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7th - EPRS: Gothic Romanticism & "Annabel Lee"

Rhiannon Leuszler

Created on October 14, 2025

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Transcript

Explicit Parallel Read: Structural Qs

How do structure and sound work together to express Romantic and Gothic Romantic ideas?

Learning Intentions

How can I use structural and figurative details from the text to understand what Romanticism is, why it developed in response to industrial change, and how its ideas appear in Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “Annabel Lee”?

  1. Identify how headings and text structure build understanding of the Romantic movement.
  2. Explain how the author’s sequence and contrast (Romantic vs. Gothic) show why the movement emerged.
  3. Analyze how repetition, sound devices, and imagery in “Annabel Lee” create rhythm and tone.
  4. Describe how structure and figurative language work together to express Romantic and Gothic ideas.

We’ll stop to mark text evidence, cite it, and write short margin notes showing what it tells us about structure.

The heading and introduction set up the structure before we even start reading. Let’s see how the writer uses the heading and first paragraphs to frame both Romantic and Gothic Romantic ideas.

Headings as Structural Signals (Intro, ¶3, ¶7)

How do the heading and opening paragraphs organize and introduce the topic?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

"The expository text provides readers with an introduction to the Romantic era of the 19th century" "Romantic writers celebrated the power of natural and emotional landscapes."

#IntroFrame Begins with definition + reason for the movement.

Headings as Structural Signals (Intro, ¶3, ¶7)

How do the heading and opening paragraphs organize and introduce the topic?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

“Romantic artists generally rejected this industrialism. Instead, they celebrated emotions, imagination, and the individual.”

#ContrastStructure Moves from what they rejected → what they valued.

Headings as Structural Signals (Intro, ¶3, ¶7)

How do the heading and opening paragraphs organize and introduce the topic?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

“Gothic Romanticism, also referred to as Dark Romanticism, is a subgenre within the Romantic literary period.”

#DualFocus Heading previews both Romanticism and its darker form.

Notice how the text moves chronologically through history then shifts tone to contrast two branches of Romanticism. Organization helps readers track development.

Chronology and Contrast (¶4, ¶5 , ¶7)

How does the order of ideas help build understanding?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#TimelineStart Uses dates to set context before describing ideas.

“American Romanticism is usually dated from approximately 1820 to the late 1860s.”

Chronology and Contrast (¶4, ¶5 , ¶7)

How does the order of ideas help build understanding?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#OptimisticShift Structure adds new sub-movement emphasizing nature.

“Transcendentalism" "an important branch of American Romanticism”

Chronology and Contrast (¶4, ¶5 , ¶7)

How does the order of ideas help build understanding?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

“Gothic Romantic writing took an interest in themes such as madness, death, evil, and the destructive aspects of nature.”

#ContrastEnd Ends section with darker variation → structural balance.

The author ends by layering beliefs, style, and form, moving from big ideas to lasting impact. Let’s see how those final sections act as a summary.

Cumulative Ending (¶9, ¶10, ¶11)

How does the last section summarize Romanticism’s impact through structure?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

“The Power of Emotions" "They embraced emotions as a way to understand the world.”

#SummaryValue Begins ending with key emotional focus.

Cumulative Ending (¶9, ¶10, ¶11)

How does the last section summarize Romanticism’s impact through structure?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#StructuralFreedom Ends with examples of new poetic structure.

“Free verse is poetry that does not necessarily rhyme or follow a specific meter.”

Cumulative Ending (¶9, ¶10, ¶11)

How does the last section summarize Romanticism’s impact through structure?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#ModernConnection Final paragraph connects Romantic legacy to present.

“the impact of the Romantic period can be seen in some of the things you read or watch today”

Repetition gives the poem its framework. Let’s trace ‘In a kingdom by the sea’ to see how Poe uses it like a chorus.

Repetition as Structural Anchor

How does repetition of ‘In a kingdom by the sea’ shape the poem’s structure and tone?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#OpeningMemory Introduces setting and songlike tone.

“It was many and many a year ago, / In a kingdom by the sea.”

Repetition as Structural Anchor

How does repetition of ‘In a kingdom by the sea’ shape the poem’s structure and tone?

Margin Note

Annotation - Highlight

“So that her highborn kinsmen came" "In this kingdom by the sea.”

#EchoOfLoss Refrain reappears after tragedy, linking memory to place.

Repetition as Structural Anchor

How does repetition of ‘In a kingdom by the sea’ shape the poem’s structure and tone?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#FullCircleClosure Ending repeats phrase to close emotional loop.

“In her tomb by the sounding sea.”

Poe doesn’t just rhyme; he builds mood with vowel sounds and rhythm. Let’s listen to how the poem sounds to understand its emotional pull.

Sound Patterns and Rhythm (Assonance, Rhyme, and Meter)

How do sound patterns create feeling in the poem?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#AssonanceFlow Long ‘oo’ and ‘ee’ vowels make the line flow like a sigh.

“A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling / My beautiful Annabel Lee.”

Sound Patterns and Rhythm (Assonance, Rhyme, and Meter)

How does repetition of ‘In a kingdom by the sea’ shape the poem’s structure and tone?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#InternalRhyme ‘Chilling / killing’ adds rhythm and tension.

“The wind came out of the cloud by night, / Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.”

Sound Patterns and Rhythm (Assonance, Rhyme, and Meter)

How does repetition of ‘In a kingdom by the sea’ shape the poem’s structure and tone?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

“By the name of Annabel Lee.” (underline all [description] Annabel Lee)

#NameRefrain Repeated name personalizes grief, turning sorrow musical.

Repetition gives the poem its framework. Let’s trace ‘In a kingdom by the sea’ to see how Poe uses it like a chorus.

Imagery and Structural Shift

What changes in imagery show a structural or emotional shift?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#ColdConflict Natural image represents outside forces separating love.

“A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling / My beautiful Annabel Lee.”

Imagery and Structural Shift

What changes in imagery show a structural or emotional shift?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

#SupernaturalJealousy Imagery expands to cosmic conflict.

“The angels, not half so happy in Heaven, / Went envying her and me.”

Imagery and Structural Shift

What changes in imagery show a structural or emotional shift?

Margin Note

Annotation - Underline

“And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side / Of my darling - my darling - my life and my bride, / In her sepluchre there by the sea / In her tomb by the sounding sea.”

#PeacefulResolution Closes with still, nightly image → love eternalized.

Learning Intention Check

☐ Marked how headings, sequence, and contrast organize ideas. ☐ Identified at least three figurative or sound devices with line numbers. ☐ Explained how structure and language create tone and effect. ☐ Used direct textual evidence for one complete explanation.

Answer the Quick Check Qs in Canvas.