Insanity In The Black Cat By Edgar Allen Poe

There are many lines in the story “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allen Poe that insist he is insane including his mental illness and his alcoholism issue. This story is told from the perspective of a man in a jail cell. He has an unusual relationship with his pets and his wife but a very special bond with his cat “Pluto”. He feeds the cat, plays with the cat, and cuddles with the cat. He does all these things until he thinks it is too clingy. So, one night after he returned home from the bar he decides to cut one of the cat’s eyes out with a pocketknife. The cat still lives despite this incident. Then he “attempts” to kill the cat but “accidently” kills his wife instead. This man is very peculiar in the way he acts and the way he is intellectually. …show more content…
One Example of this is the story of this man because he believes that he is being told by a devil what to do. In this short story the man killed his wife whether bye accident or not it was still wrong. Here is a quote describing the accident… Uplifting an axe, and forgetting, in my wrath, the childish dread which had hitherto stayed my hand, I aimed a blow at the animal, which, of course, would have proved instantly fatal had it descended as I wished. But this blow was arrested by the hand of my wife). After the fact he seems somewhat guilty but still doesn’t fully regret his decision. Some people may say he accidently killed his wife but why would he try to kill a cat with an