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“Ligeia” (pronounced lie-JEE-uh) is a short story by Edgar Allan Poe, originally published in the September 1838 edition of the Baltimore journal the American Museum
. Poe later revised the story, incorporating a poem entitled “The Conqueror Worm.” This second version was first printed in 1845 in New York’s weekly journal The New World. This Gothic-tinged tale of love, grief, and obsession centers on a mysterious first-person narrator who cannot forget his first wife, a dark-haired metaphysical scholar named Ligeia. Although not as widely read as some of his other works, Poe considered “Ligeia” to be one of his best tales.Read a full story summary, a full story analysis, and explanations of important quotes from “Ligeia.”