Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.

The Stygian River

In the poem’s second line, the chorus declares that Lenore’s soul is currently floating on “the Stygian river.” This phrase alludes to the River Styx, which in ancient Greek mythology marks the boundary between the world of the living and that of the dead. When people die, they must cross the River Styx, passing from their life on Earth to their afterlife in the Underworld. But the chorus implies that, instead of completing its journey across the river, Lenore’s soul remains floating on its surface, stuck between two modes of existence. If she’s stuck in this way, it’s because the community hasn’t completed the funerary rites that are necessary to usher her fully into the afterlife. In this sense, the River Styx symbolizes more than just a liminal space that separates life and death. It also symbolizes the ongoing connection between the living and the dead. Guy de Vere rejects the idea that a funeral song could help Lenore reach the afterlife. Even so, he unintentionally confirms the symbolic connection between the living and the dead in the fourth stanza. There, he expresses concern that a song of grief might reach Lenore’s soul as it ascends to Heaven and tempt her to turn back.

The Evil Eye

In the second stanza, Guy de Vere accuses the chorus of being happy about Lenore’s premature death, and he suggests that they cursed her with an evil eye. The notion of the evil eye has existed in human cultures for thousands of years. In many cultures, the evil eye is represented by a visual icon that symbolizes a supernatural curse cast through a secretive, spiteful glare. In the context of “Lenore,” by contrast, the evil eye emerges as a symbol of the paranoia Guy de Vere feels because of his unprocessed grief. When the chorus insists on performing funerary rites for Lenore, he resists:

     “How shall the ritual, then, be read?—the requiem how be sung
     “By you—by yours, the evil eye,—by yours, the slanderous tongue
     “That did to death the innocent that died, and died so young?” 

In these lines (lines 10–12), Guy de Vere explicitly mentions that the chorus’s “evil eye,” along with their “slanderous tongue,” are responsible for Lenore’s demise. But it’s important to remember that the chorus represents more than one person. Indeed, it represents a whole community. It’s therefore absurd for Guy de Vere to attribute the evil eye to everyone in the community. In all likelihood, he lashes out in this generalized way because of his improperly processed grief. His confused emotional state has convinced him that anyone and everyone is a potential adversary.