Question

In edgar allan poe's "the raven", what happens at the end of the poem that puts the speaker over the edge?
a. the speaker sees lenore's ghost outside his door.
b. the bird tells the speaker his strange name.
c. the bird suddenly flies away into the dark night.
d. the speaker realizes the bird's message will always haunt him.

Answer 1

d. the speaker realizes the bird's message will always haunt him.

Answer 2

Answer:

d. the speaker realizes the bird's message will always haunt him.

Explanation:

Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" tells the encounter of the narrator/ speaker with a raven in his chambers on a "bleak December" midnight. At first, the speaker seems amused and marveled at the raven, even impressed with it's ability to talk but even though with just a single word "nevermore". As he continued interacting with the raven, he became reminded of his long lost love "Lenore" who had died. Connecting the bird's appearance and message to her, he began to believe the bird is a demon with it's "fiery eyes". In the end, with the bird still in his room, sitting on the bust of Athena, he believes that the bird is throwing a shadow over his soul forever- "that shadow that lies floating on the floor / Shall be lifted—nevermore!"