.." (Poe, E.A.)
This perversity in human nature causes the narrator to hang the cat - an act of unbridled cruelty and brutality which has no rational explanation except that the potential for such action lies hidden within human nature.
The rest of the story follows the pattern of retribution for the sins of the man. After the killing of Pluto the house burns down, leaving only one wall in which the cat has somehow strangely become embedded. There is no easy explanation for this event and it emphasizes the supernatural aspect of the story.
The main character returns to his drinking habits and one evening while drinking he sees a cat similar to Pluto. There are remnants of guilt and human conscience in the man and he takes the cat home with him. However, he starts to hate and fear the cat and there is a suggestion that guilt plays a large part in these feelings. The more the cat shows affection towards him, the more his hatred grows.
This is exacerbated by the fact that a white area of fur on the cat begins to grow and starts to resemble an image of a gallows; which further evokes terror in the man
The protagonist's old cruel nature reasserts itself and in an attempt to kill the cat with an ax he inadvertently kills his wife. He walls her body up in the cellar. However when the police arrive to investigate, his crime almost escapes detection. At the last moment a strange and inhuman sound is heard from the part of the cellars wall where the corpse of the man's wife has been interred. This unearthly noise is made by the black cat, which had somehow been walled up with the wife. This obviously alerts the police and the central character is arrested. The story also suggests that the main character tells his tale from within...
..it is sadomasochism made acceptable to a mass readership by the elimination of any ostensible sexual element. Imbedded in the tale is the psychological journey of an egocentric who derives pleasure from cruelty."(Pritchard, 148) While this explanation stands, it must be observed that Poe's intention went beyond the psychological investigation: his description of evil doing is almost always accompanied by a certain symbolism that alludes to the intrusion of the
Edgar Allan Poe and Hannibal Edgar Allan Poe was more than a horror storywriter. He was a person that delved into the human psyche and created a psychological thriller that haunted the reader's mind well after the conclusion was made. Poe has delved into the human spirit at a time when the idea of the unconscious mind had probably either not evolved, or had just been described and was not commonly known.
Their marriage and mutual love of animals makes this a situation that bespeaks long lasting happiness. One of the family pet is a black cat that is fairly large and the man's favorite. This cat is well liked, and unlike the disposition of cats that is aloof and independent, this cat follows his master wherever he goes, even out doors. The wife based on some superstitions has her misgivings
Edgar Allen Poe and Lewis Carroll: Unhealthy and Healthy Relationships With Women Edgar Allan Poe and Lewis Carroll are two writers where their relationships with women, and especially with young children have been questioned. The main issue with Poe is his marriage to his 13-year-old cousin Virginia. For Carroll, the issue is the strong relationships he had with young girls. For both writers, suggestions have been made that their relationships with
Lastly the point of engendering the idea that alcoholism and in short inappropriate decadence ruled the day is the description of the isolation environement; "There were buffoons, there were improvisatori, 3 there were ballet-dancers, there were musicians, there was Beauty, there was wine. All these and security were within. Without was the 'Red Death.'" The Black Cat is a slightly more plebian story, about a man who had a particular
The only exception here is "The Black Cat" narrator who initially is very sympathetic and then becomes increasingly insane as he indulges in alcohol. His wife is extremely sympathetic and likeable, and so, he murders her, as if to punctuate the fact that he is insane. A woman in the stories might have detracted from the central themes of madness, murder, and mayhem, but each characters is lonely (even
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