What is the setting in "The Raven"?

“The Raven” contains several clues that tell the reader about the setting of the poem. They are found in stanzas 1, 2, 3, and 7.

In the first stanza, the speaker provides the reader with the time: it was “a midnight dreary.” If you reverse the order of these two words, you will find its description easier—a dreary midnight.  Therefore, the speaker recalls his experience of the Raven’s visitation occurring one unexciting late night, early morning.

Later in this same stanza, the speaker provides us with another clue to the setting; this one provides the place: the speaker hears a knocking at his “chamber door.” The speaker assumes that “'tis some visitor,” which shows us that the speaker can often be found there in his chamber.  The chamber is likely the speaker’s bedroom or a room in which he studies his books--his “many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore.”

In the second stanza, more setting related to specific time is provided by the speaker: he says this experience occurred “in the bleak December.” (One interesting correlation here is similarity of the adjectives used for both descriptions of time: “Midnight dreary” and “bleak December” are equally gloomy.) With this extra description, the reader now knows that the Raven visits the man one midnight during December.

In the third stanza, one additional small description is given:

“And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain”

This silk purple curtain is one of the few descriptions from the chamber itself. The flutter of the curtain is likely an eerie occurrence that is meant to increase the speaker's "terror." Another description of the speaker's room--the setting of this strange tale--comes in stanza seven where the Raven perches:

“upon a bust of Pallas just above [the speaker’s] chamber door.”

This may be something you wish to note, for the spot on which the Raven perches is a sculpture of the helmeted head of Pallas Athena, an Olympian Greek goddess.  She is the goddess of wisdom, among other things.  Depending upon what you might do with this poem later in class (or for yourself), it might be important to note that particular of the setting.

I’ve provided a link below to help you with other particulars of Poe’s “The Raven.”

The Raven is by far one of the most famous poems by Edgar Allan Poe. Poe has such a way with words that you feel immediately that you are a part of the story itself.

The Raven is set in a chamber of a house at midnight. There is an unnamed narrator, trying to forget his love, Lenore. He is trying to read to help ease his memories, when he hears a rapping at his door. He thinks it is a visitor and ignores it, but the rapping continues, and then he thinks it is his lost love coming back for him.

"Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December; And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor. Eagerly I wished the morrow- vainly I had sought to borrow from my books surcease of sorrow- sorrow for the lost Lenore- for the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore- Nameless here for evermore."

The grief the man feels is so tangible. You can sense how he loved Lenore. His undying love for her has made his life meaningless now that she is gone. This is one of the things that make this poem so popular. There is always an element of something supernatural at play with Poe, but in this poem, we see the love of this man. His love for Lenore outweighs anything else.

The setting in this poem includes both time and place. The author first gives us a sense of both mood and time with the first line:

"Once upon a midnight dreary,"

We as readers are then told that the author/narrator is in his study, as evidence is given of the books, the bust of Pallas, and the other ecoutrements that lend themselves to studious labors. We are certain that this is, at the very least, a room, as Poe refers to his "chamber door" multiple times throughout the poem. In closing, we can conclude that this poem is set in the 1800s, on a dark and stormy night, in the author's place of academic study and leisure.

What is the setting of "The Raven," including the month and weather?

The time of year in which Poe's poem "The Raven" is set is quite clear, but the narrator's description of the weather is contradictory. The narrator clearly states that the event occurred in "the bleak December" and that the time of day was midnight. However, in the beginning of the poem, the weather seems unremarkable. The weather must have been calm enough for the man, who was reading by lamplight, to have heard the gentle rapping and faint tapping at his "chamber door." If a storm had been raging outside, such a slight knocking would have been imperceptible. In fact, when the man goes to the door, expecting to find a visitor, only "silence" and "stillness" greet him. He whispers, "Lenore," and the night is calm enough for him to hear the echo of his whisper. When the knocking comes again, he thinks it must be the wind, even though when he opened the door previously, there had been no wind.

When the bird enters, the narrator begins to theorize about how it got there, wondering "whether tempest tossed thee here ashore." However, that does not mean there is currently a tempest; it could have been a previous tempest that brought the bird to the man's locale. When the man tries to expel the raven, he shouts, "Get thee back into the tempest!" There are three possible meanings here. One, he is referring to a previous tempest, the one that brought the raven ashore, and is metaphorically telling the bird to go back from whence it came. Two, a storm has come up during the time the raven has been in the man's chamber; this is unlikely considering how quiet and still the night had been earlier. Third, the man is becoming mentally unhinged and has no accurate perception of what the weather outside is; he is projecting his internal tempest onto the meteorological milieu. Given the dramatic ending of the poem where the man falls into a deep depression, this final option seems most likely. Therefore, the external setting during the poem is a calm evening, but the internal setting of the man's psyche is tempestuous. 

Often employing pathetic fallacy with his settings, Poe creates an ambiance of physical setting, atmosphere, and time that adds a shuddering emphasis to the language of the poem itself. In "The Raven," it is a "midnight dreary" in a "bleak December" and darkness that is in sympathy with the "weary" feelings of the narrator who ponders the end of his loved one's life. 

