Radonji

Aleksandra Radonji PhD Aleksandra Izgarjan 19th century American literature April, 2 1 !

"dgar Allan Poe

#$he Ra%en&' (ym)olism and *nity o+ "++ect

Radonji

Introduction

The contemporary popularity of Edgar Allan Poe rests upon only a few of his works among which is the narrative poem The Raven ! The Raven was written within nine months of his arrival in "ew #ork! $t was pu%lished in 1&'( and its success was momentary! $t made him a cele%rity and %rought newfound popularity and critical acclaim! The Raven may %e considered as one of the finest Poe)s poems! The talking raven *rip from +harles ,ickens)s novel -arna%y Rudge. A Tale of the Riots of Eighty partly inspired Edgar Allan Poe to write The Raven ! Poe even wrote a review of -arna%y Rudge / saying/ among other things/ that the raven should have served a more sym%olic prophetic purpose in the novel! 0wikipedia!com1 2urthermore/ ,ickens3s -arna%y Rudge was not Poe3s only influence and Poe3s raven is not the same as ,ickens3s raven! The character of the 4enore in the poem is thought to have %een inspired %y the loss of the love of Poe)s young life 5 6arah Elmira Royster and according to a literary critic 6ova the name is interpreted as a sym%ol of the creative impulse that is rare/ precious/ and too easily lost! 7owever/ there is also the fact that the disease and eventual death of his wife had a su%stantial effect on Edgar Allan Poe/ who %ecame hopeless and turned to alcohol to cope! 7er struggles with illness and death are %elieved to have affected his poetry and prose/ where dying young women appear as a fre8uent motif! 0wikipedia!com1 6o/ Poe)s usual inspiration was actually women in his life who were very important part of it and whose %eauty and death are sym%olically represented in most of his works/ including The Raven! The poem was %oth praised and parodied at the time! Eli9a%eth -arrett/ from whom Poe %orrowed comple: rhythm and meter for this poem/ wrote to him. ;#our 3Raven3 has produced a sensation/ a fit o3 horror/ here in England! 6ome of my friends are taken %y the fear of it and some %y the music! $ hear of persons haunted %y 3"evermore3! 0-arrett1 2ellow writer such as <illiam *ilmore 6ims and =argaret 2uller had only words of praise for the poem/ %ut/ as stated earlier/ there was also a lot of disagreement! <illiam -uttler #eats was among the first critics of this poem/ calling it ;insincere and vulgar!!! its e:ecution a rhythmical trick;! 0-utler1

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Radonji 6o/ we can tell that opinions considering this poem were mi:ed! 7owever/ it is really ama9ing how popular is the poem now/ in modern times! The Raven itself is a mere narrative of simple events! A %ird which has %een taught to speak %y some former master/ is lost in a stormy night 0or has escaped1 and attracted %y the light of a student)s window/ flies to it and flutters against it and conse8uently/ against the door! At first/ the student had assumed it was 4enore/ since this visitor 0the raven1 was completely une:pected! The speaker is first amused %y the raven/ %ut %y the end of a poem he is driven to despair! The relationship %etween him and the raven goes from naive to torturing! Also/ throughout the speaker)s 8uestions to raven/ his feelings of loss are incited! $n my opinion/ Poe wanted to create two different entites 5 the narrator and the raven/ and then to make them remain forever %ound together in one e:perience! The poem is a narrative poem and can %e considered a gothic poem!

(ym)olism
?nderstanding sym%olism in ;The Raven; provides a deeper meaning to the poem! 6o/ in order to actually achieve this and take the poem to a higher level/ Poe uses a great amount of sym%ols! The raven is the most o%vious and significant sym%ol/ %ut there are others employed %y Poe to reinforce his theme that the melancholy e:perienced over lost love is something no individual can escape! 0lootsofessays!com1 Also/ in his stories and poems/ Edgar Allan Poe shows a fascination with death/ and he uses sym%olism to represent death and dying as something that takes place not separate from life %ut deeply em%edded within it! Poe mi:es life and death in a variety of ways/ so much so that he seems to show a mor%id fascination with the sym%olism of death! 0lotsof essays!com1 6ince there are a lot of sym%ols in this poem/ $ would first choose three sym%ols most represented and prominent in this poem. 4enore/ Raven/ and "ight)s Plutonian 6hore! 4enore. This poem is actually a%out 4enore/ or the speaker)s lost love! 7e doesn)t mention her constantly and not so much is known a%out her %ecause the narrator gives no description of 4enore/ %ut even when he tries to think a%out something else/ he always end up thinking a%out her! All we know is that the narrator really misses her and wants an evidence that she still e:ists/ even as a ghost! 4enore may represent ideali9ed love/ %eauty/ truth/ or @

