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Lyric Poem · Childhood

Alone

by Edgar Allan Poe · 1829

Reading of the poem "Alone" by Edgar Allan Poe

From childhood's hour I have not been

As others were — I have not seen

As others saw — I could not bring

My passions from a common spring —

From the same source I have not taken

My sorrow — I could not awaken

My heart to joy at the same tone —

And all I lov'd — I lov'd alone —

Then — in my childhood — in the dawn

Of a most stormy life — was drawn

From ev'ry depth of good and ill

The mystery which binds me still —

From the torrent, or the fountain —

From the red cliff of the mountain —

From the sun that 'round me roll'd

In its autumn tint of gold —

From the lightning in the sky

As it pass'd me flying by —

From the thunder, and the storm —

And the cloud that took the form

Of a demon in my view —

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Quick facts

Poem
Alone
Poet
Edgar Allan Poe
Published
1829
Length
22 lines
Form
Lyric Poem
Themes
Childhood, Sad, Life

Craft notes

How this poem works

Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.

Shape
22 lines · 2 stanzas of 1–21 lines
Line length
Lines run 7-9 syllables (median 8), consistent with tetrameter. No single length dominates, which is normal once elision and contraction are in play.

Want the rules this form is measured against? Read what makes a lyric poem, or run your own draft through the form checker to see the same measurements on your lines. How we measure · Report a mistake

Text, source & rights

A traceable edition

Full-text display is based on the cited edition and a United States term-expiry review.

Author record
Edgar Allan Poe1809–1849
Source record
WikisourceAlone by edgar-allan-poe, Wikisource transcription
Display decision
Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
Publication record
1829
Text fingerprint
SHA-256 e0008575661ba51d
Editorial handling
Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.
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