“The Raven” takes place in the evening of a bleak December night as the narrator sits, trying to forget and cope with the loss of his love, Lenore. While on the verge of sleep, “suddenly there came a tapping, / As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.” He questions who or what could possibly be at his door at midnight, and so he goes to the window to try to fix the situation. A raven swoops in at the window, and the presence of this bird results in a smile from the narrator, “this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling.” This smile is something unknown to him due to the daily torment that his soul experiences of longing to be united with Lenore, a torment so excruciating that he may have considered attempting suicide …show more content…
It takes place “upon a midnight dreary” in “bleak December.” Ordinarily in literature, December symbolizes depression and death and midnight is referred to as the witching hour and darkest part of the night. Hence, both midnight and December symbolize the end of something, which could be of life. However, the life may not only pertain to the end of Lenore’s life, but the life of the narrator as well, who may be depressed enough to contemplate suicide. Suicide would reunite him with his lost love, and he would be freed of his endless sorrow and grieving. By using this specific setting, Poe sets the stage for introducing the death of Lenore. He also writes, “each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.” A “dying ember” is reminiscent of the light of life being blown out. The dying embers could also symbolize dying sanity. This visual places the narrator’s thoughts in a state of hopelessness and helplessness. With the phrase, “wrought its ghost upon the floor,” the ghosts can symbolize the remainders of sanity, and the floor can symbolize the mind, which is the foundation of thoughts. Poe further sets the scene of darkness and death by using these few very descriptive