Radonji hope in a %etter world! 6he is descri%ed as ;rare and radiant;/ a sainted maiden/ perhaps sym%olic of heaven! 0Poe %1 -ut who $s 4enoreA $t is possi%le that 4enore/ the ideali9ed deceased woman in the poem/ represents Poe)s %eloved wife/ Birginia/ who was in poor health when Poe wrote ;The Raven!; 6he died two years after the pu%lication of the poem/ when she was only in her mid5 twenties! 0cummingsstudyguides!net1 The raven. Poe chose a raven as the central sym%ol in the story %ecause he wanted a ;non5reasoning; creature capa%le of speech! 0Poe %1 Poe also considered a parrot as the %ird instead of the ravenC however/ %ecause of the melancholy tone/ and the sym%olism of ravens as %irds of ill5omen/ he found the raven more suita%le for the mood in the poem 0Poe %1! T he raven is a %ringer of %ad things/ such as death and darkness/ %ut a close reading of the poem can also show it to %e a %ringer of wisdom! The association with raven and wisdom is when the raven appears and sits on the -ust of Pallace! The Pallas of Athens is the goddess of knowledge and wisdom in ancient mythology! -y always answering nevermore/ the raven has confirmed narrator)s suspections/ it has %rought wisdom! This is why/ in the last stan9a/ the narrator says that the raven 0meaning his new wisdom1 will depart ;nevermore!; Poe puts a lot of emphasis on the raven)s entrance! The raven enters the room imperiously and holds dominion over the narrator! The %ird3s darkness sym%oli9es death! Also/ the raven/ with its jet %lack feathers and harsh croak/ can %e a representation of fate! 7owever/ at first/ it makes the student amusedC neutral/ or even positive! E8ually une:pectedly the %ird answers the student)s irrelevant 8uestion! The answer Dnevermore %egins to echo the student)s deepest and most concealed fears and dou%ts! As the 8uestion/ to which the %ird offers the same answer/ proceed/ the fear and the dou%t are intensified 0Paci/ EE1 The line Fuoth the Raven/ "evermore is constantly repeated in the poem and turns the narrator from sad/ nervous person into a shuddering wreck! <hen the %ird says it for the first time/ the narrator thinks it3s amusing nonsense! After a while/ it starts to seem like a horrifying prophecy! Actually/ he refers to the %ird as a prophet! At first/ the way %ird answers narrator)s 8uestions seems amusing to him/ %ut as it is that the only answer of the %ird is nevermore/ the narrator continues to 8uestion the %ird a%out 4enore/ and finally adopting his 8uestions to the answer nevermore! 7e can3t decide if this is just a %ird/ or some ;devil/; %ut/ in the folowing lines/ he is completely convinced that it knows what it3s talking a%out! The raven actually represents his inner thoughts! The constant and o%stinate '

