The Black Cat-study guide

describe the narrator's deterioration. you must detail what he was like first, and then describe his negative changes.

He is nice, kind. then he starts to drink, becomes cruel-(beats his wife, kills her and kills his cat)

what vicious crime does he commit instead?

He kills his wife

what does the narrator attempt to do the second cat?

He tries to kill the cat with the axe

describe the crime scene once the wall's been destroyed.

The decaying corpse forward and the very much alive cat

does he admit to having deteriorated?

YES

what famous superstition is alluded to the fourth paragraph?

black cats are witches

what similarity did the husband and wife share?

both like animals

why is this story considered a flashback?

cause he was writing in jail, looking back on it

Detail the narrator's post-crime personality.

he is calm, he relaxed; can sleep well

what was his gruesome reaction when the cat bites him?

he takes out his eyeball with his knife

how does he ultimatley tell on himself

he taps the wall and the cat starts to scream

where is the narrator as he writes the story?

in jail, and is dying tomorrow

list the animals the couple owned.

monkey, rabbits, bird, goldfish, cat-Pluto, dog

describe the narrator as a child

nice, quiet, kind

what is the origin of that superstition

that people in the middle ages believed that people came back to life as black cats

what do the police behind the wall?

the cat screaming

after the narrator's house burns, what imprint has been left?

the hanged cat

what was his second attack on the cat?

then hangs him

what is his immediate reaction?

to hid the body

List five ways that Poe's life is similar to that of the narrator's.

1. Both drank 2. Both of there wife's died 3. Both believe in the perviness humankind 4. Both suffer from depression

in what point of view is the story written?

1st person point of view

what did the narrator write near the end of the story that foreshadowed his committing a crime and being caught?

But this blow was arrested by the hand of my wife

the first cat is named "Pluto". what is the possible significance of that name?

Pluto was the name of the Roman God of the underworld

how is the second cat similar to Pluto in a physical sense?

They are exactly the same but then the second cat has a white hair on his chest.