Entry 2: Response to "The Raven"

1. Background:

    Intrigue surrounding American author Edgar Allan Poe persists to this day. Did he die a mentally deranged madman, a drug abuser, or a man simply infected with rabies? His life and prose continue to emerge in countless pop-culture references in this century, often through parody; a movie detailing his possible demise is to be released in 2012.  Poe was known primarily for his mastery of the Gothic genre and his fondness for the macabre in his writing as you know well from "The Tell-Tale Heart". "The Raven" (1845) is considered by many to be the most famous poem in the Western Hemisphere.

2.  Poetry Study: Listen to a reading of "The Raven" by James Earl Jones and discuss what meaning you can take from it.

3. Vocabulary and Devices:  Refer to "The Raven" Interactive Lesson. Use the annotations to define unknown terms  on your handout of "The Raven"; note the terms in your glossary and practice identifying examples of alliteration, assonance, and internal rhyme on the handout.

4.  Blog Assignment:  Response to "The Raven"

Why do you suppose Poe's narrative poem, "The Raven", has stood the test of time? What do people find so frighting about this poem 166 years after it was first published?

Develop a response arguing your opinion in a blog post of at least 250 words. Relate your arguments back to the poem. Due: Nov. 3.  Call it Entry 2: Response to "The Raven"

"The Raven's" final stanza portrayed by Gustave Doré, 1884