POEM The Raven, by Edgar Allan Poe - Essay Example

POEM The Raven, by Edgar Allan Poe One can see that literature depends upon imagination and literary creativity. Within this scenario, poetry is symbolic of the poets’ imaginary capacity and creativity. One can identify the basic elements horror/gothic and dark romanticism in Edgar Allan Poe’s literary works, especially in poetry. Thesis statement: In the poem named as The Raven, the versifier (Edgar Allan Poe) makes use of imagery/images and figurative/metaphorical language to communicate/share the meaning of the verse with the readers.

Discussion: This section is divided as: imagery/images and figurative /metaphorical language. Imagery/images The literary work is rich in imagery because the poet makes use of the same to communicate/share the meaning of the verse with the readers. First of all, one can easily identify that the poet’s decision to provide importance to imagery helps the readers to ponder upon the inner meaning and depth of the poem. For instance, the narrator’s remembrance on his lover is symbolic of the usage of visual imagery in the work.

The lady love (Lenore), is portrayed as ‘radiant’, symbolic of light. This helps the readers to realize that the lady love is no more and the narrator is in grief. On the other side, the raven is portrayed as the embodiment of darkness or the supernatural world. Besides, the raven’s sound irritates the narrator and the same is symbolic of auditory imagery in the literary work. Susan Amper opines on the image of raven in the poem as, “It appears at first comical, even preposterous, and then seems to grow more demonic as the poem progresses” (216).

So, one can see that the poet divides the characters and their assigned imagery to different blocs and helps the readers to perceive the poem from a different angle of view. Figurative/metaphorical language The richness and depth of the literary work are indebted to the figurative/metaphorical language made use by the poet. In the work, the speaker depends upon figurative/ metaphorical language to describe his lady love and the raven. Dan Mulvey makes clear that, “Edgar Allan Poe composed a poem about a raven that could say, “nevermore” ” (171).

For instance, ‘bleak December’ is symbolic of bereavement and coldness. On the other side, this month is symbolic of the narrator’s loss, i.e. his lady love’s unexpected death. Even the raven’s repeated utterances are symbolic of the gloomy atmosphere in the literary work. In the literary work by Edgar Allan Poe, the speaker portrays the raven as “Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling” (3). The ‘dying ember’ in the poem is symbolic of the speaker’s alienated life in the mortal world, without his lady love’s presence.

Besides, the speaker compares his lady love (Lenore) with the angels. This comparison is apt because it is symbolic of her beauty and her presence in the heaven. So, the richness of figurative language adds depth to the literary work. Summing, the usage of imagery/ /images and figurative/metaphorical language helps the poem to get elevated beyond a traditional narrative poem. The poet fully depends upon these literary devices to share his ideas/feelings with the readers. Besides, this is helpful for the readers to identify the inner meaning with ease.

Works CitedAmper, Susan. Blooms how to Write about Edgar Allan Poe. New York: Infobase Publishing, 2007. Print.Mulvey, Dan. Write On. New York: Barrons Educational Series, 2006. Print.Poe, Edgar Allan. The Raven. N.p.: BompaCrazy.com, 1933. Print.