Edgar Allan Poe- Black Cat and Tell Tale Heart
Edgar Allan Poe's The Black Cat and The Tell Tale Heart are the first of his stories that are psychological studies of domestic violence and guilt (Silverman 205). Both written in first person narrative, they are stories of mad men.. who say they aren't.. and then proceed to do things that prove them totally mad Poe's characters often represent one degree or another of movement towards archetypal condition; the survival of the soul in a dead body (Tate 185). This is especially seen in the old man in The Tell Tale Heart. In The Black Cat metempsychosis is a key feature; the transmigration of the soul from one body to another. In this case it is the soul from Pluto's dead body that is transferred into the body of the new cat. The return of the dead is a supernatural belief, often it is not the case that the dead actually returns rather it is the mind of the person playing with their emotions and thoughts. This is seen quite clearly in The Tell Tale Heart which I will discuss later, the return of the repressed is seen in The Black Cat. Poe always had a leading visual symbol within his works, the evil eye in The Tell Tale Heart and the black cat image and gallows in The Black Cat ( Tate 185). These visual symbols
The return of the dead could actually be seen here as the return of his heart and mind. Upon this wall, was a striking image of a gigantic cat, amazingly similar to Pluto, not to mention the rope around its neck! The narrator goes on to give a truly rational and scientific explanation for this bizarre event. So he was putting the cat out of its misery as well as out of his sight, in hope that he would forget about it. Soon after he hangs Pluto, knowing that what he is doing is wrong, and he shows remorse whilst doing it. As the beating becomes louder, he begins to lose control, "I foamed- I raved- I swore!. Before we can look at the return of the dead within these tales it is necessary to examine the events that led up to the deaths, as well as the circumstances in which the dead were discovered. It is the beating of his hideous heart!"(1575). Although he knew that this would be committing a sin, so as he goes to hell, maybe the cat thought to be from hell, will be able to go to a better place. " And instead we see him "plant an axe in her brain"Narrator disposes of body by placing it behind the wall, in a tomb like the Monks used to do(197).
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Acceptance Essays
