Edgar Poe’s poem The Raven is unique in that it won the hearts of readers from the first days of its publication and remains popular today. It is one of the best-known and most translated poems ever written in world literature. The work is traditionally considered a poem. The author himself regarded this work as an alternation of several small poems rather than as a single large work. The key idea of the work about the sorrow of losing a neighbor has been expressed thanks to the rhythm and sound composition, symbolism, and various expressive means.
The poetic size is trochee; the verses in the stanza are arranged so that male and female endings alternate. But while the size is borrowed, the structure of the stanza is original. The poem consists of eighteen stanzas, each stanza containing six lines, the last of which is a refrain (Edgar Allan Poe, 2019). The insistence of the refrain is marked not only by its regular repetition but also by the system of rhyming: the second, fourth, and fifth lines rhyme with the final verse.
Traditionally in folklore, the image of the Raven is a harbinger of death. In Poe’s poem, this black bird heralds the lyrical hero’s eternal unhappiness, the impossibility of surviving the death of his beloved. The author admits that the bird is primarily a functional image: one that will repeat the refrain. The poem is imbued with a melancholy mood, which is stated in the first lines of the work. This is indicated by the tired, exhausted state of the hero, the time of day – deep night. Soon the sleepiness is replaced by anxiety, a premonition of trouble. The transformation of the image of the Raven changes the mood of the poem and also includes new themes as it develops. The lyrical hero’s first assumption was that a belated visitor was knocking on his door. It would seem that nothing unusual, nothing to worry about. But as soon as the hero opened the door, he saw no one. From then on, fear appears in the poem, which will not let go of the character. The Raven flies in through the open window, which even amuses the frightened young man with its appearance (Edgar Allan Poe, 2019).
The theme of doom now dominates the poem, and the hero, engaging in a dialogue with the ominous bird, learns of imminent disaster. The Raven is seen by his victim as a demon, a messenger from Hades – the theme of death, the death not only of his beloved but also of everything beautiful that was in the young man’s life.
One of the leading means of artistic expression in The Raven is alliteration. It is this technique that helps the author to create a suitable atmosphere of gloom and horror in the poem. Assonance is even contained in the refrain, which becomes the cry of the Raven: Quoth the Raven “Nevermore” (Edgar Allan Poe, 2019). Metaphor acts as a leading trope in the poem. The image of the Raven is itself a metaphor – a symbol of fear and endless grief, and its black feather is a harbinger of torment after death.
Thus, for the hero of Edgar Poe’s poem, the loss of his beloved is more than just death: it means eternal grief, which could ruin him as well. The character is afraid that he cannot cope with the misfortune that has overtaken him, and the fear is embodied in a black raven. It is noteworthy that the author allows us to perceive the poem both as a real event that occurred and as a dream, something mystical, through a variety of stylistic means. Edgar Poe shows a broken man of grief to remind the readers how important it is to be strong and resilient in the face of fate. This is the main point of the poem.
Reference
Edgar Allan Poe. (2019). The Raven.