The Raven
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The Raven

...Quoth the Raven, ""Nevermore."" ""The Raven"" is a classic narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe. First published in January 1845, the poem is often noted for its musicality, stylized language, and supernatural atmosphere. It tells of a talking raven's mysterious visit to a distraught lover, tracing the man's slow fall into madness. The lover, often identified as being a student, is lamenting the loss of his love, Lenore. Sitting on a bust of Pallas, the raven seems to further instigate his distress with its constant repetition of the word ""Nevermore."" The poem makes use of a number of folk, mythological, religious, and classical references. Poe claimed to have written the poem very logically and methodically, intending to create a poem that would appeal to both critical and popular tastes, as he explained in his 1846 follow-up essay, ""The Philosophy of Composition."" The poem was inspired in part by a talking raven in the novel Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of 'Eighty by Dickens.
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Reviews

Photo of Femke
Femke@femketje1304
4.5 stars
Dec 12, 2024

What a masterpiece! Nevermore!

+3
Photo of Chloé
Chloé@misslola44
3 stars
Apr 30, 2024

its a bird innit

Photo of gülsu
gülsu@celestial
4 stars
Mar 21, 2024

*4.5

Photo of Geoffrey Froggatt
Geoffrey Froggatt@geofroggatt
3 stars
Nov 29, 2023

In The Raven, the symbolism is obvious. Poe himself meant the Raven to symbolize mournful, never-ending remembrance. Our narrator's sorrow for his lost love Lenore is the driving force behind his conversation with the Raven. The poem explores how grief can overcome a person's ability to live in the present and engage with society. Over the course of the poem, the speaker's inability to forget his lost love drives him to despair and madness. Reading this when I was young wasn’t as impactful as it is now. The narrator tries to get away from despair and human mortality, trying to pass away into a kind of forgetfulness. The poem shows many different stages of grief and how cyclical it is. Having gone through a lot of grieving myself through these past few years, I felt a connection with this poem and Poe himself in a way I never had before, which made this poem all the more impactful. I’m determined to read more poetry, not only to diversify my own reading, but also to connect with writers in a different way, in a way I had closed myself off to before. Poe did an excellent job at using his own grief to craft a poem with such a gloomy atmosphere. I finally understand why so many people connect with his work even all these years later.

Photo of melanie
melanie @melanie4665
2 stars
Sep 26, 2023

eh

Photo of raia – inactive
raia – inactive@raieuh
4 stars
Aug 31, 2023

nevermore

Photo of Mahdis Riazikhah
Mahdis Riazikhah@mahdis1715

Read at school

Photo of Beatriz Aguiar
Beatriz Aguiar@alchemistta
5 stars
Jan 22, 2023

such beautiful writing ✍ 😍

Photo of Nada Ghazi
Nada Ghazi@nadaghazi
4 stars
Aug 31, 2022

"Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore Of 'Never—nevermore'." . Edgar Allan Poe, the sweetest, yet the most killing mortal.

Photo of Leonie
Leonie@morallyblack
5 stars
Aug 14, 2022

I will never tire of this.

+4
Photo of Kate Gravelle
Kate Gravelle@kjgravelle
3 stars
Dec 14, 2021

I’ve always enjoyed the rhythm of this poem.

Photo of Katie Holem
Katie Holem@katieskozybookcorner
3 stars
Dec 9, 2021

Will write a review when I finish reading the Completed Works of Edgar Allan Poe.

Photo of Анастасия Розова
Анастасия Розова@rozova_n
4 stars
Nov 18, 2021

*Read for class. I'm not a big fan of poetry, but this poem I very much enjoyed! Especially after the language Poe used in his the Fall of the House of Usher, which was confusing, this one was a delight. I actually had fun (maybe a weird term for such a dark poem) reading it.

Photo of Mica
Mica@micathedreamer
5 stars
Nov 17, 2021

Solo puedo decir que es genial.

Photo of Jawad Abdulrazzaq
Jawad Abdulrazzaq@acid
5 stars
Jan 15, 2025
Photo of Inês Lemos S.
Inês Lemos S.@ineslds
4.5 stars
Aug 21, 2024
Photo of Tala
Tala @gamineallure
4 stars
Apr 13, 2024
Photo of Charlotte S L
Charlotte S L @charlotte_25
4 stars
May 20, 2023
+2
Photo of Emmanuel Rodas
Emmanuel Rodas@rodas
4 stars
May 16, 2023
Photo of Hi <3 he/him
Hi <3 he/him@primrose
4 stars
Mar 20, 2023
Photo of Kaitlyn Kuehn
Kaitlyn Kuehn @kaitlynkuehn03
5 stars
Nov 2, 2022
+9
Photo of Sheena
Sheena@yoshina
4 stars
Aug 13, 2022
Photo of Reymarck Esaguirre
Reymarck Esaguirre@waspeatstacos
5 stars
Apr 8, 2022
Photo of Pixie J Stoner
Pixie J Stoner@pixiejstoner
5 stars
Oct 19, 2021