Black Cat Summary - Lecture notes 5 PDF

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s Academic Writing Ethical?IntroductionAcademic writing constitutes a support tool for success within universities and colleges globally. Many undergraduate college assessments and assignments require term paper or essay writing, and many graduate course outlines require the students to research bef...

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The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe: A Summary

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The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe: A Summary ‘The Black Cat’ is narrated from a point of view of an insane narrator. The man does not, in his own words, expect the reader to believe him, and he says this from the very beginning of the story. He alerts the readers that he is due to die tomorrow, but builds up the reason as his story goes by, only revealing it at the end. This is a curious story, one which explores superstitions and builds around several themes. This paper is a summary of the story’s crucial parts. After introducing the reader to his perspective, and making it clear that he himself may not believe the happenings that have brought him to this narration, the narrator tells his audience of the story of a cat named Pluto. He informs the reader of his compassionate nature: he has had a tender heart since he was young and his parents gave him pets early on in his life, and he tendered to them well and has been a friend of them. Part of the reason why his wife loves him, he claims, is because of this nature, and the former made sure to get him pets she thought he would love as soon as they got married. Pluto is a remarkably large animal, but the narrator makes sure to inform us that she is beautiful despite being entirely black. His wife reminds him of the superstitions associated with such creatures, but the narrator is happy to keep this little beast. The cat is unusually intelligent – why the narrator’s wife jokes it could be a witch, but he maintains a healthy relationship with the animal. He takes care of her, and the cat follows him everywhere in the house in what is illustrated as a very tender relationship. However, despite the somewhat natural kindness and tenderness the audience has been introduced to regarding the narrator in the beginning of the story, everything goes wrong. The

3 narrator starts getting angry at everyone and everything, including the other pets that throng his household. This condition is to some degree a result of his alcoholic condition. His wife is not spared of the mistreatment the pets have to endure, but Pluto continues to enjoy a healthy relationship with him. However, one night he comes home drunk, and concludes that the cat is avoiding him. In a not only irrational but impulsive decision made under the influence of alcohol, he grabs Pluto. The cat slightly bites him in retaliation, and this in turn awakens some sort of devil within this narrator. His tenderness is nowhere to be seen as he now grabs the animal and cuts out one of its eyes. He then sleeps drunk, but horrified by his actions. The occurrences of this night are not enough to keep him away from drinking, nevertheless. A subtle form of normalcy resumes in the household, and the cat’s injury even heals. His relationship with it does not, however, and the cat avoids the narrator all the time now. Despite the initial claims of tenderness, the narrator feels it is the cat that is mistreating him. He feels irritated by this behavior and has no remorse for the animal despite causing it injury. wʌn deɪ, ɪn ə ˌk ʌlm ɪˈne ɪʃən əv ðiːz ˈfiːlɪŋz , ðə nəˈreɪtə dɪˈsaɪdz tə ˈbruːtli hæŋ ðə kæ t frəm ə triː. ðə seɪm naɪt, hɪz haʊs gəʊz ʌp ɪn fleɪmz. ɔːlˈbiːɪt θruː ˈstrʌgl, hiː, ðə waɪf ənd ə ˈs ɜːvənt ɔːl ɪsˈkeɪp ðə ˈfaɪə bət ɔːl əv ɪz ˈʌðə pəˈzɛʃənz ə kənˈsjuːmd ɪn ðə fleɪmz. ˈə ʊnli ə wɔːl səˈvaɪvz əv ɪz ˈfɔːmə haʊs ənd ˈwɜːldli pəˈz ɛʃənz.’ wɛn hi kʌmz bæk tə ði ˈæʃɪz ˈleɪt ə, ðə nəˈreɪtə siːz ðə ˈfɪgə r əv ə kæt ɒn ðət sə ˈva ɪv ɪŋ wɔːl . ðɪs ɪˈvɛnt ˈpɑːsɪz ənd səʊ dəz t a ɪ m. ə fjuː mʌnθs ˈle ɪtə ðə nəˈreɪtə miːts ə kæt ˈvɛri ˈsɪmɪlə tə ˈplu ːtə ʊ. haʊˈɛvə, ɒn ðɪs ˈæn ɪməl ðə z ə waɪt pæʧ ɒn ðə ʧɛst. ðɪs kæt ˈfɒləʊz ɪm tə ɪz həʊm. ɪn wɒt siː mz laɪk ən ˌɪləs ˈtreɪʃən əv ði ˈɜːlɪə ˈnæʧrəl kəm ˈpæ ʃən təˈwɔːdz ˈænɪməlz, ðə nəˈreɪtər ɪˈnɪʃəli laɪk ðə njuː

