Did Poe plagiarise someone else's work when writing "The Raven"?

Question

I've read that Poe's been accused of lifting significant elements from many authors including Elizabeth Barrett, Charles Dickens, Leo Penzoni, and Thomas Holley Chivers (and "unknown," of course). Since Poe himself was famous for accusing more successful poets of plagiarism, I'm inclined to think some of this is just tit for tat. Still, I'd like to know if there's anything even close to a definitive answer for any of these accusations. Can we say confidently that Poe did or did not plagiarise someone else's work when writing "The Raven"?

Answer 1

While there is no definitive answer as to whether he did or did not, most of these accusations (especially against The Raven in particular) have little to no actual evidence and are often dismissed by historians and literary critics as being grabs for attention or, as you said, simple tit-for-tat.