The Raven and Madness

In Edgar Allen Poe’s poem, “The Raven”, he uses symbols and figurative language to enhance his theme of madness. The theme of madness gives the poem an air of mystery and evokes many questions in the reader’s mind. The reader begins to wonder if the speaker is sane, or even if the Raven is real.

The poem starts out fairly normal until the bird speaks, which is definitely out of the ordinary. Up until this moment, we have no reason to believe that the speaker is anything but sane. However, continuing on from this point of the poem’s first hint of madness, the reader says, “Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed by an unseen censer Swung by a Seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor.” This is where we start to compile evidence that the speaker may be imagining some of the events in the story, such as a bird talking to him, or angels perfuming the air in his room. After these events, towards the climax of the story, the speaker begins to yell at a bird because it is unable to tell him whether or not he will see his dead wife or not. Throughout the story, the sense of madness is enhanced as the speaker’s actions get more desperate and unorthodox, such as screaming at a bird and telling it to leave because he believes it is of the devil.

Poe uses many symbols in his poem that enhance his theme of madness. He gives the story and ominous feeling as he states that the story took place on a “Bleak December,” obviously, this is not a happy season for the speaker. Before this, Poe alludes to the setting of an unhappy time with the words, “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,” this lets us know that not only is this story occurring at an ominous time, but the speaker is not currently in his best state of mind.

Another symbol that adds to the theme of madness is the Raven which is one of the most important symbols in the poem. Ravens often bear ominous omens and are often associated with death. If Poe had chosen another animal in place of the Raven, it may not have had as much effect on the theme of madness.

As we can tell from many of the symbols Poe chose to insert into his poem, the speaker obviously fears death, whether it is Lenore’s or his own. The speaker often speaks of “The Night’s Plutonian shore!” and is afraid of the thought that the Raven may be from the underworld, a place of death. The speaker is unable to cope with the thought that his love may be gone forever. In the story, Poe purposely mentioned that the Raven had perched upon a bus of Pallas. Pallas is the Greek goddess, Athena. Athena is often thought of as the goddess of wisdom. Because the Raven perches upon a symbol of wisdom, we are led to wonder if the Raven represents wisdom. The speaker apparently tends to think so, as he seeks answers to many of his questions from the Raven. This helps the theme of madness because the speaker is placing his sanity in the hands of an animal he believes to be wise and to hold the secrets of his future. This, of course, is not a sane action.

Figurative language plays a big role in the theme of madness. In the beginning of the story, the speaker says, “Long I stood there wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before.” Here, Poe used alliteration which gives the poem a more rhythmic feel. When the climax of the story is reached, Poe has all but cast a spell on you. The speaker’s has more rhythm and the words begin to pull you into the story. You are almost feeling the speaker’s emotions. Poe is able to do this because he has introduced the possibility of the speaker’s madness early on in the story.

The possibility of madness presents the poem with its conclusion. “Not the least obeisance made he; not an instant stopped or stayed he; / But, with mien of lord or lady, Perched above my chamber door— / Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber door—Perched, and sat, and nothing more” here, we see the use of personification. The personification of the Raven is a very important detail throughout the story. The speaker believes that the Raven has not moved from the bust of Pallas and that the speaker’s soul lies within the bird’s shadow. Not only does he claim that his soul in in the shadow of the Raven, but he says that it “Shall be lifted– nevermore!” The speaker is living in a nightmare; unable to see his love, and apparently his soul is trapped in the shadow of a demon. The worst part about his nightmare is that it is all of his own creation. He has led himself to believe that this raven holds the answers that his soul relies upon for relief.