Comparitve Analysis of 'the Raven' & 'Tell Tale Heart' by Edgar Allan Poe

The poem tells of a narrator who is reading an old book in his parlor when he is interrupted by a knock at the door. The protagonist is in a period of grieving over the loss of his love, Lenore. At first, he wonders who the visitor might be and resolves to inform him or her that he is indisposed at the moment. The narrator finally opens the door only to find no one there. He returns to the chair (which Lenore will no longer occupy), only to hear the rapping again. He decides that the sound may be coming from the window, so he opens it. A raven enters through the window and lights upon a bust of a mythological figure that the narrator has in his room. The narrator questions the raven concerning its name, the bird answers “nevermore”. This startles the speaker, and he wonders aloud if the bird will leave him just as all of his friends seem to do. Again, he is answered by the raven “nevermore”. As the protagonist progressively

Edgar Allan poe is one of the most incredible gothic writers, with a library of many famous works. He is famous for his dark and ominous way of narrating, as well as his brutal and obscure endings to his tales. Arguably his most famous works are the poem entitled “The Raven” published January 29th 1845, and his short story “The Tell-Tale Heart” published a few years earlier on January 1843. Both of these pieces of literature pulled the listener directly into Poe's mysterious world, with suspense and intensity in every line. “The Raven” and “The Tale-Heart’ written by Edgar Allan Poe both develop the gothic theme of madness by using dark imagery, similar symbolism, and torment.

The life of Edgar Allan Poe was as morbid and melancholy as his works. After

Poe also utilizes imagination in his poem titled “The Raven”. In “The Raven”, the narrator has lost his wife, and is wondering if he will ever be able to find true love again. In the poem’s

“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

A prophet is a proclaimer of God’s will, sees what is coming before those who he proclaims it to, representing sight, while the raven is dark and mysterious being a symbol of death (“The Raven” 286). Other uses of symbolism in the poem include Poe’s reference of the goddess Pallas and use of archaic words symbolizing the past and how the narrator is stuck in the past (Silverman 240). The narrator is trapped in a time where he believes he will be with Lenore again. The raven being perched on the bust of the goddess Pallas is also a symbol of the narrator’s belief that the raven is speaking a truthful and wise answer, for the Pallas is the goddess of wisdom, even though the raven cannot have thought provoked answers (Hallqvist).

In “The Raven”, by Edgar Allan Poe, he uses many different types of imagery. Imagery represents different of a sensory. Two of the type of sensory he used throughout the poem is authority which is hearing, and visual imagery which something is seen in the poem. Edgar Allan Poe used imagery to let the reader feel emotion and to feel like they are literally in the poem.

The literary analysis poem “ The Raven” is by Edgar Allen Poe. The poem was written in 1845. The theme of "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe is undying devotion, loss and lingering grief. The main characters in the story is Lonore , the narrator, and the bird. The narrator uses Personification , conflict the speaker struggles through, and symbolism of the raven to connect to his reader/audience .

Poe uses imagery and diction to portray the narrator’s state of mind. Poe’s descriptive language demonstrates the narrator’s sorrowful life without Lenore, and Poe’s choice of words reveal his fear towards the sinister raven. For the sorrowful and fearful narrator, the whole world seems to be bleak and terrifying. Everything, even darkness, reminds him of his lost love,

Edgar Allan Poe tells the story of a bereaved man who is grieving for his lost love in the poem, “The Raven.” During a dark and gloomy night, the man hears a knock at his door. Hoping that it is Lenore, his dead lover, coming back to him, he goes to open the door. Unfortunately, he is only met with emptiness and disappointment. Shortly after, a raven flies into the room through the window and lands on the bust of Pallas. The man begins to converse with this dark and mysterious bird. In response to everything the man says, the raven repeats one dreadful word: “Nevermore.” The symbolism of the raven being connected to death, and the man’s interaction with the dark bird reveals to readers that he is going through the stages of dying.

1 The theme of The Raven, by Edgar Allen Poe, is about the loss of his love and his feeling that he will never be the same. The tone of the poem is very depressing, creepy, and dark. Simile, repetition, and onomatopoeia are just some of the figurative language thatis used in this poem. Simile compares the tapping of the Raven to someone who quietly knocking by saying, “Suddenly there came a tapping, as someone gently rapping”.

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.

Although The Raven is rich in symbolism, the plot is actually quite simple. In the poem, the unnamed speaker is reading and “nearly napping” in his home alone on a “bleak December” night when he hears a tapping at his door. He is in a deep sorrow over the loss of Lenore who is assumed to be the speaker’s deceased wife/lover. He discovers that it is a raven that was tapping at his door and he begins to speak to the bird who responds only with the phrase “nevermore”. As the poem ends, the speaker seems to have been driven into a fit of insanity because of his “conversations” with the raven.

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.

Throughout all the short stories and poems wrote by Edgar Allan Poe, some connections can be made on the content. The Black Cat, and The Raven, are two narratives wrote by Poe, that unveil the themes and symbols he often uses in his work. Poe is on the mysterious side, but he is also taking the life he is given, and making his narratives raw and realist by some degree. Poe uses techniques that left him express his imagination through writing. There are many different ideas and questions rising from all his work. The Black Cat and The Raven, are two narratives that use similar themes and symbols that allow readers to receive a small connection of the madness inside of the narrators.