The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe
The Black Cat by Edgar Allan PoeCharacter of “The Black Cat”
Edgar Allan Poe’s short story, “The Black Cat” involves a man and his love hate
relationship for animals that ends in sin. He describes himself as loving animals of all
kinds, “I was especially fond of animals, and was indulged by my parents with a great
variety of pets”(307). The character of this story goes through some changes of his own.
After giving much love and care to his animals he starts to abuse them, goes as far to kill
them and then commits the ultimate crime; murder of his wife.
The character begins by explaining his past history of pets, “We had birds,
gold-fish, a find god, rabbits, a small money, and a cat”(307). He then recalls his change
of mood, “I grew day by day, more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings
of others”(307). The man finds himself easily getting irritated by his animals and ill
treating them but refraining from ill treating his favorite pet, Pluto the black cat. Alcohol
began to feed his ill temper. He came home one night intoxicated and felt that his favorite
cat Pluto was avoiding him. He found his cat and grabbed him; Pluto bit him and this
angered the drunken man, “The fury of demon instantly possessed me. I knew myself no
longer”(308). This was the turning point of the man’s character. He proceeds to cut one
of Pluto’s eyes out from it’s socket.
As the cat recovered from his wound the men felt little remorse. His evil deed had
toughened his soul. Pluto healed from his viscous wound but also keeping his distance
from the man, rightfully so. After a while, this angered the man to a more extreme
temper, “to offer violence to its own nature-to do wrong for the wrong’s sake only-that
urged me to continue and finally to consummate the injury I had inflicted upon the
offending brute”(308). The man recalls the event that took place next, “One morning, in
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cold blood, I slipped a noose about its neck and hung it to the...
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