When he hears a knocking on his door, the narrator peers into the darkness, a darkness that matches that of his soul in its terrible grief for his Lenore. In more likenesses between the setting and the interior chambers in which the narrator resides, the night is deeply dark and the rustling curtains are purple, the raven is ebony as the night, also, and ominous as the night.  Expressing this pathetic fallacy, is this passage:

Ghastly grim and ancient Raven wandering from the Nightly shore--
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!
           Quote the Raven "Nevermore."

"The Raven" is Edgar Allan Poe's most famous poem, and is truly indicative of his haunting style. The poem is set in the chambers of a young male student who has apparently lost his lover fairly recently. It is midnight on a stormy night in December. It's important to note the setting as it helps to demonstrate the tone of mourning which is common among a majority of Poe's pieces.

Where and when do the events of "The Raven" occur?

Clues in "The Raven" indicate it is set around the same time it was published, in 1845. The narrator alludes to the raven perching on the bust of Pallas (Athena, the goddess of wisdom), something not likely to appear, for instance, in a medieval chamber, which would mostly likely be filled with Christian iconography. The narrator also mentions a sofa and purple velvet upholstery, both of which we associate with the Victorian era. This student's room seems to be furnished with goods we might associate with industrialism. For example, before the rise of factory produced goods, one would expect to find materials such as purple velvet in palaces, not a student's chamber.

As noted in the answer below, the story is set in December, at midnight. December is the season that includes the shortest day of the year, hence the most darkness, and midnight is a time we associate with darkness. The raven, too, is dark, adding to the somber mood.

More interestingly, we are not given a specific geographic location. As with "The Fall of the House of Usher," Poe is more interested in exploring universal themes than setting the poem in an identifiable place. 

The events of the poem take place late in the year, in "bleak December" (line 7), and at "midnight" (1).  Both midnight and December are often symbolic of death, especially in works by Edgar Allan Poe, a symbolism that is appropriate here because it very much fits the poem's themes.  December can be representative of death because it is the last month of the year; it marks the death of the year in that way.  Midnight is similar because it marks the death of the day.

In terms of where the poem takes place, the speaker is sitting in his home in a room that seems to be, perhaps, a study or den.  It is full of books, and the narrator sits reading one of his "volume[s] of forgotten lore" (2).  In addition, there is a bust of Pallas Athena on which the raven perches when he flies into the room (41).  Further, it seems unlikely that the narrator would be sitting in a bedroom since the chamber has a door that opens to the outside.

What is the setting of Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven"?

The setting of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" is revealed primarily by the first two stanzas of the poem.  Within the first two lines of the poem, Poe gives the reader a great deal of information.  The "action" of the poem is taking place "upon a midnight dreary" (1).  In other words, it's a dismal midnight.  The narrator is feeling "weak and weary" as he looks "[o]ver many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore" (1-2).  Further, once the raven enters the room in stanza seven, it perches "atop a bust of Pallas" (41).  The volumes of lore and bust of Pallas reveal to the reader that the narrator is in some sort of library or study, and that the books number many, and are antiquated, to the point of being forgotten by the world.  The narrator is perusing works that are no longer well known.  While this could be a hyperbolic reference to the "classics" as they are defined, another possibility is that the volumes are things that have truly been forgotten.  This would help to better establish Poe's motifs regarding memory and legacy.  If the narrator is looking at things that were once deemed important enough to be published, but have since been forgotten, what hope do we, or the narrator, have of leaving a legacy and being remembered?  

In the second stanza, the narrator also states that the action took place "in the bleak December," which furthers establishes the dismal mood.  December is the final month of the year, when things are coming to an end.  The weather is colder, and in many parts of the United States, nature is entering a long period of dormancy.  Winter is not only coming; winter has arrived.  With it come harsh conditions and ice, snow, darkness, and many other things that are often associated with death.  This mood continues throughout the remainder of the poem.  The bleak, dismal setting is crucial in establishing the bleak, dismal message of the work as a whole. 

The poem takes place in a young man's room or study in his home, at night. It must be late at night because the young man is drowsy. He is perusing some old books, perhaps history books, or ancient texts of some type. He refers to them as "quaint and curious volumes of forgotten lore" so perhaps he is reading The Iliad or The Odessey (I'm extrapolating here).

He must be bored, because he starts to fall asleep

While I nodded, nearly napping

When suddenly, he hears a tapping "at his chamber door." He thinks it is the wind, "and nothing more," but it continues, and finally THE RAVEN flies in and freaks him out.

Read about it here on eNotes.

When does "The Raven" take place?

"The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe was originally published in January 1845. There is no date mentioned in the poem, but the setting appears consistent with one contemporary with the date of publication, although there is nothing in the poem which limits its precise date. The situation described of a student working late at night poring over volumes of "forgotten lore" could equally well describe any student from the medieval through the modern period. As the weather or outdoor scenery is not mentioned, we cannot tell the time of year or the day of the week, but such information is not essential to the poem's purpose and thus Poe does not divert our attention from his main points by supplying it.

