Similarities Between Edgar Allan Poe And The Raven

The Life of Edgar Allen Poe and “The Raven”
One of the most celebrated American Poets of the nineteenth century is Edgar Allen Poe. As a reader of his poems and short stories, it is evident that his “life had many hardships that inspired his work” (“Edgar Allen Poe’s Inspiration” 1). There is a clear “connection to Poe and the other people in his life to the characters in his poems and stories” (“Edgar Allen Poe’s Inspiration” 1). Specifically, “The Raven”, which was published in 1845, Poe himself considers it to be “the greatest poem that ever was written” (Ackroyd 119). Examining this poem, it is clear, that Poe’s writing of “The Raven” was greatly influenced by the events that took place in his short and tragic life.
The poem, “The
The raven ridicules him, saying that he shall be united with his dead sweetheart Lenore “nevermore” (Poe 3). The “ominous bird” continues his jeers, making the narrator forget about Lenore for a period of time, but then bringing the pain of her death back gradually. The bird finishes his ridicules by saying that his shadow “that lies floating on the floor shall be lifted- ‘nevermore’” (Poe 3). These taunts, make the narrator not only disappointed, but also seem a failure. The same is true in the life of Edgar Allen Poe. During his life Poe was very often in need of finances. As he began gambling, “he played cards endlessly, often losing large sums of money” (Ackroyd 30). John Allen taunted Edgar, not providing enough money to support himself in any way (Ackroyd 31). Thus, after he left the University of Virginia “Edgar had no money, no job skills, and had been shunned by John Allen” (“Biography of Edgar Allen Poe” 1). In turn, this caused John Allen to “resent his young charge “(Ackroyd 31). Not only was Poe a disappointment due to lack of finances and skills, he was also a dissatisfaction to the father of his young lover. When he was about 16 years old, Edgar “became attached to, a fifteen-year-old girl” by the name of Elmira Royster (Ackroyd 32). “Elmira and Edgar were engaged, but her father” was “worried that Edgar was an orphan, too young, and had no profession” (Binns 21). After coming home from the university, Edgar “learned that his letters to Elmira Royster had been kept from her by her father, and that she was about to be married to another man” (Ackroyd 32). In addition to being a disappointment, Edgar Allen Poe was also a failure during his youth. While studying at West Point, Edgar neglected his duties and he “simply stopped going to classes or