Wednesday, 3 July 2013

What poetic devices are used in "The Raven"?

Further examples of
the repetition of an initial consonant soundinclude "Deep into
that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, / Doubting, dreaming dreams no
mortal ever dared to dream before" (these lines repeat the "d" sound, almost
drumming on it, to help create the mood of ominousness and inevitability). Another example of
alliteration: "And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, '!' / This I
whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, 'Lenore!'" The alliteration of the
"w" sound is much softer compared to the alliteration of the "d" sound in
the lines immediately preceding it. Going from the repetition of such a loud sound to the
repetition of such a soft sound makes the softer sound seem a little spooky in this
case.

Also, the raven is described as "ebony"a color often
symbolically associated with death, especially in Poe's stories.
Given the narrator's preoccupation with death, especially that of his lover, as well as his
belief that the raven has come from either the Underworld, the devil, or heaven, seem to confirm
this symbolism. He also personifies the raven, insisting that he
has some "lordly name" in the Underworld, and thinking that "his soul in that one
word he did outpour."

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