4 kæt. suːn ˈɑːftə , haʊˈɛvə , hi kən nəʊ ˈl ɒŋgə stænd ɪt, ɪsˈpɛʃəli ˈɑːftə ˈr ɪəla ɪz ɪŋ ðæt, laɪk ˈplu ːtəʊ, wʌn əv ði ˈænɪməlz aɪz ɪz ˈmɪs ɪŋ . ðə mɔː hi b ɪˈg ɪnz tə heɪt ðɪs kæt, ðə mɔː lʌv ɪt ʃəʊz hɪm. hɪz r ɪˈz ɛntmənt grəʊz tʊ ə pɔɪnt weə hi wɒnts tə hɑːm ðə kæt, bət hi z əˈfreɪd əv ˈteɪk ɪŋ ðɪs kɔːs əv ˈækʃ(ə)n bɪˈkəz əv wɒt ˈhæpənd ɒn ðə naɪt hi ˈbruːtli hæŋ ˈplu ːtə ʊ. suːn, ðə wa ɪt pæʧ ɒn ðɪs njuː kæts ʧɛst trænsˈfɔːmz ˈɪntə ˈgæləʊz , wɪʧ dɪˈrɛktli ˈr ɪma ɪnd ɪm əv ðə kraɪmz hi kəˈmɪt ɪd ə ˈg ɛnst ˈpluːtə ʊ. ðɪs njuː kæt draɪvz ðə nəˈreɪtə səʊ ˈkreɪzi ðət hi meɪks ðə d ɪˈs ɪʒən tə kɪl ɪt. hi əˈtɛmpts tə t eɪk ɪts laɪf wɪð ən æks, bət ɪz wa ɪf kʌmz bɪˈtwiːn æks ənd kæt, ˈme ɪk ɪŋ ðə nəˈreɪtə kɪl ðə ˈf ɔːmər ɪnˈstɛd . hi d ɪˈsa ɪdz tə haɪd hə ˈbɒdi bɪˈsaɪd ðə wɔːl əv ðə ˈbe ɪsmənt wɪˈðɪn ɪz haʊs, ˈ hævɪŋ biːn ʌn ˈeɪbl tə teɪk ɪt ˌa ʊtˈsaɪd ðə haʊs ˈdj ʊərɪŋ ðə deɪ nɔː naɪt, tʊ ɪˈve ɪd ðə rɪsk əv ˈbiːɪŋ siːn baɪ ɪz ˈne ɪbəz. əz sʌʧ, ðə nəˈreɪtə bɪldz ə wɔːl ˈvɛri ˈsɪmɪlə tə ði ɪg ˈz ɪst ɪŋ wʌn, ˈh ævɪŋ dɪsˈlɒʤd ðə brɪks ɪg ˈz ɪst ɪŋ ˈju ːz ɪŋ ə ˈkrə ʊb ɑː. hi stɪl lʊks fə ðə kæt tə kɪl ɪt bət ɪt s ˈmɪs ɪŋ . hi fiːlz ə diːp , ˈblɪsfʊl sɛns əv rɪˈliːf wɛn ðə kæt dəz nɒt ə ˈp ɪə r ət naɪt, ənd θɪŋks ɔːl z wɛl wɛn ði ˈænɪməl z ˈnəʊweə tə bi siːn ˈdjʊərɪŋ ðə n ɛkst tuː naɪts əz wɛl. haʊˈɛvə, ɒn ðə fɔːθ deɪ ˈɑːftə hɪz waɪfs dɛθ ðə pəˈliːs ˌʌn ɪks ˈp ɛkt ɪdli ʃ əʊd ʌp ət ɪz həʊm tʊ ɑːsk ˈkw ɛs ʧənz ɒn ɪz waɪfs ˌd ɪsə ˈp ɪərəns . ðeɪ lɛft nəʊ stəʊn ʌn ˈt ɜːnd , ˈsɜːʧɪŋ ˈɛvri ˈkɔːnə r əv ðə nəˈre ɪtəz həʊm. ðɪs sɜːʧ ðeɪ rɪˈpiːt ɪd fɔː taɪmz, ɔːl ðə taɪ m ˈfaɪnd ɪŋ ˈnʌθ ɪŋ ðət kəd səˈʤɛst ðə nəˈreɪtə kɪld ɪz waɪf. hi fə ʊldz ɪz hændz ɒn ɪz ˈbʊzə m, ˈk ɒnf ɪdənt əv ɪz kənˈsiːl ɪŋ əv ðə ˈm ɜːdə . ðə pəˈliːs ət ðɪs pɔɪnt ər ˈɔːlsə ʊ ˈθʌrəli ˈsætɪsfa ɪd ðət ɔːl z wɛl ənd ər əˈba ʊt tə liːv.

However, in arrogance the narrator raps on the wall he newly erected, in an attempt to praise it to the officers just as they are about to leave. The heavy rapping of the cane alerts the cat, which starts first with a muffled and broken sound which transforms into loud cries, and howling, from within the tomb. The animal had been accidentally sealed inside the walls. The

5 howling alerts the police who find the decaying body from whose head “sat the hideous beast whose craft had seduced me into murder, and whose informing voice had consigned (the narrator) to the hangman.”...