Radonji impact of reality/ em%odied in the ugly %ird/ %rings a%out the destruction of the soul! 0Paci/ EE1 $n ;The Raven; it is important that the answers to the 8uestions are already known! This way of interpreting signs that do not %ear real meaning/ is ;one of the most profound impulses of human nature; 0Fuinn/ ''11! $n this way the self5torture to which the narrator e:poses himself is even more o%vious! The student made the raven significant %y calling it a prophet/ %ut he already knows that there is no other world! $n my opinion/ the student)s perception of the raven is reflection of his own mind and raven is mostly sym%ol of lost hope/ sadness/ melancholy/ and death! "ight3s Plutonian 6hore. The phrase ;"ight3s Plutonian 6hore; incorporates all the negative aspects associated with death! Plutonian is an allusion to the Roman god of the underworldC hence/ his shore would %e the underworld! +om%ined with ;night/; a common sym%ol for death and nothingness/ and shore/ representative of the vast ocean and all its mysterious inha%itants/ Plutonian takes on an enhanced meaning! -oth darkness and night represent mysterious/ may%e dangerous and scary power of nature! As for the other remaining sym%ols in this poem/ it is worth mentioning/ for e:ample/ the -ust of Pallas! $n the whole room the raven decides to perch on the %ust of *reek *oddess of <isdom! $t is another allusion of the raven as a sym%ol of wisdom! The %ust of Pallas and the raven3s su%se8uent perch on it may %e ironic/ for it is the narrator that gives the %ird such wisdom! Another sym%ol is "ephente/ which is an allusion to a mythological drug that you might take to forget your grief! The narrator desperately searches for something that will remove his pain and suffering and this is sym%oli9ed %y "epenthe! Another sym%ol/ the cham%er in which the narrator is/ represents his emptiness and loneliness/ and the sorrow he feels for the loss of 4enore! $ determined/ then/ to place the lover in his cham%er G in a cham%er rendered sacred to him %y memories of her who had fre8uented it! 0Poe %1 Poe uses the word cham%er rather than %edroom apparently %ecause cham%er has a dark and mysterious connotation/ %ut this cham%er also reminds the narrator of his lost love/ which helps to create an effect of %eauty in the poem! The student was more comforta%le physically in that closed/ lu:urious space/ %ut not mentally! $t has purple furniture and curtains in it/ there is no light in the cham%er/ and the feeling we get is that he is withdrawn from the rest of the world! The tempest outside is used to even more emphasise the isolation of this man/ to show a sharp contrast %etween the calmness in the cham%er and

Radonji the tempestuous night! As Poe makes no mention of a fire/ it is safe to assume that the cham%er is very cold as well/ as it)s near midnight in ,ecem%er! ,ecem%er is a less o)%ious sym)ol and it is used in the +irst %erse! It is the last month o+ the year and ,e get the impression o+ an end! ,ecem%er sym%oli9es death/ may%e end of his life! =idnight as a sym%ol also represents an end to something! $t is no accident that Poe chooses this as the time for the %ird3s arrival since it is the darkest part of the night!

$he *nity o+ "++ect

Poe wrote The Philosophy of Composition in order to e:plain the creation of The Raven from the selection of the theme to the choice of meter and refrain/ and to show how it should %e read as well! 7e claimed to have pondered the poem for years and so was a%le to write the final draft late in 1&'' in one sitting! ?ltimately/ Poe considered ;The Raven; an e:periment to ;suit at once the popular and critical taste;/ accessi%le to %oth the mainstream and high literary worlds! 06ova/ 1H(1 "athaniel Parker <illis/ one of the most productive and successful maga9inists of the day/ was a good friend of Poe at the time/ and his introductory note for The Raven in the "ew #ork Evening Mirror was. <e are permitted to copy 0in advance of pu%lication1 from the >nd! "o! of the American Review, the following remarka%le poem %y Edgar Poe! $n our opinion/ it is the most effective single e:ample of Ifugitive poetry) ever pu%lished in this countryC and unsurpassed in English poetry for su%tle conception/ masterly ingenuity of versification/ and consistent/ sustaining of imaginative lift and Ipokerishness)!1 $t is one of these Idainties %red in a %ook) which we feed on! $t will stick to the memory of every%ody who reads it! 0<alker/ 1'J1 6o/ according to <illis/ Poe)s conception and versification of the poem are to %e praised/ and Poe himself thought it is the most perfect poem ever written! Poe actually got the idea from Aristotle/ *reek philosopher and writer/ whom he studied and whose ideas on psychology/ nature/ logic/ physics/ metaphysics and ethics appear to have %een well known to Poe! Aristotle)s theory is that there are three main unities G place/ time/ and action! <hatever its reason for creation/ the essay is a vital te:t in understanding Poe criticism! $t contains a thorough analysis of his creative process/ which has led to significant de%ate regarding the accuracy of Poe)s description of his compositional process! Poe suggests that the essay will reveal the method that any author might follow in producing successful

