Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849) wrote “The Raven,” one of his best-known works, in 1845. The poem tells the story of a young scholar who grieves the death of his beloved. In the depths of his grief he is visited by a raven, whom he desperately questions. The raven’s single, chilling answer to all of his questions—even when he asks whether he will see his lover again—is “Nevermore.” To create a austere atmosphere and illuminate the poem’s themes, Poe makes a series of allusions from Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian mythology.

Skills: analysis, drawing inferences from text, close reading, identifying the relationship between words

About This Document

The Owl Eyes Allusions activity gives students an opportunity to practice identifying and analyzing allusions. Allusions broaden the scope of a text and imbue passages of the text with deeper meaning by subtly drawing on literature, history, science, geography, philosophy, mythology, or other cultural sources. The main components of this activity include the following:

• A contextualized paragraph of the text
• A handout defining “allusion” with examples from classic works
• A list of tips for spotting allusions
• A step-by-step guide to activity procedure
• An example answer

In completing this activity, students will be able to identify, analyze, and interpret allusions, thereby accessing deeper meanings within the text.