In his story “The Black Cat,” Edgar Allan Poe dramatizes his experiencewith madness, and challenges the readers suspension of disbelief by usingimagery in describing the plot and characters. Poe uses foreshadowing todescribe the scenes of sanity versus insanity. He writes “for the most wild yethomely narrative which I am about to pen, I neither expect nor illicit belief.
Yet mad I am not- and surely do I not dream,” alerts the reader about aforthcoming story that will test the boundaries of reality and fiction. Theauthor asserts his belief of the activities described in the story when hestates “to-morrow I die, and to-day I would unburden my soul”.
Poe describes his affectionate temperament of his character when hewrites “my tenderness of heart was even so conspicuous as to make me the jest ofmy companions”. He also characterizes his animal friends as “unselfish” andtheir love as “self-sacrificing” illustrating to the readers his devotion tothem for their companionship. The author uses foreshadowing in the statement “wehad birds, goldfish, a fine dog, a rabbit, a small monkey, and a cat”. Theuse of italics hints to the reader of upcoming events about the cat that peaksinterest and anticipation. Poe also describes a touch foreshadowing andsuspension of disbelief when he illustrates his wives response to the cat whenhe writes “all black cats are witches in disguise, not that she was ever seriousupon this point-and I mention the matter at all for no better reason than ithappened, just now, to be remembered”.
Poe expresses his early attachment to the cat and dramatizes thecharacter changes he experiences when he writes “our friendship lasted, in thismanner, for several years, during which my general temperament and character-through instrumentality of the Fiend Intemperance-had (I blush to confess it)experienced a radical alteration for the worse”(81). He warns the reader of newevents in a cynical tone and implies the beginning of the madness he denies. Poefirst illustrates this madness when he uses imagery to describe the brutal scenewith the cat when he writes “I took from my waistcoat-pocket a pen knife, openedit, grasped the poor beast by the throat, and deliberately cut one of its eyesfrom the socket!”The author describes his emotional and physical state of being duringthe unthinkable act as “I blush, I burn, I shudder, while I pen the damnableatrocity”. He describes the morning aftereffect of his actions when hestates “when reason returned with the morning-when I had slept off the fumes ofthe night’s debauch-I experienced a sentiment half of horror, half of remorse,for the crime of which I had been guilty; but it was, at best, a feeble andequivocable feeling, and the soul remained untouched”. Now Poe implies tothe readers that he has truly crossed over into madness by brutally attackingthe animal and feeling little or no remorse.
Next Poe dramatizes his change in character even further when he writes”and then came, as if to my final and irrevocable overthrow, the spirit of which once again alerts the reader of new events so shockingthat reading forward becomes an essentiality. The author illustrates a scene sooutrageous that the reader has to go beyond the suspension of disbelief theyhave agreed to participate in. He writes “One morning, in cold blood, I slippeda noose about its neck and hung it to the limb of a tree;-hung it with tearsstreaming from my eyes, and with the bitterest remorse at my heart;-hung itbecause I knew that it had loved me, and because I felt it had given me noreason of offense;-hung it because I knew that in so I was committing a sin-adeadly sin that would jeopardize my immortal soul as to place it-if such a thingwere possible- even beyond the reach of the Most Merciful and Most TerribleGod”.
Now the reader has crossed over the line of reality versus fiction. Theauthor continues to illustrate the inconceivable story when he describes thescene after the fire that destroyed every part of the house except the one wallthat was still standing. Poe writes “I approached and saw, as if graven in bas-relief upon the white surface the figure of a gigantic cat and there was a ropearound the animals neck,” leading the readers to join the madness andbelieve that this was the same cat that Poe had savagely destroyed earlier thatsame day.
The author describes his need to replace the animal in order to feelpeace and after doing so, he finds himself once again feeling a abhorrencetoward the animal. He writes “but gradually-very gradually- I came to look uponit with unutterable loathing, and to flee silently from its odious presence, asfrom the breath of a pestance”(83). Poe uses imagery to describes his disgustwith the cat when he states “that like Pluto, it also had been deprived of oneof its eyes,” he now wanted to destroy this animal as well. Poe illustratesthe change of character he has experience since the beginning of the story onlynow he has gone beyond the madness that has consumed him many times. He writes”evil thoughts becomes my sole intimates-the darkest and most evil ofthoughts”.
The author uses more imagery when he writes the final abominable act ofevil. Poe confesses to the reader about the murder of his wife when he states “goaded by the interference into a rage more than demoniacal, I withdrew my armfrom her grasp and buried the ax in her brain”. He explains how he disposesof the body in detail and describes the relief he feels when he writes “Isoundly and tranquilly slept; aye, slept even with the burden of murder upon mysoul”. Poe informs the reader of his little remorse when he states” myhappiness was supreme, and the guilt of my dark deed disturbed me butlittle”.
The author leads the reader to the final plateau of suspension when hedramatizes the conclusion of the story. He explains the sounds he heard indetail when the mystery unfolds regarding the missing cat he had not seen orheard from since the murder. He writes “like the sobbing of a child, and thenquickly swelling into one long, loud, and continuous scream, utterly anomalousand inhuman-a howl-a wailing shriek, half of horror and half of triumph, such asmight have arisen only out of hell, conjointly from the throats of the damned intheir agony and the demons that exult in the damnation”. Poes use ofdescriptive details allows the reader to feel the horrifying experience of a manwho believed he was free from the evil of madness. Poe ends the story afterutilizing every inch of suspension of disbelief the reader can afford. He sumsup the plot of the story when he writes “the hideous beast whose craft hadseduced me into murder, and whose informing voice had consigned me to thehangman,” implying that the cat had induced the same torture on him that hehad brought on the first cat.
