Poe’s Raven To Retire: Picks Replacement
Suppose, if only for a fleeting moment, that Poe, while weakly pondering at midnight on that dreary eve, had the notion to send a bird other than a Raven to first tap on that chamber door. Would a change in feather design and color affect the story?
Let’s have a bit of fun with this idea by having a few of Paul Beecroft’s new-found South African feathered friends stand in for the ebony superstar of Poe fame. Maybe they can shed a little light as to why E.A. selected the black-plumed winged vertebrate as the lead in his famous tale.
Here goes…
Go-Away-Bird
Yellow-billed Hornbill, aka The Banana Bird
But the Red-billed Hornbill, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only
Red-billed Hornbill
Wahlberg’s Eagle
Respite—respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore;
Jackal Buzzard
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door
Yellow-billed Stork
Hadeda Ibis
Quoth the Starling “Nevermore.”
Starling
But the Guinea Fowl and Vultures still beguiling all my fancy into smiling,
Guinea fowl and Vultures with Warthogs
Quoth the Warthog “Nevermore.
Okay, Raven it is…
*Photos taken by Paul Beecroft during a recent journey to South Africa.
The goofiness…well, I’m to blame for that portion of the post. Sorry, Paul.
* * *
Paul Beecroft has spent a good deal of his life in law enforcement, in England. He’s worked Foot Patrol, Area Car, Instant Response Car and also as a Police Motorcyclist. Paul currently works as a coroner’s investigator and has traveled all over England, Wales, Scotland and even Germany to investigate crimes.
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