Personification In The Raven

Poe was born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 19, 1809. Before his writing career, he joined the military and was dismissed soon after (Grubbs). He was a very well-recognized poet and his poems were about mystery and horror. His best known work is “The Raven” which he wrote in 1845. Most of his writings were influenced by his rough childhood. His dad left his family when Poe was young and his mom died when Poe was three (Grubbs). Some of Poe’s other famous works are “The Pit and the Pendulum,” and “The Tell-Tale Heart." In Edgar Allan Poe’s poem, “The Raven” he uses context, symbols, forms and devices, and personification to show how to display emotion through writing. In “The Raven” Poe uses a lot of types of context to invoke emotion to the reader. He uses religious context to allude to heaven and hell (Dhahir). He uses symbols that could also be a sign of the devil. For example the raven and he frequently talks about how he will never be able to see his beloved Lenore in heaven. He talks about how he doesn’t think that he will go to heaven and he will be in hell where he can’t see Lenore. He also uses biographical context to relate his life to his writing. He had a very bad childhood and he struggled as a young kid. He had no wish to converse in society and lived a very secluded life (Dihahar). His childhood was very sad and his writing reflects that. He was a very deep and dark person and he uses a lot of gloomy diction in his writings. Poe also was motivated by self-torture and an irrational mind (Edwards). He always felt alone, so he distanced himself away from people. He also uses historical context in his writings. In “The Raven” he shows no references to time. Also, it reflects clear moments in his life. Poe uses many symbols in his writings and he uses them to get the reader thinking. The symbol of the raven has a very negative diction. It has been related to a sign of the devil. Also, the raven is a bad southern superstition (Dihahar). The animal the raven itself has a very gloomy and dark image and can connect the diction with it. In the story, Poe describes the raven in a very dark and scary way. His dark and twisted thoughts may have led to the idea of the raven being the centerpiece in his story. The Symbol of Lenore also has a great impact on the story. He shows how greatly he loves Lenore by the amount of sorrow and how dejected he is in the story. His love for Lenore will be with him until the end of his life on earth and the afterlife. Poe shows that all of his happiness is in Lenore. His one wish is to be with her in the afterlife that she has now passed on to. He is in great grief that he will never be able to see his beloved Lenore again. He also thinks he …show more content…
The raven speaks to Poe frequently in the story. Poe talks to it and asks it for its lordy name. Poe will ask the raven if he will ever see his beloved Lenore again and the raven responds to the raven by saying nevermore. Also, when Poe looks at the raven he says that the raven is smiling at him. He believes that the bird is making fun of him and he gives it many human elements. Also, it says that Poe hears tapping at his chamber door which is believed to be being caused by the raven (Napierowski). The raven also has human emotions. You can tell by this in his communication with Poe. Another thing that Poe personifies is Lenore. He personifies her by saying that her ghost has come back and is upon the floor which a human characteristic. He says he sees what seems to be the ghost of Lenore floating (Napierkowski 213). Poe also personifies the walls by saying they are saying Lenore’s name. But, it could just be the echo of his longing for her. He also personifies people’s souls. He says that his soul had escaped his body and had floated on the