by Luke Dearden

Created on: May 19, 2009

The Raven, by Edgar Allan Poe, describes a particular man who encounters a very strange situation. When the man hears a tapping on his door at midnight, he answers expecting to find a regular visitor. However, to his surprise, no one is at the door. Suddenly, the mysterious name of Lenore is whispered, and a talking raven flies in through the window. The man starts asking the raven about Lenore, but the raven only replies with one word Nevermore. Because of the mysterious and strange tone to this poem, it is hard to decipher the main plot. Simple questions immediately com to mind: who is Lenore, where is Lenore, and is the man dreaming? After studying The Raven, I have concluded that Lenore is the man's lover, she is dead, and the man is definitely dreaming.

In this poem, it is clear the man loves Lenore deeply. In the second stanza Poe writes, From my books surcease of sorrow sorrow for the lost Lenore This indicates that the main character is emotionally hurt because of the lost Lenore. By itself, this does not tell us that the man loved Lenore, but Poe goes on to write, For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore.A man would not call a woman a rare and radiant maiden if he didn't love her. To top it off, the poem says that the angels named Lenore. Lastly, the man starts a conversation with a raven about Lenore. Obviously, the man is pretty desperate. He is lonely and wants his beloved Lenore back at all cost. Unfortunately, he will never get her back.

The poem definitely suggests that Lenore is dead. The raven's reply to everything that the man says is, Nevermore. For example, starting in line 47 the man asks the raven, Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore! Of course the raven replies, Nevermore. This makes no sense at all. Either the ravens name is literally Nevermore, which is highly unlikely, or the raven is trying to get a message across to the man. Because of this and several more instances like this one, I strongly believe that the raven is trying to tell the man that the woman he loves is dead. As the man continues to get the same response, he realizes what the bird is actually telling him and gets angry.

Although the situation that the man encounters could be real, I believe that the man is dreaming about his lost Lenore. First, the characteristics of the raven tell me that this is a dream. In the poem the raven can talk. This is not the case in real life situations. Also, the raven boldly flies into the man's house and perches above his chamber door. In fact, the poem even states, [The raven] with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door. In every case that I have observed, ravens run from humans. Secondly, the man is nearly napping when he hears the tapping at the door. It is very possible that he had already fallen asleep, and then dreamt that there was a tapping on his door. Lastly, the 82nd line of the poem says, Respite respite and Nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore! Nepenthe is a potion or drug used to ease pain or sorrow. This indicates that the man is on some sort of drug. While drugged, hallucinations or dreams such as this poem are likely to occur.

In the beginning, the poem describes the main character as, Weak and weary.Because of this, I picture the man to be elderly and lonely. Long ago Lenore, his love, died, and from that day forth emotional pain has engulfed his body. Dreams, or might I say nightmares, such as,The Raven, probably occur often for the man. The man wants to forget about Lenore, but he will always remember in his dreams of terror, his love for her, and her death.

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