The mystical first wife of the narrator of "Ligeia", her fascinating intelligence and ghostly, wild appearance makes theirs an extreme romance. Though in many ways she seems quite unreal, on her deathbed, Ligeia begs for life and reveals her true love for the narrator. She haunts him thereafter in memories and in moments when the narrator’s second wife, Rowena, reminds him somehow of her. At the end, whether it is the narrator’s altered state influencing his senses, or whether she really has escaped the grave, Ligeia appears in Rowena’s place and the lasting image of the story is her paranormally large eyes.
Ligeia Quotes in Poe's Stories
The Poe's Stories quotes below are all either spoken by Ligeia or refer to Ligeia. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Ligeia
Quotes
They were, I must believe, far larger than the ordinary eyes of our own race. They were even fuller than the fullest of the gazelle eyes of the tribe of the valley of Nourjahad. Yet it was only at intervals – in moments of intense excitement – that this peculiarity became more than slightly noticeable in Ligeia.
Related Characters:
Narrator (Ligeia) (speaker), Ligeia
Related Symbols:
Eyes
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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Ligeia Character Timeline in Poe's Stories
The timeline below shows where the character Ligeia appears in Poe's Stories. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Ligeia
The narrator of "Ligeia" cannot remember how he came to know Ligeia. He says his memory has become weak...
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There is only one aspect of Ligeia that the narrator of "Ligeia" does not ever fail to remember, the form and appearance...
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...– there is something animal about them. They are usually only slightly noticeable but when Ligeia gets excited, they enlarge and their size and blackness become intensely strange. But though the...
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The narrator of "Ligeia" describes the feeling of almost remembering something, which he thinks is one of the most...
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The narrator of "Ligeia" has also been reminded of Ligeia by music and literature, and a certain book in...
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The narrator of "Ligeia" tells us that Ligeia was also very educated – she read all the time and...
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So when Ligeia dies, the narrator of "Ligeia" is left alone, without both his teacher and wife. He...
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It is not until the last moment, that Ligeia becomes still, her voice low and soft again, and confesses the fierceness of her love...
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At midnight, on the night of her death, Ligeia asks her husband to recite to her a particular poem that she has written herself...
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After Ligeia dies, the narrator of "Ligeia" can’t stand to be in their city by the Rhine...
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In chambers like these, the new couple pass their first month. The narrator of "Ligeia" can’t help but notice that Rowena isn’t very loving towards him and dreads his moods....
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...and she has feverous nights, and mumbles and moans strange words, which the narrator of "Ligeia" puts down to the fantastical images surrounding her in the chamber. She recovers but then...
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One night, Rowena wakes the narrator of "Ligeia", who has been sleeping fitfully beside her. She tells him that she sees things and...
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The narrator of "Ligeia" brings back the wine and Rowena begins to come to her senses again. But as...
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The fourth night that the narrator of "Ligeia" watches over Rowena indeed turns out to be her last. As he sits with the...
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At midnight, the narrator of "Ligeia" believes he hears a low sob coming from the bed. He is filled with superstitious...
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The narrator of "Ligeia" falls back down onto his couch and the visions of Ligeia come back to him....
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For a third time, the narrator of "Ligeia" dreams of Ligeia and for a third time, Rowena seems to awaken. He can’t bear...
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