In "The Raven" a grieving lover is visited by a mysterious bird. Recount the plot of that narrative poem and focus on the possible symbolism of the raven, using at least one quote to support your interpretation.

"The Raven" begins on a bleak and dreary December evening, after a long night of the narrator sitting and reading by himself in his room. The narrator has been trying to distract himself from the sorrow he feels over the loss of "the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore" (line 11), when he hears a tapping noise at his door.
When the narrator goes to the door, he finds that no one is there. He turns to his window instead, thinking that perhaps the wind has been rattling his window pane and creating a tapping noise. When he opens the shutters of his window, the Raven steps into the room and perches itself above his door.
The narrator asks the Raven's name, and the Raven replies, "Nevermore" (line 48). The narrator is unsettled by this behavior, but he tells himself that the bird will leave tomorrow. The bird again replies with "Nevermore" (line 60). The narrator begins to think about what this bird could possibly mean in repeating this same word. He starts to think about Lenore again and believes that the air starts to smell like perfume. He concludes that God must have sent the Raven and some angels to help him forget about Lenore, but the bird responds again, "Nevermore" (line 84).
The narrator becomes increasingly agitated and asks the bird if he will ever have any comfort or if he will ever get to embrace Lenore again (even in the afterlife). To both of these questions, the Raven again tells him "Nevermore" (lines 90 and 96). The narrator yells at the Raven and tells it to leave. The Raven responds, "Nevermore" (line 102). The final stanza of the poem tells the reader that the bird is still sitting on the same bust above the narrator's door and that the bird will never leave him.
In thinking about the Raven as a symbol, we know that the narrator is wildly distressed about the loss of his love, Lenore. He mentions his sorrow several times and asks the bird several questions about whether or not he will ever be reunited with her. In the final stanza of the poem, the narrator says of the Raven that "his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming" (line 105) and that "the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor; / and my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor / shall be lifted—nevermore!" (lines 106–108). Poe was known for his fascination with the supernatural, so it's possible that the reader could interpret the Raven as an actual demon sent to plague the narrator. However, it's also possible to think of the Raven as a manifestation of the narrator's depression and/or anxiety over his lost love.
https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48860/the-raven