Similarities Between The Raven And Ligeia

Written by Edgar Allan Poe, “The Raven” is a famous short poem known for the dark fantasy that it portrays. From the mindset of a first person narrative, one may experience the tale through the eyes of a haunted man who is in mourning for the death of his beloved Lenore. As this man sits in his chamber, within a dark and dreary December night, a “raven of the saintly days of yore” visits him. The raven is no ordinary bird, for it is like a ghost, silent, yet it answers every inquiry the man presents in it’s own personal way. This dark and tragic tale grabs one’s attention through the rhythmic, yet melancholy verses, through the classic references, and through the dark imagery that all play a critical role within this poem.

To begin, in Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Raven,” a man suffering over the loss of his love, Lenore, is sitting in his chamber reading when a bird keeps tapping at his door. As the bird keeps tapping, he finally decides to go open the door. As he peers out into the darkness, his loneliness engulfs him, evoking his “surcease of sorrow- sorrow for the lost Lenore- for the rare and radiant Maiden named Lenore,” who is “nameless [there] forevermore”(Poe 436). After that, the raven flies in and serves as a constant reminder of his torment. Despair and depression traps him in his own mind. Lenore was

Through the use of an un-named narrator in his poem entitled “The Raven”, Poe darkly conveys feeling understood by many: hopelessness, lost love, and death. The poem follows the un-named narrator, as he reflects on, as well as struggles with, the realization of his lost love, Lenore. Like many, he tries to detract his overwhelming feelings for Lenore by investing his time in studying books. Despite his greatest efforts, he is unsuccessful. Much to his surprise, his solitude is interrupted by an unanticipated visitor. Throughout the poem, Poe uses imagery, tone, symbolism, and rhyme as a means of conveying his overall themes of undying devotion and lingering grief.

The raven also symbolizes the torture the narrator has inflicted upon himself due to the death of Lenore, a "rare and radiant maiden?nameless here forever more" (731). The raven's refusal to answer any question asked of him with an answer other than "nevermore" only tortures the narrator even more.

The poem, “The Raven,” written by Edgar Allen Poe shows the deep depression and confusion that the narrator is experiencing since the death of his beloved wife. The gloomy setting of the poem predicts the visit of the Raven, whom is a sign of misfortune, darkness, and death. Throughout the poem, the narrator is continually mourning his wife, Lenore. He secretly hopes that the Raven will bring good news regarding his wife and his future; however, the Raven informs him that he will forever remain depressed. Furthermore, Poe uses setting, strong word choice, and symbolism to illustrate the Raven as the messenger of darkness and explain the narrator’s emotional state.

“The Raven” is a magnificent piece by a very well known poet from the 19th century, Edgar Allan Poe. Poe was well known for his dark and haunting poetry. Along with writing poetry, Poe was also recognized for his Gothic-style short stories. “The Raven” is one of Poe’s greatest accomplishments and was even turned into recitals and numerous television appearances. “The Raven” tells a story about an unnamed narrator whose beloved Lenore has left him. A raven comes at different points throughout the poem and tells the narrator that he and his lover are “Nevermore.” Poe presents the downfall of the narrator’s mind through the raven and many chilling events. By thorough review and studying of Edgar Allan Poe’s work, one can fully understand the

He is so upset by the loss of Lenore that it leads him to the edge of insanity. The speaker then is seen throughout the poem supposedly struggling with the raven because the raven responds with “Nevermore” which gets the speaker angry as he is struggling within himself. The speaker seems to be trying to achieve "surcease of sorrow for the lost Lenore" by burying himself in books and trying to forget about her. But the Raven seems to be a messenger from the spirit world who has been sent to the speaker’s chamber door to keep reminding him of his loss. Instead of trying to forget about Lenore, he is forced to think about her more emotionally than he had been thinking before.

The Raven is the accumulation of tragedies in Edgar's’ life, constantly the name “Lenore” is brought up. This is supposed to be his wife, (who was dying at the time) Virginia. She was also happened to be his first cousin and 13 at the time of the marriage. Losing the life of his wife/cousin at an alarming rate he wrote down whatever words came to mind. In the poem “The Raven” the raven itself represents the depression of the narrator, it will stay there until the man gets over his fallen lover. One way the reader can see not just how he thinks of his wife, this can also be used to prove the fact that he thinks she won’t make it with the use of the term “angel”. The term “angel” is used two ways here one for the how she is now an angel, but one also for how he thought of her an angel to come save him from his dreary world. It is obvious that the narrator is full of “sorrow for the lost Lenore”. This mainly relates to the poem because it wouldn’t have been even written if it weren’t for the tragedies in his life. The entire poem is about the fact that he doesn’t want his wife to die.

