|
|
Posted by Marie on February 25, 19103 at 18:08:08:
In Reply to: Re: The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allen Poe posted by Sarah on November 15, 19101 at 22:53:07:
Here is the dtory of THe Pit And The Pendulum by Edgar Allen Poe.
Plot ysis
The narrator is "sick unto death," and when he hears the dread sentence of death ped upon him he faints away. He sees but faintly the black-robed judges of the Inquisition. His sense impressions are blurred and kaleidoscopic. In a state of only semiconsciousness the narrator is aware of a descent into darkness. It seems interminable and he becomes dizzy. When he awakes fully he can see nothing but "the blackness of eternal night." The atmosphere is close and he has to lie quietly to focus his thoughts. He dreads to move lest he discover only the walls of a tomb. He does attempt to explore his dungeon, however, and as he does so he remembers all that had been whispered about the horrors of Toledo. He encounters a wall that is slimy, smooth, and cold. Overcome with exhaustion, he falls down and lapses into sleep.
When he awakes he discovers that bread and water have been left for him, and he eats. Again he attempts to explore the dungeon and again he falls. He feels nothing under his head and smells an abominable smell of decayed fungus. A pit is directly in front of him and he draws back, shaking with horror. He discovers the walls of the prison are metal and covered with the images of fiends. He sleeps, and when he wakes he finds himself bound with a strap. As he looks upward he is able to see the ceiling of the prison for the first time, and it appears to be in motion. The figure of Time is painted on the ceiling, but instead of a scythe the figure bears a huge pendulum which is swinging back and forth directly above him. It appears to be made of a crescent of sharp steel. Huge rats creep out of the pit and watch him from the brink. He decides that his rs have presented him with two possibilities for death, the pit or the pendulum. The pendulum descends toward him very slowly. A plan of escape comes to him. As the sharp pendulum cuts through his bonds he will slip to safety. He wonders what food the rats have been fed upon in the hideous pit. The pendulum comes ceaselessly down. As it slices within inches of his body the strap is cut and he is freed.
As he is freed the pendulum is withdrawn toward the ceiling. A light seems to be illuminating the cell. He realizes that the dungeon is being heated. As the metal begins to glow the faces of the fiends on the wall contort horribly. It becomes hotter and hotter and he thinks of plunging into the pit, all the while knowing that that is what his tormentors want him to do. The cell begins to contract, forcing him closer and closer to the pit. Finally, he is forced to the ultimate verge and screams in despair. At that moment there is a blast of trumpets and the walls roll back. Arms lift him from the cell. He learns that General Lasalle and the French army have entered Toledo.