Romance by Edgar Allan Poe - Book Report/Review Example

In the second stanza, the lad who talks about Romance has grown into a fine young man who now perceives Romance from a diverse perspective. He has entered an age when he has no time for 'idle cares'. He cannot attach enough importance to Romance, the very bird that was so dear to him. He now visualizes Romance as a forbidden thing, something one must not indulge in. However, he also finally says that as he reminisces and recollects or switches back to those early moments, delving into that lovely feeling called Romance, it does make him tremble.

He says, it would almost be a crime to remain stoic and un-fluttered, while the chords of Romance strike him. This poem belongs to the genre of a lyric poem, which has a methodical stanzaic structure, imparting a tune to the whole poem. "Arranged in tetrameter couplets, a sing-song pattern is avoided by occasional displacement of stress" (Stovall 208).The poem can be assessed from varied perspectives. The aesthetic value of the poem is what wows the reader, firstly. The picturesque descriptions of Nature create a delicate and beautiful impact on the reader.

The comparison of Romance to a bird is one of the striking features. The construction of the sentences adds beauty to the already picturesque detailing, in the first stanza. Two very striking imagery is that of a bird and a child. The second stanza stands for the passage of time when 'paroquet' is replaced by a Condor. This signifies change. The 'delicateness' imparted to the bird called Romance is replaced by might and strength, in the form of a Condor. The poet is forced to change his perception about Romance as a 'forbidden thing' This is where the pressure of 'society' comes into the picture.

It is a society that often decided what is 'forbidden' and what is not. Though the poet might not want to move on or forget Romance he is forced to do so, considering the pressure exerted upon him by the norms and regulations, besides the perceptions set and forced upon, by the society. Thus, the poem is a reflection of human emotions and feelings, which are eventually successfully suppressed and hidden away under layers of emotions, due to the norms set by society.