Edgar Allen Poe's The Raven

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“A bird of a different feather”. People described with this phrase are thought of to be very independent, free thinking, or different “birds”. For many generations, the raven has been a mysterious bird that has had many meanings. The symbolism of a raven in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven can help illustrate not only Poe’s feelings, but also one of the ways ravens can be symbolic of death and loss. Edgar Allen Poe is a great poet who was born in January of 1809 and began writing at the age of 28. The lines “My books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore” in his poem The Raven, can help illustrate how Poe’s life made him feel and act. Many of Poe’s works can be thought of as reflecting the mood and tone in his daguerreotype, such as The …show more content…
The man begins to ask it complex questions but all it can say in response is “Nevermore”. The use of the word nevermore in this poem has been thought to have many different meanings. “Nevermore” most literally means never again or never thereafter. At first, the raven uses the word as a name, which causes the narrator to marvel at such a strange creature and wonder about its previous owner. The raven’s response then reminds the man of the fact that he will be with his Lenore “Nevermore”. The question of Lenor being in heaven is asked of the bird, but the only response it can give the pessimist is “Nevermore”. When writing this piece, Poe decided to use a non-reasoning creature throughout most of the poem. Considering that the narrator in Poe’s piece knew the answer he would receive from the bird, the reader can see that he is knowingly exposing himself to some form of self-torture. The author has the man in his poem calling the raven the devil, and asking it to spare his life. These writings illustrate how Poe could have been feeling during the time of writing this poem, like he was trying to ward off something terrible. Edgar Allan Poe went through many tragedies throughout his life, which are thought to have influenced many of his writings. A raven has always been thought of as a symbol of death, or loss, which Poe went through many times …show more content…
His face looks slightly disfigured, with one eye drooping lower than the other. This unfortunate facial deformity is called a lazy eye. some may consider someone with this facial characteristic to be shifty, mysterious or even wicked. In this self portrait, the acclaimed poet has on a shirt with a very tight collar. The tightness around Poe’s neck can display how he could have been feeling choked or suffocated by something in his life. Many times in people’s lives, they feel as if there is no breathing room, or no space given to them by others. This feeling of no air can sometimes lead people to act out, cause harm to others, rebel, or even cause harm to themselves. When Edgar Allan Poe was feeling breathless, he would begin writing a new poem, or in this case, let his breathlessness show in something so timeless such as a
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