As for the time of day at which the poem occurs, that is clearly and explicitly stated in the first five words of the poem:

Once upon a midnight dreary ...

In what month does "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe take place?

"The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most famous poems in the English language. It is narrated by a man who is mourning the loss of "the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore." Lenore has died, and the narrator can find no solace. In his sorrow, he speaks to a talking raven perched upon a bust of Pallas (another name for Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and warfare). Poe uses dark words and phrases to create a gloomy atmosphere in the poem. As part of this ambiance, in the second stanza Poe clearly identifies the month in which this event takes place as "bleak December." The month of December is often associated with darkness, cold, and gloom.

Poe uses other references to contribute to the gloomy atmosphere of the poem. For instance, he writes that the encounter between the narrator and the raven happens "upon a midnight dreary" and that "each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor." In other words, it is late at night, and the remains of the dying fire create long, dark shadows. The rustle of the curtains "filled me with fantastic terrors." These premonitions, along with the tapping on the chamber door, prepare the reader for the frightening appearance of the raven, which gives the same dreadful answer to all the narrator's questions: "Nevermore!"

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December

This is the first line of the second stanza. By setting the poem in December, Poe takes advantage of the long periods of darkness at that time of the year, as well as the "dreary" weather. He aims to make the tone of the poem one of darkness and desolation; setting it in the middle of June would not have had quite the same effect!

The full text is available at the link I have posted below.

What is the setting of "The Raven" by Poe and how does it affect the narrator?

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and cuious volume of forgotten lore,

This scene begins the classic poem “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe.  The unreliable narrator seems to be struggling with his mental turmoil and depression.  He struggles with the death of his lost Lenore but controls his emotions. 

The Gothic setting of the poem is the man’s bedroom although Poe chooses to call it a more sinister name chamber. The time is midnight in December on a dark stormy night. The fire in the fireplace throws ghostly shadows on the floor. The man is almost asleep when he hears something tapping.

The nameless narrator has been trying to avoid thinking about his dead lover by reading. The narrator wishes that it was already the morning. Initially the narrator appears rational. As the night progresses, he finds no balm in Gilead to give him respite from his surroundings or the evil bird.

The man is afraid of the movement of the curtains and is filled with a terror that he has never felt before.  Finally, he grows brave enough to go to the door and but there is nothing there but darkness. He hears the tapping again, but this time from the window.

The speaker opens the window and in comes the raven. It flies to the bust of Athena over the door.  The narrator smiles at the sternness of the bird.  So in a poetic phrase, he asks the bird what is doing out on such a night:

Though they crest be shorn and shaven, thou art, sure no craven,
Ghastly grim and ancient raven wandering from the Nightly shore—
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night’s Plutonian shore!
                                        Quoth the raven, Nevermore.

From then on the man becomes obsessed by the bird.  The man begins to associate the bird with his loneliness and feeling that even the bird will desert him.

Placing his chair so that he can observe the raven, he begins to wonder what the bird is really doing in his bedroom.  He reclines his head his head on a velvet cushion and continues to watch the bird. 

As the man sits there, he begins to believe that the air is changing in the room.  It is becoming thicker and more perfumed.  He then judges that angels are in the room and have something to do with the bird. As the bird looks at the man, he feels that the bird’s fiery eyes are burning into his heart.

At this time, the man drinks Nepenthe, a drink that causes forgetfulness.  His attitude changes toward the raven. He tells him to come down from the bust above the door; of course, the raven tells him, Nevermore.

According to the narrator, the raven with its demon eyes and the of the raven on the floor.  It seems as though the narrator’s soul and the raven have blended together nevermore to be parted.

Setting comprises both time and place/location. Poe sets up the understanding of both in his early stanzas. The language he uses is vague and what we today might now call minimalistic. For this reason, the time and location might slip by a reader's attention if not reading closely and with analytical insight.

Poe intentionally constructs the setting in this vague way, alluding to what is rather than proclaiming what is. A vague and mysterious setting enhances the experience of suspense and the mood of trembling fear and anticipation. In other words, if we don't know precisely where we are in relation to a larger structure, our sensations are more directly focused on the events and sensations of the principal character: and his sensations are terror and tremblings:

fantastic terrors never felt before; So that now, to still the beating of my heart, ...

Now to answer your questions:

• The character in the poetic narrative is in what we might call his study or library reading: "quaint and curious volume."
• He is in one closed room rather than in an open room of a large dwelling: "rapping at my chamber door."
• It is his personal abode as he has a "visitor"; we can thus say he is at home: "'T is some visiter,..."
• The time of year is early winter, "in bleak December."
• His decor is costly, with silk and purple trimmings: "silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain."

Now that you are started on your way, you can scour the rest of the poem for more vague references to other bits of information about the setting and see if Poe tells us more or if he leaves the setting with this shadowy image.