do u think that the poem The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe is a literary joke. Argue?

Answer 1

What is

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Answer 2

A poem with such deep symbols, cannot be a joke.
Poe uses several symbols to take the poem to a higher level. The most obvious symbol is, of course, the raven itself. When Poe had decided to use a refrain that repeated the word "nevermore," he found that it would be most effective if he used a non-reasoning creature to utter the word. It would make little sense to use a human, since the human could reason to answer the questions (Poe, 1850). In "The Raven" it is important that the answers to the questions are already known, to illustrate the self-torture to which the narrator exposes himself. This way of interpreting signs that do not bear a real meaning, is "one of the most profound impulses of human nature" .
Poe also considered a parrot as the bird instead of the raven; however, because of the melancholy tone, and the symbolism of ravens as birds of ill-omen, he found the raven more suitable for the mood in the poem (Poe, 1850). Quoth the Parrot, "Nevermore?"
Another obvious symbol is the bust of Pallas. Why did the raven decide to perch on the goddess of wisdom? One reason could be, because it would lead the narrator to believe that the raven spoke from wisdom, and was not just repeating its only "stock and store," and to signify the scholarship of the narrator. Another reason for using "Pallas" in the poem was, according to Poe himself, simply because of the "sonorousness of the word, Pallas, itself" (Poe, 1850).

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Answer 3

I think it is one of the greatest poems ever. I think people focus too much on the horror part of it and less on the more subtle philosophy behind the poem. The poem is about loss (the narrator's Lenore) and grieving (the raven) and how the narrator, and humanity in general, copes with the feelings of loneliness and loss.

Answer 4

well the poem is ment to be scary, because back in his time poems and storys like The Raven were spine chilling storys.
i dont think it's a literary joke