On this day, exactly 164 years ago, Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" was published by the New York Evening Mirror. It remains to be one of the most famous poems ever written. I have read the poem and remember having to study it when I was younger. The poem is about a man who has lost his love and is confronted by a raven that can talk. Instead of offering comfort, the raven distresses the man by ending everything with "nevermore", causing the man more torment as he drifts into madness. Narrative poems tell a story and often show the poet's thoughts and feelings. They can be long or short, simple or complex. Narrative poetry is believed to be the oldest form of poetry there is. Other examples of narrative poetry are "The Canterbury Tales" and "Odyssey". Like "The Raven" these poems were best read aloud or performed, rather than simply read. I know very little about poetry, but I do know I enjoy listening to it more than I do reading it. Perhaps it would be better if I read it out loud.I can relate to the man in "The Raven" in a way. I've already told you how I was tormented by a crow named Amos when I was little. Ravens aren't much better. They're beautiful birds, but they're thieves and scavengers. When we first moved to Montana, a huge raven landed in the tree outside my dining room. Being the photo-nut I am, I ran to get my camera. Just as I had it focused on him, I stopped and my mouth fell open. He had just plucked a baby robin from its nest and gobbled it down whole. Before I could shut my mouth, he yanked out another one and flew it down to the ground, where he finished his little feast. The sad thing was, everyone in my family was watching this. We were traumatized. When the mother robin came back to her nest, the look on her face was heartbreaking. Ever since that day I've had a love/hate thing about ravens. The circle of life can get pretty ugly. However, ravens are far from ugly and they can be as different from each other as you are from me ...
There is the strong, youthful raven ...
The old, frail raven ...
The punk rock raven ...
And finally, there is the Angelina Jolie raven ...
Yeah, I know, you'll never look at a raven the same way again. ;)
Those are great pics, Rena! A similar thing happened in my tree just outside our atrium off our kitchen. A large crow (or raven?) swooped down, we tried to run to the door and yell, but he took the baby bird. I was so upset, I called him an a-hole! Then when the mother bird came back, her chirps and shrieks sounded so sad!
ReplyDeleteOMG Rena, I LOVE the Angelina Jolie raven. You are so funny! I've never read The Raven, I will have to do that.
ReplyDeleteNancy
Great pictures Rena! My parents have alot of birds at their house and my dad is so cute - anytime he sees a raven, he runs outside to scare it away so that the raven can't scare all the other birds. (Of course my dad scares all the other birds too - my mom told him that the other birds probably think he is a big raven too!) lol
ReplyDeleteLOL! Luv your raven catagories! :0)
ReplyDeleteBTW, How do you know all these things?
LOL! What a riot!
ReplyDeleteYou are too funny. It took me a second to figure out the Angelina Jolie Raven, and when it dawned on me, I snorted. People must think I'm cra-razy @work.
ReplyDeleteCool pictures Rena.When we used to live on a farm,I fed the ravens(or were they crows?) bags of old doughnuts and bread a guy would give us from a food pantry.Once,he gave us a whole case of bologna that was expired.I would cut up a couple packages of it a day, and put it out in the field and watch the ravens come eat it.It never took them long to come.Am I a dork or what?
ReplyDeleteLeanne
Angelina Jolie Raven...hahahahahahaha!
ReplyDeleteXOXO
EAP is one of my all-time favorites. And that will change, nevermore.
ReplyDeleteI'll never look at Angelina Jolie the same way again! Love it!'
ReplyDeleteI bow to Edgar.
ReplyDeleteAngelina Jolie indeed! HA HA HA! LMAO!
Omigosh, you are too funny! Where did you find that Jolie raven -- hilarious!
ReplyDeleteOK, the punk rock raven made me laugh...and then I saw the Angelina raven! OMG! Nearly spit all over my keyboard!
ReplyDelete