The Black Cat - Notice Board by Luciana Moreno Tuesta

What can possibly explain our narrator's strange behaviour?

lucianamoreno11 — 2024-06-11 15:27:55 UTC

The narrator´s strange behaviour can be explained by the bad habits the narrator has. This is seen in his bad habit of drinking that lead him to having violent and agressive reactions like when for example he arrived at his house intoxicated and cut the eye of his cat Pluto.

Argue whether he was drunk, the cat was a real witch, or something

lucianamoreno11 — 2024-06-11 15:34:36 UTC

I personally think that what caused this was being drunk since mostly he acted agressive and violent when he was intoxicated, also a mental illness mightve led him to having an impulse for killing the cat when he was in the cellar which led him to killing his wife since he felt as if something took over his soul. This also makes me realize that maybe not only couldve been his mental illnesses but maybe there was paranormal activity at his house and there was a demon possesing him constantly making him have those types of attitudes.

What went through his head?

lucianamoreno11 — 2024-06-11 15:55:01 UTC

During the whole story the narrator´s thoughts were consumed by guilt, obsession and paranoia. This is by his drinking habits that leads him to do things like abusing his wife and animals leading him to feel guilt over that. Besides this, there was a lot of obsession with his second cat haunting him from commiting the crime of killing his first cat, Pluto. This contributed to him feeling paranoid by him feeling haunted by his second cat, the murder of his wife and hiding it in the cellar.

Which everyday routines or activities did he do?

lucianamoreno11 — 2024-06-12 01:38:26 UTC

The narrator´s everyday activities that he did was drinking alcohol which affects his behaviour in contributing to his violent tendencies, the interactions with his animals which at the start seemed affectionate as the story desenvolves those interactions turn more cruel towards them this caused by drinking, interacting with his wife and somehow taking care of his house although having a maid.

Maybe the story was inspired from his own life?

lucianamoreno11 — 2024-06-12 02:05:56 UTC

I think that the story was inspired by Poe´s own life since it is known how Poe struggled with alcoholism just like the narrator´s problem with alcohol. Besides this, Poe suffered from mental instability which also the narrator has in this story due to his crazy impulses and the guilt and paranoia he undergoes do to commiting very bad acts. Also the death of loved ones also has been inspired in this story, this is because in Poe´s life both of his parents died and his wife due to illnesses and other things which contributed to him including topics of death and loss.