Criticism on "The Raven"

In the critical analysis that i read on the poem "The Raven" by Edgar Allen Poe, the author of the analysis thought that the poem was absolutely amazing (Cooke). The author of the criticism really enjoyed the poem, and really liked the mood the Poe used throughout the entire poem. I would have to agree completely with the author of this criticism because of the fact that this poem is a masterful example when it comes to getting the mood and tone of the poem right. I think this because when i read this poem, it was one of the view works of writing that i have ever read that has actually sent a chill down my spine because i was so creeped out by the mood and tone of the poem. To me, that basically proves that the mood and tone of this poem was amazing because of the effect it had on the reader or audience. Another thing that the author of the criticism liked about "The Raven" was the amount of imagery that Poe uses throughout the poem (Cooke). What the reader has to realize about this poem is the fact that it is an extremely long poem but not that much action takes place within this poem (Cooke). Therefore, there is plenty of space within this poem to describe that setting and events. Because Poe has so much description within this poem, it is extremely easy to understand where the poem is taking place and to visualize the room in which the poem takes place and the dark hallway and the window where the raven is sitting. The amount of description within the poem also makes the reader understand the amount of pain that the main character in the poem is going through when he is thinking about the death of his loved one. Also, Poe gives great description at the end of the poem when he his describing the madness that the main character of the poem is going through when he keeps stating "nevermore." I have to agree with the author of the criticism because Poe really gives the reader an extremely vivid image of the setting of the poem and also he gives a very clear description to the reader of the raven and also, once again the pain that the main character feels for the loss of his lover. The other and final thing that the author of the criticism truly enjoyed about this poem is the fact that Poe chose a great vocab to use within this poem to describe the events that take place within it (Cooke). Sure, Poe uses plenty of space and time within this poem to make sure that he describes the setting and events enough, but at the same time, you have to make the correct word selection when it comes to this certain poem because Poe could have used one thousand words to describe one event in the poem, but if Poe would not have made the correct choice of words, then this poem would not be so masterful (Cooke}.


Cooke, P. Pendleton. "Edgar A. Poe," Southern Literary Messenger (January 1848). Reprinted in The Recognition of Edgar Allan Poe, ed. Eric W. Carlson (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1966): pp. 21–23. Quoted as "Review of 'The Raven'" in Harold Bloom, ed. Edgar Allan Poe, Bloom's Major Poets. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishing, 1999. (Updated 2007.) Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=1&iPin=BMPEAP21&SingleRecord=True (accessed November 19, 2010).