Poe Black Cat
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Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809 and dies on October 7, 1849 (Britannica, 2000). Despite his relative youth, in the history of writers one would be hard pressed to leave Poe’s name out of consideration on any top ten list. Including novels, poetry, short stories, reviews, and a host of other literary creations, Poe’s works are generally regarded as the work of literary genius. Despite this prodigious talent, Poe’s works often revolve around the macabre, sinister aspects of human nature. In The Black Cat, we follow Poe’s first-person narrator from being known for his “docility and humanity of...disposition, his tenderness of heart” and his fondness for animals, to a man whose drunkenness spurs the mutilation and murder of his cat as well as the violent murder of his wife (Poe 849). As we follow Poe’s first-person narrator, we plainly see that his descent into insanity is caused not so much by his alcoholism or his increasing superstition but is merely the impulsive action of the dark side of human nature inherent in all humans.The narration of The Black Cat is mainly told in flashback in the first-person. Because of this the story takes place in the past but we must rely upon the narration of an alcoholic to provide us with a depiction of the past. As such, the environment of the story takes place in a suspect manner for it begs the question: Can we trust the narrative of a self-admitted alcoholic? So,
. . .
cannot reconcile his behavior or soul with man’s capacity for good and evil. His alcohol abuse further prevents him from becoming whole of mind because of its disease-like nature.
Thus, the narrator cannot bear the sight of his wife or cat because they show him such love and humanity, a love and humanity of which he fears he is no longer capable. In this we have a clue to the fact that the narrator’s descent into madness is more a product of his inability to control his evil impulses than anything to do with alcohol or superstition. Like the antisocial personality disorder describes, the narrator feels little remorse over some very heinous deeds. He has lost his capacity to empathize or feel for others. Abuse to animals is also a trait of the antisocial personality. Hoffman comments on this quality of the narrator’s persona when he writes, “Even for so horrible a misdeed he feels, when sober, inadequate remorse. The awful wound heals, and the cat, as before, continues to seek his companionship. His disgust and loathing grow. He can stand its importunities no longer—he hands the creature by the neck, from a tree in the garden—‘hung it because I knew it had loved me, and because I felt it had give me no reason of offense
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Approximate Word count = 2153
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page)
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