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Alliteration in Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven"

Alliteration : Repetition of the same or very similar consonant sounds usually at the beginnings of words that are close together in a poem.
 * Beers, G. Kylene. "Handbook of Literary Terms." //Holt Elements of Literature ://. Austin, TX: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2007. 1132-133. Print.

Translation for students: Alliteration is the repetition of beginning sounds in poetry so that it sounds cool.

Alliteration, along with rhyme scheme and internal rhyme, is found repeatedly in Edgar Allan Poe's famous poem, "The Raven," published in __Examples:__
 * 1) "While I nodded nearly napping..." from line 3 of Poe's most famous poem
 * 2) "...from my books surcease of sorrow--sorrow..." from line 10
 * 3) "Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal dared to dream before;" line 26

Find the full text at this scholarly source, also published on the internet which is linked to the picture --->
 * Thomas R. Lounsbury, ed. (1838–1915). Yale Book of American Verse. 1912.

__Rationale:__

Edgar Allan Poe was a master of words, carefully crafting his poetry to create the most pleasing sound when it was read aloud. Furthermore, the poem's mood is fantastical and suspenseful, so the alliteration creates a building tension to the speaker's desperation in the last lines of the poem. The alliteration also complements the rhyme and highlights the rhythm that Poe establishes.