: A man tormented by memories of a deceased beloved enters into a dialogue with a raven who can only say “never”.
The man on whose behalf the narration is being conducted sits in the dead of December night while studying old books. In them, he tries to drown the sorrow of his beloved - the dead Lenore. He hears a knock on the door, but when he opens it, he does not find anyone behind her:
Then I opened the door of my dwelling:
Darkness - and nothing more.
Returning to his room, the narrator hears a knock again, this time stronger than before. As soon as the window was opened, a raven flew into the room. Ignoring the narrator, an important bird sits on a bust of Pallas above the door.
A man asks for the name of the raven, to which he receives the answer: "never." The narrator is surprised that the bird can at least say something. He notes that tomorrow the raven will leave him with all his hopes, to which the bird answers again: "never." The narrator concludes that the raven learned only these words and cannot say anything other than them.
The man moves the chair and takes a place opposite the bird, trying to understand what the raven wanted to say to his “never”. The narrator’s thoughts return to the memories of his beloved, he begins to think that he feels the presence of angels, and God sends a sign to forget about the deceased.
And with sadness the belated head of her tired
I clung to the scarlet pillow, and then I thought:
I am alone, on scarlet velvet - the one whom I always loved,
Will never snuggle.
The bird again says “never”, as if it means that a person will never be free from these memories. The narrator is angry with the raven, calls him a prophet. He asks if they will be reunited with Lenora in the next world, and he receives the answer: "never." A man becomes furious, calls a bird a liar, orders to get away.
And I exclaimed, getting up: “Get out of here, angry bird!
You are from the kingdom of darkness and storm - go back there again
I do not want a shameful lie, a lie, like these feathers, black,
Good luck, stubborn spirit! I want to be - always alone! ”
The raven, however, continues to sit still, casting a shadow. The human soul will not come out of this shadow “never”:
Light streams, a shadow lays down - it always trembles on the floor.
And my soul is from the shadows that always worry.
Will not rise - never!
