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Where and when do the events of the poem take place?

Clues in "The Raven" indicate it is set around the same time it was published, 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...

Clues in "The Raven" indicate it is set around the same time it was published, 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 above, 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. 


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