The Raven
• This will be a group assignment – you will be telling a
story as a group.
• Each student will be assigned (at random) a verse from Poe’s poem The
Raven.
• We will go over the poem together and interpret the whole poem and each
verse (establishing overall theme and mood).
– Bear in mind however, that your interpretation for the final piece of art need not
be the same as what we discuss in class (Poe is open to multiple interpretations –
that’s half the fun).
• You will need to generate an image that accurately illustrates what is
happening in your verse. These will be compiled into a DVD that will tell
the whole story (think comic book or graphic novel).
Your assignment - The details
• The approach to the illustration is up to you.
• May be realistic, stylized or graphic, abstract or totally nonobjective in nature.
• It should capture the mood or essence of your verse as well as
communicate to a certain extent what is happening in your verse.
• You may include words but do not need to.
– If words are included, typestyle should reflect the mood and
aesthetic quality of the poem and your illustration both.
• Consider, for the sake of continuity, who will be the narrator and
who will be Lenore (same people will be models for everyone – if you
choose to show the figures).
• Consider the time period. It need not be Victorian or Edwardian
but it does need to be consistent from student to student to
maintain story continuity.
What is a symbol?
• Something that on the surface is its literal self but
which also has another meaning or even several
meanings. For example, a sword may be a sword and
also symbolize justice.
• A symbol may be said to embody an idea.
• There are two general types of symbols:
– Universal symbols that embody universally recognizable
meanings wherever used, such as light to symbolize
knowledge, a skull to symbolize death, etc.
– Constructed symbols that are given symbolic meaning by the
way an author uses them in a literary work, as the white
whale becomes a symbol of evil in Moby Dick.
What is symbolism?
• The creation of meaning or the expression of
ideas (telling a story) through the use of symbols
instead of words (or by using words for their
symbolic value)
Is symbolism universal?
Do the symbols at left seem
universal in their meanings?
Could anyone understand them?
Symbols and their interpretation can
vary from region to region, culture to
culture and especially from time/era
to time/era.
The Raven –
read by Christopher Walken
The Raven text
Some student work…