Themes in Annabel Lee

The rhythm of this poem, which is anapestic, seems intended to suggest that the setting is right by the sea and the waves keep rolling in with regularity, one after another. This has a soothing and lulling effect, as does the fact that it is a moonlit and starry night. The speaker is not mourning his loss but assuring himself that he and his Annabel Lee will be together throughout the eternity which is represented by the moon, the stars, and the boundless ocean.