Radonji literature! 06ova/ >H'1 $n this essay Poe approached the creation of the poem as if it were a mathematical pro%lem! 7is description of its writing is pro%a%ly e:aggerated/ though the essay serves as an important overview of Poe3s literary theory! 7e e:plains that every component of the poem is %ased on logic! The essay states Poe3s conviction that a work of fiction should %e written only after the author has decided how it is to end and which emotional response/ or ;effect/; he wishes to create/ commonly known as the ;unity of effect!; Knce this effect has %een determined/ the writer should decide all other matters pertaining to the composition of the work/ including tone/ theme/ setting/ characters/conflict/ and plot! 0wikipedia!com1 7owever/ in ;The Philosophy of +omposition/; Poe first discusses the length of the poem and stresses the need to e:press a single effect when the literary work is to %e read in one sitting! A poem should always %e written short enough to %e read in one sitting/ and should/ therefore/ strive to achieve this single/ uni8ue effect! +onse8uently/ Poe figured that the length of a poem should %e around one hundred lines/ and ;The Raven; consists of 1J& lines! 0Poedecoder!com1 6o/ he followed his own instructions! 2rom his own words $t is needless to demonstrate that the poem is such only inasmuch as it intensely e:cites/ %y elevating the soul. and all intense e:citements are/ through physical necessity/ %rief 0Poe a1 we can say that may%e one of the reasons Poe insisted on the poem to %e %rief is that the intense feelings are %rief %y their nature! 7e also said that ;"othing is more clear than that every plot/ worth the name/ must %e ela%orated to its denouement %efore anything %e attempted with the pen; 0Poe a1! Poe wrote ne:t a%out the choice of an impression/ or effect! Effect is the single most important word in the essay! Poe %elieved that/ when creating a poem/ autthor should start with the kind of feeling he wants to evoke in his readers and that effects shoud actually %e determined in advance! 7e wanted to achieve the effect of intense and pure elevation of soul/ and decided to create it through %eauty! The effects he wanted his reders to feel/ among others/ are fear/ pesimism/ sadness/ melancholy! 0Poe a1! Poe tended to make ;The Raven; ;universally apprecia%le; so that it can relate to all people! 6o/ he chose -eauty as the theme of the poem/ since ;-eauty is the sole legitimate province of the poem; 0Poe a1 and it is the most universal topic! After choosing -eauty as the province/ Poe considered sadness to %e the highest manifestation of %eauty! ;-eauty of whatever kind in its supreme development invaria%ly e:cites the sensitive soul to tears! =elancholy is thus the most legitimate of all the poetical tones; 0Poe a1! E

