Poem : The Raven - Suffer After death

Running head: THE RAVEN
English
Name of the Student:
Name of University:
Author Note

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THE RAVEN
The Raven is a narrative if a young man who suffers after the death of his lover. The man
is bereaved by the death of his beloved. He continues to create narrative and associate meanings
with his experiences which are nothing but self-destructive. The Raven is one of the most famous
poems written by Poe. He discovers a raven who visits his distraught lover, tapping on his door.
The Raven has a dark and supernatural theme as the raven has been presented as the mediator
between the two worlds. The poem is notable because of its lyrical and dramatic qualities which
have been employed by the poet. The raven, in the poem bears symbolic significance for the
morning of the narrator. In this essay, two articles shall be compared in which William Freedman
and John Ingram critiques the poem and brings out subtle details which make the poem great and
classic.
Several critics have analyzed and critiqued the poem because of the richness to be found
in the poem, as employed by Poe. The primary symbol in the poem is the raven, who represents
the mournful wait, through which, the narrator seems to be losing sanity and eventually ends up
with madness. The path was distressful for the narrator as he grieves and investigates for his
lover Lenore, during which, he fails to control his emotions and feelings. He puts immense effort
and emotions, which makes the process extremely tiresome and pacified. The strenuous and
emptying journey of the narrator can be better understood through his monologues which are
exclamation ridden, through which, he attempts to rationalize.
William Freedman analyzes the structure and symbolism in the poem to find out several
details about it. He points out that many critics opine that Poe’s writings are incoherent and
difficult to understand, while he is of the opinion that one needs to have close readings of Poe’s
writings to understand him. Even though it seems like the meanings are obscure, ostensible
meanings can be derived if the texts are read closely. Obscurantism, which is often traced in Poe,

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THE RAVEN
due to understanding among the readers which are inadequate. Therefore, this leads to
uncertainties regarding the meanings and intent of Poe, throughout the poem as the theme is dark
and gloomy. Poe, even mystifies his readers by mocking and creating dualism of the things he is
ardent about or tends to love dearly. The lack of meaning can often be associated with The Poetic
Principle as the lack have been articulated aesthetically and is of great admiration, to many
readers. However, the darkness in the poem also refer to the epistemology of the emptiness and a
metaphysic world. There can be differences in the linguistic and epistemological understanding
of the idea, making confusions.
Freedman has pointed out that there have been several readings of the poem in a
deconstructive way. It can also be said that the poem has inspired deconstruction for the text to
be interpreted and understood for the signified meanings which are often difficult to understand.
Very little is often deciphered about the obsession which Poe has, with themes such as
nothingness and death. The meanings can be derived by deconstructing he signs to understand
the signified meanings in the poem. The most repetitive word to be found in the poem is
Nevermore, which is uttered by the raven itself in the poem. The word Nevermore has been
uttered throughout the poem several times, which has been interpreted as the annihilation of the
meaning by many critics, which has been pointed out by Freedman. There are a few questions
which should come in the mind of the readers which concerns the name of the poem and why it
is so significant for the poem. By the Raven, Poe signifies the act of his mourning and being
trapped between the two worlds. The raven stands as the symbol of grief, death and sadness.
The second thought which must strike the minds of the readers is about the state of the
mind of speaker in the poem rather than what happens about the raven. The inquiry among the
readers concern not the raven, even though it is similarly formulated, as they are more eager to