Literature
Edgar Allan Poe and his most predominant themes
Edgar Allan Poe was an American poet, writer, and editor. He is also known for literary critics. He is one of the most important literary figures in Romanticism from 1840 to 1849. Poe’s work was of such dynamic nature that it has resulted in “massive impact” (3). He has also associated nature with good. Poe’s well-known fiction works are Gothic, and "Metzengerstein" was his first published Gothic tale. Some of his works were also satiric and comic such as “A Tale of Jerusalem”, “The Duc de L’Omelette” (humorous short story), “Bon-Bon” (humorous short story), “Loss of Breath” and many others. He also earned his name in detective fiction (4).
His work shows some level of irony representing an apparent intention or meaning on one hand, and a half-hidden intention or meaning on the other hand. It has also been reported that almost all the work of Poe can be considered as a coherent piece of work from one of the greatest ironists in the history of literature (7). The most recurring themes in the works of Poe include the most important fact of death; the perverse appeal of death; the reality of reaching an ultimate Nothingness; the human imagination and the terrifying nature of lack of human feelings; uncertainty and impermanence; the perverse contempt of fate; hope and despair, and the subconscious self (45).
Summary of "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe
During a night in December, a man (an unnamed narrator) was sitting in a room. He was reading an old book with half sleeping mind, and trying to forget Lenore, his lost love. Suddenly, someone knocked at the door of his room. The narrator excused and asked for forgiveness to the “visitor”. He opened the room, but to his amazement, there was nobody outside (Poe, and Doré 19). However, he heard the word “Lenore” that was the echo of his own whispering. While returning to the room, he again heard a tapping. He reassured himself that the wind probably developed some noise while moving through the window. Therefore, he went to the window and opened it, and suddenly a raven flies (20).
After flying in, the raven moved to the statue above the door. The narrator thought that he has to talk to raven. So, he asked its name just as any person may talk to strange birds (people) moving into the house. Strangely enough, the raven replied with a single word, “Nevermore” (20). This was a kind of surprise, but the narrator asked the raven more questions. The bird replied with “Nevermore” to most of the questions, showing that the vocabulary of bird was limited. However, the narrator kept on asking more questions but the situation was becoming more personal and painful. The raven didn’t change its nature throughout the discussion, but the poor narrator of the poem started losing his sanity (20).
Analytic Review of the Poem
“The Raven” is one of the most famous poems by Poe. Like many other poems of Poe, this poem is also related to the memories of a lost love, i.e. a deceased woman. In this case, Lenore is the woman, who is in the mind of the narrator. Whenever the narrator tries to think about something else, he ends up in thinking about Lenore. In the lines, 10-11, the reader of the poem comes to know about Lenore.
“From my books surcease of sorrow — sorrow for the lost Lenore —
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore —”
This poem has both dramatic as well as melodic qualities. The words “nothing more” and “nevermore” give a musical rhythm to the poem. The unnamed narrator in the poem is present in a Gothic setting as he was not alone but other things of horror were also there such as loneliness of apartment, a “bleak December” night, and a dying fire. These are shown in the following lines:
“Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.”
The raven, in the poem, has an important role as it is working with the narrator in delivering the message to the reader in the form of a supernatural intervention. The poet’s choice of raven is pretty good as this bird is black in color and due to this color, it can be considered as a part of the black night. Raven’s first appearance in the poem is in the lines 38 and after that up to line 42; the presentation of the raven grabs a lot of attention of the reader.
“In there stepped a stately raven of the saintly days of yore;
Not the least obeisance made he; not an instant stopped or stayed he;”
Overall, it can be said that due to a dynamic nature of the poem, various interpretations of the poem can be made on the basis of its story and themes.
Themes in the Poem
Undying devotion and the grief that can’t be decreased with time are the important themes of the poem. The poem has shown a theme of beauty epitomized by sadness. “The Raven” also comes with some other themes such as madness, love, the natural world, and the supernatural world. The narrator of the poem, who looks like a young person and is probably a student, is found to have a slightly rough life. He looks insane and in this insanity, he starts talking with a raven. Not only he talks with the bird but also he gets replies from the bird.
Love is even stronger theme of the poem as compared to madness. Although Poe has not used the word directly, love is present from the start of the poem. The poem shows that a person can’t forget his love, and thoughts of the lover keep on coming in the mind. From the poem, it can be considered that the narrator of the poem strongly wants to live a life with the woman he loves. He wants his love back, and the sadness of a lost love increases while talking with the raven.
It has also presented various aspects of nature such as the sound of the wind, the dark night, dying fire, and a bird. However, these natural things have been presented in an unfathomable, horrifying, and threatening way. In fact, the bird in the poem starts talking and giving reply to the narrator, and this is a kind of supernatural thing. After looking at the bird, the narrator starts thinking whether the bird is some kind of supernatural being such as demon. The narrator also starts thinking about the afterlife as well as the existence of God.
Works Cited
Poe, E.A. Great Short Works of Edgar Allan Poe. HarperCollins, 2009. Print.
Poe, E.A., and G. Doré. The Raven. Lerner Publishing Group, 2014. Print.
