Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven"

Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven"

Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" is a story of a man (This story is written in first person and as such the main charater of the story could be either Poe himself or another imaginary character whom Poe has created and given identity through his writing.) who is looking back on a memory of his first encounter with a mysterious raven who appeared outside his door. At first this raven appears as a visitor waiting outside, quietly calling to the narrator, through a simple knock. The narrator responds to the call of his visitor by opening his door to greet them but he sees nothing but the raven, and closes the door. The same call of the raven is repeated and the narrator answers it by looking out his window in hopes that it is his lost love Lenore. upon opening his window he finds nothing except the raven, and decides to greet the raven as a visitor and talk with it. The Narrator first asks the raven its name and then a series of other questions to which the raven relies only with the word "Nevermore". The story concludes after the narrator becomes angry at the raven when he asked if he (the narrator) might ever see Lenore again, the raven told him "Nevermore".

Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" provides in great detail a personification of a memory (especially the memory of a loved one). In the beginning of the story the narrator is longing for a woman whom he greatly loved but is no longer with him. As he looks at what he has left of his love Lenore, he hears a quiet knock on his door. The narrator answers this knock and as previously stated sees the raven "and nothing more." However Poe gives a significant description of memories by stating that the narrator first saw, "Darkness there, and nothing more" then saw the raven "Merely this, and nothing more". These two phrases give a personification of emptiness to memories. Memories are dark figures of nothingness which work only to bring you sorrow.

Following the scene at the door, the raven makes another call which the narrator responds to just as teh first as if it were made by a visitor but this time he opened his window instead of his door. This action gives memories another set of personifications. Memories now also appear as persistent figures which continually come to you in order to show you their meaning and bring you their sorrow.

Following the window scene, the narrator begins a dialoge with the bird in which he asks a series of questions to which the bird always responded saying "Nevermore". The first of these questions was his name. Having the name "Nevermore" showed not only the emptiness of memories but also the simple fact that you can never go back and experience what youlong for anymore. Your memories are merely vague remnants of a past which you may never see again. The second question empasises the persistance of memory as when asked when he shall leave the raven again said, "Nevermore." Poe concludes his poem by reemphasizing his previous personifications. Memories are only sad reminders of a better past of which you may never return, and no matter how hard you try memories will always remain, "Only this, and nothing more".

In response to Poe's "The Raven", one could ask the question: If the memory of a long lost lover will bring so much sorrow why should men submit to love in the first place? Could Poe with this poem be leading to an even larger idea of which the world is one large and complicated trap with works only to bring you sorrow?