poem of eight uneven stanzas, each stanza ranging from five to eight lines in length. The title is the name of an angel mentioned in the Koran, the sacred book of the Muslims. Edgar Allan Poe appended a note to this poem to make sure that his readers understood Israfel’s significance; the note read: “And the angel Israfel, whose heartstrings are a lute, and who has the sweetest voice of all God’s creatures—Koran.” Israfel’s importance as a singer or artist is central to the poem, and Poe’s consideration here of...
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