Analysis of Poe’s The Raven
Poe’s “The Raven” is a prime example of gothic poetry at its’ finest. Poe utilizes rhythm and flow in an original fashion not only to draw his reader in, but to create the dark and empty tone inherent in all well-written gothic literature. Poe employs several other literary devices in his poem, such as the main character’s house, allusion to a mentally unstable narrator, an overall dark atmosphere and symbolism.
In much of gothic literature, the “house” is designed and written about to convey a dark, depressed, and somewhat ominous mood. The reader begins to see parallels between the house and the main character, whether they be physical, emotional, or both. This is the case in The Raven, as Poe describes the main character’s sitting room as a “chamber” with “sad…purple curtains” (Poe, para. 3).
Later in the poem, he also describes how the Raven perches just above his chamber door, on a “pallid bust of Pallas,” causing the reader to imagine a room in which an ashen, eyeless Greek sculpture would seem in place.
Throughout “The Raven,” the main character’s view of the Raven changes quickly and dramatically many times. The narrator is at first weary and cautious of his unknown visitor, as he hears the tapping at his door and window. Once he opens his window and in flies the Raven, he is struck with a sort of odd happiness and respect for the bird, as he says, “then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling” (Poe, para. 8) and even goes as far as to call the Raven “lordly” (Poe, para. 8).
The Essay on Allan Poe Raven Life Edgar
"Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary", is one of the most famous poetry lines in America. Edgar Allan Poe had a life most people would think of as crazy. He wrote a famous poem called "The Raven" that is very strange like most of the poems he wrote. Edgar Allan Poe had a devastating childhood and a dark life as an adult. He was born January 19, 1809, under the name of ...
As the narrator hears the Raven speak, he is slightly shocked, but takes it in stride and simply accepts the fact that the bird can talk. In stanza twelve we begin to see the transformation of the Raven from friend to foe in the main character’s mind. While the Raven is described as still making the narrator smile in the first line of the stanza, by the second-to-last, it is being described as “grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous” (Poe, para. 12).
In the following stanza, the dislike for the “ungainly fowl” grows, as it is considered a wretch by our narrator (Poe, para. 14).
By the third-to-last stanza, our narrator is actually screaming at the Raven and calling it a “thing of evil” (Poe, para. 16).
Through the next two stanzas, the narrator realizes that there is nothing he can do about the Raven, that it’s an omen, and that it will remain with him for all time. The narrator falls into a depression, which is described as being lifted “nevermore” (Poe, para. 18).
Obviously, these are not rational conclusions which a mentally healthy individual would reach. This factor, coupled with the jumpiness of the narrator’s emotion could indicate personal insecurity and high mental instability.
Another interesting occurrence in the poem is the simple acceptance by the narrator of the Raven’s ability to speak. Though the narrator shows some surprise by saying, “much I marveled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly,” (Poe, para. 9) it seems fleeting, as in the next line he is contemplating the relevance of the bird’s speech—what the Raven meant by what it “said.” Such statements and reactions lead the reader again to question the narrator’s sanity, exposing yet another aspect of gothic literature, the unreliable narrator.
From the first to the last stanza of Poe’s poem, a melancholy and dark mood is projected through the wording and setting to establish the hard and light-sparse ambience required for all gothic literature. In the very first line of The Raven, Poe pens, “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary.” (Poe, para. 1) This could have easily been written with much more straightforward language, but it would detract from the air of the scene, as well as the poetry. Every part of the poem is rich in dismal yet colorful adjectives, all serving to further bring the plot of the story to life.
The Term Paper on Edgar Allen Poe The Raven
The writer of these words was enchanted by darkness... thrilled by death. What sort of person would spend their whole life linking hands with Death and her counterparts? Quite possibly a literary genius by the name of Edgar Allan Poe. Famous for romanticizing the darker, more Gothic side of life, E. A. Poe had quite a collection of works from his lesser-known stories to his most famous poem, "The ...
The symbolism throughout The Raven is common to the majority of other gothic literature, utilizing the house as a plot device paralleling the main character. The man’s large, dark chamber represents his emptiness and loneliness, now that he is without his lost Lenore. As Poe makes no mention of a fire, it is safe to assume that the chamber is very cold as well, as it’s near midnight in December (Poe, para. 1).
December itself is generally a very dark and lonely time of year, while midnight always adds tension to literature. With both of these elements, Poe begins to set the reader up for the darkness to come. The author also often uses metaphors and allusion, such as the “curious volumes of forgotten lore” for escapism, and the passage “other friends have flown before- on the morrow he will leave me, as my hopes have flown before,” alluding to the man’s loneliness and depression due to his lost Lenore. This allows the reader to use their imagination more than they would if everything was written out in simple text, event-by-event.
In conclusion, Poe’s “The Raven” contains many of the key attributes of a well-written gothic poem. His blending of symbolism, such as the chamber and seasons, the overall dark atmosphere, and the man’s obvious insanity all contribute to the gothic air of the poem, while conforming to the genre standards of the time.
