Prophet!" said I, "thing of evil! - prophet still, if bird or devil! By that Heaven that bends above us- by that God we both adore- Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn, It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore- Clasp a rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore." Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore.
Interpretation
The quote reflects on the inevitability of loss and the despair associated with longing for what is unattainable.
In this excerpt from Edgar Allan Poe's 'The Raven', the speaker is in a state of sorrow, seeking answers from a raven that symbolizes bleakness and despair. The mention of 'Lenore' serves as a poignant reminder of lost love, as the speaker grapples with the idea that in the afterlife or paradise ('Aidenn'), he may not be reunited with his beloved, ultimately receiving the chilling response of 'Nevermore' from the raven, emphasizing the permanence of loss and the futility of hope.
In practice
You could use this quote in a discussion about the nature of grief and loss.
But evil things, in robes of sorrow, Assailed the monarch's high estate; (Ah, let us mourn, for never morrow Shall dawn upon him desolate!) And round about his home the glory That blushed and bloomed, Is but a dim-remembered story Of the old time entombed.
Most writers - poets in especial - prefer having it understood that they compose by a species of fine frenzy - an ecstatic intuition - and would positively shudder at letting the public take a peep behind the scenes.
...the agony of my soul found vent in one loud, long and final scream of despair.
Where the good and the bad and the worst and the best have gone to their eternal rest.
I could have clasped the red walls to my bosom as a garment of eternal peace. "Death," I said, "any death but that of the pit!" Fool! might I have not known that into the pit it was the object of the burning iron to urge me?
In our endeavors to recall to memory something long forgotten, we often find ourselves upon the very verge of remembrance, without being able, in the end, to remember.
A society that doesn't know any longer how to observe every death with proper rituals, that does not know that death is not the end, but only part of the journey, has lost its way, has had the very heart of its humanity torn out.
How can you respect the world when you see it's being run by a bunch of kids turned old?
I've seen lawyers who don't represent me and spokespeople who do not know me speaking for me. These characters always seem to surface with dreadful allegations just as another project, an album, a video is being released.
Generous gestures yield the most when that isn't their purpose.
Democracy cannot survive overpopulation.
I confess that I cannot understand how we can plot, lie, cheat and commit murder abroad and remain humane, honorable, trustworthy and trusted at home.
Subscribe for the occasional hand-picked quote. No noise.