Grace Moulsdale
Eng_286_OL1
3/22/2015
Professor Bargteil
The Pit and the Pendulum Analysis
The Pit and the Pendulum is a short story that was written by Edgar Allen Poe. It is an enjoyable short story that is rich in imagery and suspense. It is similar in tone and mood to his other stories. However, it is one of Poe’s most politically significant works. The Pit and the Pendulum was set during the time of the Spanish inquisition. It is written from a first person perspective which allows for rich detail and experiences right from the source. The genre is one of horror and suspense. The tone is dark as was Poe’s style. The story starts off with an epigraph in Latin. It is not merely an artsy choice to start a story with an epigraph, but…show more content… He then decides to try to measure the width. While walking the width of his enclosure, he trips on the hem of his clothes and falls. While on the ground, he realizes that his body is on the ground but he feels no floor with his face. He concludes that there is a pit in the center of his cell. He then uses a piece of rubble from the walls to approximate the depth of the pit by timing the…show more content… He believes that the pit is quite deep and contains water. He recalls that it is in fact a very popular punishment among the inquisitors. It is a very cruel death by surprise. He falls into slumber once again and, like before, awakens to find food and water provided for him. He again eagerly eats the food and drinks the water, only to feel very tired immediately after. The food was drugged and caused him to sleep again. Upon awakening, he finds the dungeon dimly lit. He then realizes that his approximations of the size of his prison were exaggerated and that it was quite a bit smaller than he had imagined. He also realizes that he is now strapped to a board and that the straps wrapped around his body. Again, there was food for him to eat but there was no water. He glances up at the ceiling of his cell and sees a painting of the figure of time. He then realizes that there is a pendulum with a crescent shaped blade swaying back and forth in an incredibly slow descent toward him. Despite his grim situation, the narrator remains hopeful. When the time came that the blade was getting closer, he had a brilliant idea. He used the meat that he was given and rubbed it on the strap that was holding him. The rats