The second stanza of Poe's "The Raven" ends its six lines: December, floor, borrow, Lenore, Lenore, evermore. Which letter pattern states this stanza's rhyme scheme?

In every stanza of Poe's "The Raven," the second, fourth, fifth and sixth lines close on one sound: door, Lenore, more. What does holding a single rhyme sound through the whole poem do?

Poe's "The Raven" opens: "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary," What does pairing "dreary" with "weary" inside one line do?

Poe writes in "The Raven": "While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping, / As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door." What links "tapping" to "rapping"?

Poe writes: "And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain" What do the repeated s sounds add?

Say this line of "The Raven" aloud: "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary," Where does the stress fall in each pair of syllables?

The first line of each stanza of Poe's "The Raven" carries eight feet, as in "Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary," What is a line of eight feet called?

Each stanza of "The Raven" runs in long lines, then stops short: "Only this and nothing more." What does that sudden short last line do to the stanza?

Five stanzas of Poe's "The Raven" close with the same line: "Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore."" What does a refrain like this do as the poem goes on?

In "The Raven," one stanza ends "Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore."" and a later stanza ends "Then the bird said "Nevermore."" What stays fixed across the two endings?

"The Raven" ends: "And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor / Shall be lifted—nevermore!" Who speaks the poem's last "nevermore"?

Poe writes: "And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting / On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;" What does repeating "still is sitting" do?

In Poe's "The Raven," the bird sits "On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;" Which sound device is at work in "pallid bust of Pallas"?

Poe writes: "Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster / Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore—" What does "Followed fast and followed faster" do to the line?

Poe writes: "Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, / Doubting, dreaming dreams" What do the repeated d sounds add to these lines?

Poe writes: "Eagerly I wished the morrow;—vainly I had sought to borrow / From my books surcease of sorrow—sorrow for the lost Lenore—" What does the chain morrow, borrow, sorrow do?

Most stanzas of "The Raven" close on the single word "Nevermore." One stanza instead closes: "Of "Never—nevermore."" What does splitting the word in two do to that ending?

Stanza one of Poe's "The Raven" ends "Only this and nothing more." Stanza seven ends "Perched, and sat, and nothing more." What holds steady between the two endings?

Poe's "The Raven" holds both a fixed beat and a fixed rhyme. Blank verse keeps a regular beat but uses no rhyme at all. What does a poet gain by dropping the rhyme?

Free verse uses no set beat and no rhyme scheme, while Poe's "The Raven" uses both. What does free verse gain that Poe's fixed pattern cannot?