Edgar Allen Poe uses many examples of assonance in his poem “Annabel Lee” to emphasize specific words and create different moods. Assonance is the repetition of the same vowel sound in two or more closely placed words within the same line. Assonance can also occur within the same word, such as “Annabel.”

The short a sound is repeated in the first line: “It was many and many a year ago.” This repetition stresses the weighty sounds of “many,” “a,” and “ago” to emphasize that the speaker’s story occurred long ago, far in the past.

The third line contains two examples of assonance: “That a maiden there lived whom you may know.” Two quick instances of the short a sound are juxtaposed in “that” and “a”; they then efficiently lead into the line's more important content—a “maid” that the reader “may” know. The repetition of the long a sound slows down the poem’s rhythm and emphasizes the titular young lady.

The fifth line contains two examples of assonance: “And this maiden she lived with no other thought.” The short sounds of i in “this” and “lived” convey an upbeat mood. The long o of “no” runs into the short o of “other” and “thought” to create a sense of ease.

The repetition of the short o sound in line 9 emphatically stresses the strong love shared between the speaker and Annabel Lee: “But we loved with a love that was more than love.” By line 15, however, the ou sounds in “A wind blew out of a cloud” stress a downturn in mood. “Out” and “cloud” emphasize coldness, a chill that causes Annabel Lee to fall ill.

By the time her relatives take her away, the poem becomes mournful. The repetition of the short u in line 19 underscores her entrapment in a tomb and her separation from the speaker: “To shut her up in a sepulchre.”

The speaker blames angels’ jealousy as the cause for the coldness that kills her. In line 22, he repeats the short e sound in his claim that they “went envying her and me.”

Nonetheless, their love is so strong that even death cannot separate them. He highlights this bond in the final stanza, which begins, “For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams.” The assonance of “beams” and “dreams” slows down the poem and stresses his faithful, nightly thoughts of his lady. Similarly, the repetition of the long i sound creates a thread that runs through the nearly final lines, emphasizing the tie that binds the speaker and Annabel Lee.

And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling—my darling—my life and my bride.