Analysis of the Poetic Symbols Between Ancient Mariner and The Raven

One of the most vital birds in any poem is Poe’s Raven, without this bird obviously the events in this poem would have never happened, but it is more than just that. The type of bird, a Raven which symbolises fear or dread, was the perfect fit for the poem.” Each bird does something different in their respective story. Some things they have in common like that they both give a sense of false hope. Other things they do not have in common like how the Albatross is considered a good omen, where the Raven is considered a bad one.

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Edgar Allen Poe’s poem, "The Raven" starts off in a dark setting with an apartment on a "bleak December" night. The reader meets an agonized man sifting through his books while mourning over the premature death of a woman named Lenore. When the character is introduced to the raven he asks about Lenore and the chance in afterlife in which the bird replies “nevermore” which confirms his worst fears. This piece by Edgar Allen Poe is unparalleled; his poem’s theme is not predictable, it leads to a bitter negative ending and is surrounded by pain. To set this tone, Poe uses devices such as the repetition of "nevermore" to emphasize the meaning of the word to the overall theme; he also sets a dramatic tone that shows the character going from weary

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Poe's use of a depressing and negative setting for "The Raven" illustrates his despair and gloominess. Another example that illustrates the poem as an expression of Poe's mood is the raven itself. A raven is a large bird of the crow family with lustrous black feathers and a straight, sharp beak. Poe could have used any bird, however he wanted the reader to experience the gloom and despondency that he experienced. Therefore he wrote about a raven.

But the bird will eventually leave the narrator just like everyone else. Here describe the ultimate loneliness the narrator felt. When the bird repeated “ Nevermore ” the narrator know that this is the only word the bird will say. “Doubtless, said I, what it utters is its only stock and store”(63) “Stock and store” means the bird is trying to learn human language like a parrot. “Poe also considered a parrot as the bird instead of the raven; however, because of the melancholy tone, and the symbolism of ravens as birds of ill-omen, he found the raven more suitable for the mood in the poem”(Quinn) “Caught from some unhappy master”, the narrator stated that the bird have an unhappy master, that’s how he learn the word.

A parallelism is formed in “The Raven” between the condescending actions of the raven towards the narrator and the taunting of alcohol towards Poe. The raven condescends that Poe will never see his lost love again when uttering “forget this lost Lenore” (83). Alcohol taunts Poe into ceaseless depression and caused Poe to have a life-long problem with alcoholism, which eventually led to his death. In a similar manner to which the alcohol explored Poe’s inner devastation, the raven delves into explo... ... middle of paper ... ...ghout Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Raven,” to underscore the developing tone of melancholy. The refrain accomplishes this accentuation through its creation of an awareness of the inevitable; realizing that the raven’s response to any questions posed will be “Nevermore,” the character inquires about his lost love, the “rare amd radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore,” perhaps purposefully to experience further torture and anguish (95).

Alliteration is also present when he says "grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt" and "And the silken, sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain..." The raven is the prime example of personification. One does not normally hear a bird, more specifically a raven talk. Throughout the poem the bird talks and repeats “nevermore”, which is a human quality. “Nevermore” is also an example of repetition that Poe uses to drive home his point that Lenore is not coming back. Symbolism the most prevalent device.

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The Albatross in Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, is shot from the sky and many terrible things ensue after it’s death and it is seen as an omen to the sailors aboard the ship. Yet another poem contains an omen presented in the form of a bird, namely a raven from Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven which contains a foreboding air and creates an ominous feeling as to the impending death or doom of the narrator. The two birds can be compared by their appearance, the actions, and the influence they have upon the narrator of their respective poems, creating an image of a bird representing much more than another living creature. Both poems depict very different situations yet the simple appearance of each bird has a huge impact on the characters of each poem. In Rime of the Ancient Mariner the Albatross appears at a time of great suffering and turmoil and allows the sailors to break free from the ice and move forward by the wind they believe has followed the great bird to them.