The Black Cat Research Paper

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During the mid-1800 in the United States, the temperance movement promoted either the restriction or prohibition of alcohol. Alcohol abuse mainly by men, destroyed the domestic sphere. Women at this time had very little rights and were dependent of their husband, were often the victims of spousal abuse. The temperance movement did not only advocate the abstinence of alcohol but also women’s rights and the abolishment of slavery (Pbs). In “The Black Cat” narrator abuse of alcohol made him a slave to its powerful effects. This illusion of control is followed by inhumane treatments toward those who are unable to speak for themselves such as slaves and women. Furthermore, Poe employs the theme of alcoholism because he too knows the detrimental…show more content…
The fact that “I thus accounted by reason” (567). This shows that when the narrator was sober enabled him to think reasonably upon his actions. The narrator replacement of the cat to is an attempt to control his guilt: “I went so far as to regret the loss of the animal, and to look about me, among the vile haunts which now habitually frequent, for another pet of the same species, and of similar appearance, with to supply its place” (567). Despite the fact that his crime did not affect the narrator, he felt foolish enough to admit that he felt guilty for executing the cat. In addition, the narrator believes that he is safe from the memory of his cat; he was wrong. The image on the second cat’s fur foreshadowed the narrator’s impending doom: “It was now the representation of an object that I shudder to name- and for this, above all, I loathe, and dreaded, and would have rid of myself of the monster had I dared- it was now hideous- of ghastly thing- of the GALLOWS! - oh the mournful and terrible engine of horror and of crime- of agony and death.” This manifestation of the gallows does not only symbolize a reminder of his crime, but also the primitive response humans share with that of other

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