Radonji Tone of the highest %eauty is sadness/ and it is the most appropriate response to %eauty/ so it is should %e prevailing in the poem/ as well as melancholy! Also/ all people have e:perienced sadness/ it is something that affect us and we all can relate to that! =elancholy is most complementary with sadness and %eauty! Kf all melancholy topics what/ according to the universal understanding of mankind/ is the most melancholyA 6ince Poe %elieved that melancholy is the most suita%le feeling that potry should aim at/ he wanted to use one topic that was universally understood/ and therefore/ he chose ,eath as his topic! Poe %elieved that the death of a %eautiful woman was the most poetical use of death/ %ecause it closely allies itself with -eauty! ,eath of a %eautiful woman is the most perfect su%ject matter since it has all elements united and Poe uses it 8uite often in his works! $t is also something that readers can again relate to personally/ thus representing unity of tone and emotion! 0Poe a1! After esta%lishing su%jects and tones of the poem/ Poe started %y writing the stan9a from the third verse from the end/ and he then worked %ackwards from this stan9a and used the word ;nevermore; in many different ways/ so that even with the repetition of this word/ it would not prove to %e monotonous! The word to heighten the effect of sadness should %e heavy and monotonuous! 0Poedecoder!com1 $f the word nevermore stands in Poe as a figure for poetic language as such/ a num%er of theoretical implications can %e drawn! 6ince the %ird is not human/ the word is proffered as a pure signifier/ empty of human intentionality/ a pure poetic clichL! The empty repetition of the word therefore dramati9es the theoretical priority of the signifier over the signified which Poe claimed when he said that he %egan the te:t of the poem with the letters o and r! The plot of The Raven can %e read as the story of what happens when the signifier encounters a reader! 0-loom/ @>1 -loom e:plained the usage of word nevermore and commented on the writing of the poem itself! Poe)s claim/ in The Philosophy of +omposition/ that the poem was written %ackwards 0commencing with its effect1 applies %oth to the poem and to the essay a%out it. %oth are depictions not of the writing %ut of the reading of The Raven! The poem)s status as mechanical repetition is signified in another way as well! 0-loom/ @>1 Along with powerful imagination and visionary insights/ hard work/ e:perimenting and craftsmanship are necessary for the creation of a great work of art! Poe com%ined the two! And it is his conscious creativity that 2rench sym%olists considered to %e his greatest contri%ution to the development of world literature! 7e persistently e:plored the potentialities of art in order to convey the ethereal 8uality of the 6upernatual -eauty he longed for 0Paci/

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Radonji EE1 6o/ the unity of effect is actually unification of all elements of which a poem consists making perfect each one of them!

-onclusion
$n my opinion/ Poe succedeed to make a signficance with his literary theory/ %ecause his work can %e seen to anticipate impresionism and sym%olism! ;The Raven; has influenced many modern works/ including Bladimir "a%okov)s 4olita/ Ray -rad%ury)s ;The Parrot <ho Mnew Papa;/ and much more! 0wikipedia!com1 The poem is original and powerful! $ %elieve Poe put no moral in ; The Raven;/ %ut his stories were more like pu99les and in the end to accomplish nothing/ to achieve no meaning! As stated %efore/ he didn)t want the poem to %e didactic! $t is also said for The Raven that it is the poem written for poem)s sake! 7owever/ the poem may %e a%out the ina%ility of man to escape his ultimate fate! As for me/ all the effects united in this poem matched together with numerous carefully chosen sym%ols make The Raven a work to %e praised not denounced!

Radonji

Re+erences
-loom/ 7arold! Edgar Allan Poe: Bloom's Modern Critical Pu%lication/ "ew #ork/ >JJH! 7ayes/ Mevin O! !he +am%ridge +ompanion to Edgar Allan Poe! +am%ridge ?niversity Press/ +am%ridge/ >JJH! Paci, Bran"ica# !he Big !en Ma$or %ineteenth Cent&ry American 'riters# "iP/ 1NN1. H15E&! Poe a/ Edgar Allan! The Philosophy of +omposition ! +oncise Anthology of American 4iterature! Ed! *eorge =c=ichael! 7ayward. +alifornia 6tate ?niversity/ 1N&(. '@15'@N Poe %/ Edgar Allan! The Raven ! +oncise Anthology of American 4iterature! Ed! *eorge =c=ichael! 7ayward. +alifornia 6tate ?niversity/ 1N&(. @EE5@& Fuinn/ Arthur 7o%son! ;Edgar Allan Poe, A +ritical -iography!; -altimore. Oohn 7opkins ?niversity Press/ 1NN&! 6ova, ,awn B# +ritical +ompanion to Edgar Allan Poe. A 4iterary Reference to 7is 4ife and <ork! "#. 2acts on 2ile/ >JJE! <alker/ $an! Edgar Allan Poe: !he Critical (eritage# 4ondon. Routledge/ 1N&H Availa%le at www!lotsofessays!com/ last visited on >(th April/ >J1J Availa%le at http.QQen!wikipedia!orgQwikiQThe Raven/ last visited on >Jth April/ >J1J! Availa%le at www!cummingstudyguides!net/ last visited >&th April/ >J1J! Availa%le at www!poedecoder!com/ last visited >nd =ay/ >J1J! iews! +helsea 7ouse

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