In “The Raven” the narrator is mourning the loss of his loved one. When the narrator meets the raven, he inquiries about the fate of his loved one. In the last few stanzas of the poem the narrator asks the raven if Lenore is in paradise: “Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn, It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore” (93-94). The narrator questions the raven because he wants to know if he will ever be reunited with his beloved Lenore. The speaker is so consumed with the uncertainty of the afterlife and the fate of his Lenore causes him to slip into deep depression. The fact that the narrator chose to fall into depression shows Poe’s outlook on the fate of loved ones in the afterlife. Instead of being depressed the narrator could have been pleased with the raven’s answer because it still left the possibility for the two lover’s souls to meet in the afterlife. Edgar Allan Poe has a much more positive outlook on life after losing a loved one in the poem “Annabel Lee”. In the poem the narrator has lost the love of his life to sickness. The speaker is convinced that he will be united with her again in the afterlife and that their souls will be reunited. Near the end of  “Annabel Lee” the narrator claims, “And neither the angels in Heaven above Nor the demons down under the sea Can ever

his new home in an old abandoned abbey and even goes so far as to

The Raven tells a story of a man with much grief over this loss of his love, Lenore. As the poem opens, the narrator is trying to find peace through his books. He states, “…while I pondered, weak and weary, Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore,” (862). The setting, a chamber in a house, is described in such a way that creates a very dark, almost melancholy style. The narrator, while trying to find comfort for his loss, hears a tapping at his window. As he opens the window, a raven, a long time symbol of death, flies in, and refuses to leave. Poe uses the symbol of the raven, and his repeating word of “nevermore”, to show that the narrator will never get over the loss of his love, Lenore.

Edgar Allan Poe has a distinctive and dark way of writing (Poe & Kennedy, pp.22). His mysterious style of writing appeals to passion and sentimentality. Poe’s most prominent works of fiction are gothic. His stories tend to have similar recurring theme of either death, lost love or both. Poe’s psychologically thrilling stories examining the depths of the humanoid psyche earned him much fame throughout his lifetime and after his death. And this distinctive style of writing made him possess his own style of wiring (Arbor, pp.71). There is a psychological concentration which is an important characteristic of Poe’s literatures, particularly the tales of horror that encompass his best and well-known works, such as The Black Cat and The Raven which

It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore.” In other words, Poe is asking if he will ever again be able to his wife. From a depressed person talking about another depressed person, everything takes on different meaning when someone is depressed. Pictures, places, smells, sounds, voices of loved ones; they all remind us constantly of what was lost and will never be found again. It feels like random occurrences happened just to remind, torture us of the pain. The narrator heard the raven say “nevermore” frequently and interpreted it differently until he settled on the belief that it was referring to Lenore. Perhaps the “raven” symbolizes how Poe must deal with the day to day realities of someone suffering a great loss.

“The Raven”, being Poe’s most eminent poem, features a narrator preoccupied by thoughts of his deceased wife Lenore. Prior to Poe writing this, Virginia became ill and Lenore is furthermore utilized as her indirect symbol. Obviously, there is a formative pattern within Poe’s short stories seeing that Virginia is one recurring feature. When reading Poe’s work, no assumption is necessary, as he makes his love for Virginia exceptionally clear much like the narrator’s love for Lenore.  At the end of the poem, the narrator states, “And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting on the pallid bust just

The gothic nature of “The Raven” gives the poem a much darker and negative tone, compared to “Annabel Lee,” which expresses the sorrow the narrator feels after his loss. Poe uses words in “The Raven” that makes the narrator appear weak, helpless, and desperate to know if he will see his wife, Lenore, again in the afterlife. In the early stanzas of the poem, the narrator hears a tapping at his bedroom door; he then reveals who he believes is trying to come into his room when he states, “And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, “Lenore?” \ This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, “Lenore!” - \ Merely this and nothing more” (Poe, 28-30). This quote is an example of how Poe sets the tone of the poem when the speaker whispers into the darkness, calling for his wife who he knows is deceased. This reveals to the audience that the man is not yet at peace with the reality that his wife is no longer with him. On the other hand, in “Annabel Lee,” Poe sets a more hopeful tone by exhibiting how the narrator feels about his deceased wife. Near the conclusion of the poem, the narrator