The Raven
I. Background
A. Background to Poem origin: Poe wanted to write a melancholic poem. He decided that the best topic
for this type of poem would be the death of a beautiful woman. He actually wrote the climax first and
centered the rest of the poem around that climax. He wanted to use a bird and considered using an owl,
but decided upon the raven. Why do you think a raven was a good choice?
B. Plot background: the speaker (narrator) of the poem is a college student who is mourning the loss of his
lover, a beautiful woman named Lenore. He is trying to focus on studying late at night when he starts
hearing noises that sound like someone is at his door. When he answers the door, no one is there but he
hears the name “Lenore” whispered. From there, he becomes distracted and his mind starts playing
games on him. In a sense, he starts torturing himself over Lenore. There is no indication necessarily that
he had anything to do with her death, but it is clear he misses her and wants to see her again.
C. Why a Raven? Raven has different meanings in various societies. Western societies saw ravens as
portentous and wise; Greeks associated them with wisdom, prophecy or omen; Norse culture viewed
ravens as thought and memory; and Christian beliefs associate them with evil and the death.
II. Quickwrite: Write about a time when you felt unfounded fear and the effects it had on your mind. You
might write about a time when you were alone at night or in an unfamiliar place and you started hearing
things or feeling like someone was watching you. If you can’t think of anything along these lines, you may
write about a story you’ve read or a movie you’ve watched. This should be more about the fear and the
way a mind works in those stressful situations instead of describing the plot of the situation or storyline.
III. Main Lesson
A. Objectives:
RS 3.3- Analyze the ways in which the “sound” of language achieves specific aesthetic purposes.
RS 3.4- Analyze ways in which poets use sounds to evoke readers emotions
B. Read the first 6 lines: jot down 4 things you notice in those lines. It can deal with literary devices,
setting, or any other literature based comment.
C. Discussion of first 6 lines
1. end rhyme scheme
2. internal rhyme scheme
3 Alliteration
4. onomatopoeia
5. meter
6. repetition
D. Sound Effect Chart. While we listen to the cd, pay attention to the “sound” of the language. Which words
or phrases strike you and cause an emotional reaction or add to the feeling of the poem? Consider the
devices we just discussed. Draw a 3 column chart with the left side of the chart labeled “Sound Effect”, the
middle of the chart labeled “Example from poem” and the third column labeled “Emotion or Feeling” Try
to find a few examples for each device not in the first stanza.
E. Summary: Write a 1 sentence summary for each stanza that explains the main idea of the stanza.
F. Comprehension
1. What is the mood of the poem?
2. In lines 9-10 what is the speaker trying to do?
3. What happens in lines 13-18. Of what is the author trying to convince himself? Why?
4. What happens when the speaker answers the door? How does this evoke emotion in the speaker? in
the reader?
5. What does the speaker say might be causing the tapping? Do you think he really believes his
explanation? Who then enters his chamber?
6. At first, how does the narrator sees the raven (lines 50-55)? How does his view change? Who does he
think sent the raven?
7. What explanation does the speaker give for the bird’s ability to say “nevermore?”Look at all the times
the bird says Nevermore…what “question” is the Raven answer each time? How is each time different?
8. What questions does the speaker ask the raven?
9. What do you think the raven symbolizes?
10. What are two examples of Onomatopoeia