The Raven by Edgar Allen Poe - Essay Example

The poem is great in all respects, be it in its composition, theme, or the appeal it created among the readers. The theme, the structure, and the fine music it produces blend into a great perfection. The rhyming and the rhythm dance with the inner turmoil of the narrator: “while I pondered, weak and weary, / napping, suddenly there came a tapping, / As of someone gently rapping, rapping” (Poe).The bird, raven, symbolizes the darkness outside as well as the darkness in the subconscious mind of the poet.

The repetition of the words like “Nevermore”, “evermore”, and “nothing more” resonate in the ears of the readers, asserting the reality of the inevitability of death. The poet tries to convince himself that the bird repeats “its only stock and store”. The musical beating of words like “napping”, “tapping”, and “rapping” at the opening of the poem also reflects the restlessness of the poet.Poe’s wife, Virginia, was suffering from tuberculosis when he was writing the poem, “The Raven”.

The impending death and the thought of the subsequent loneliness resulting from the obvious separation lie heavily on the poet. His attempt to escape from this into the world of books or sleep turns futile, as he is haunted by the memory of Lenor, the fictional name of his wife. This self-torture lying buried in his subconscious mind is brought out by a non-reasoning creature, the raven. This bird appears to remind him that he is condemned to live on earth while his beloved is far away in the underworld.

Torn between his undying devotion to his beloved and the perpetual memory of her, the poet’s soul struggles to find a compromise. At last, the truth prevails on him when he realizes that his soul shall never be lifted from the shadow: “And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor/ Shall be lifted - nevermore!” (Poe).