Preview

How Does Poe Create Suspense In The Pit And The Pendulum

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
320 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
How Does Poe Create Suspense In The Pit And The Pendulum
In Edgar Allan Poe’s story, “The Pit and the Pendulum,” poe uses the elements of suspense, madness, and plot twist. But the whole story is based on Poe's life, (the guy they talk about) like how he was captured, and taken away and almost killed luckily he escapes. The story was clearly thought out. The author states that his life with his parents was rough ¨His dad rejected him¨ ¨his mother died at a very young age¨, However, when he got kidnapped by the Spanish inquisitions he was put in a dungeon, Then finally the last thing was when he was freaking out when they were trying to kill him with the pit the rats and the pendulum.
Firstly, he used suspense very well, When he was with his family poe kept us guessing by saying his parents hated

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    14.) Poe is a master at creating an eerie, suspenseful mood in his stories. Dig back into the text of this story and write down two lines that help establish this mood. Yes, I want you to write down the full line.…

    • 928 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Therefore, all of those elements: referring to a reader, changing a time, and using a repetition are really very useful for all writers to create a suspense of a story. In addition Edgar Allan Poe is a talented writer and he is using this writing tools wisely. I enjoyed reading this story and I would love to read more stories by Edgar Allan Poe. I think when I will have my children I will read Poe’s books to…

    • 577 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He practically started the story by using foreshadowing. Foreshadowing is a very interesting type of literary device. It gives out clues to the reader about the conclusion of the story. Usually it is the character of the story that gives out the clues but from time to time it may vary. Because foreshadowing usually comes in at the very beginning, you may not believe what the character tells you because you do not exactly know what kind of person he is, and if the character is some psychopath, obviously you are not going to believe him. Putting foreshadowing in the beginning of a story is an excellent way to start a story because that way it keeps the reader's attention at the beginning of the story. During the story, Edgar Allan Poe gave the reader much information and description, but you could tell that he also held back much information. For example, at the beginning of the story, the man told the reader that he loved the old man but hates the eye and believes the eye is evil. Normally the reader would think that all he want to do is to take out the old man's eye, but who would have ever knew that he was going to kill the old man, for the man never wronged him or given him an…

    • 799 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Edgar Allan Poe does has a lot of passion and knowledge in his writing, because he lived a difficult life. His father left and his mother died when he was 3. So, imagine not having either parent in your life. Poe got engaged and his wife was a big part of his life. When he was three he wrote poems on the back of newspapers. Later in life he got a job writing with newspapers but he was drinking and got fired, like most jobs. After that he wrote many books and soon became a literary sensation. Some books today that are really known are, Tell Tale Heart, The Raven, and The Black Cat. Poe unfortunately lost his wife and mysteriously died soon after.…

    • 498 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Next, the structure of both stories is very different. The Pit and the Pendulum is a gothic and sad story. But The Lowest Animal has more of a realist view. Poe’s story is very…

    • 463 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most influential and well-known authors in American history. Poe’s short stories remain recognized throughout American literature for their gothic approach, tall tales, and his recognition style to solving mysteries. Throughout his lifetime, Edgar Allan Poe endured various tragic experiences such as losing his parents at the age of three years old and losing his foster-mother at the age of 20 years old. Even though his literary works and techniques were vastly unique, after his death, some critics argued that they were not quite unique at all; instead, they argued, Poe’s inspiration derived from his own life experiences. These stories, which seem to blur the lines between Poe’s real life and his storytelling are…

    • 908 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Pit and the Pendulum

    • 618 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the story, "The Pit and the Pendulum", written by the infamous Edgar Allen Poe, written in 1843, places a man during the time of the Inquisition who is incarnated. Beginning the story, this man, who remains unnamed, receives a death sentence and immediately faints. Upon waking he finds himself in a completely dark room. Scared that he is inside a tomb, he moves around to reinsure himself. Upon exploring this darkened room he accidentally trips and falls finding that his entire body has landed on a surface other than his face where it dangles over an abyss. After much thought, he decides that it's a pit in the middle of the prison and decides to test how far it is down. Throwing a rock down the pit he determines that if one were to jump down into the pit, the jump would be fatal. Again, the prisoner fell asleep and wakes up to bread and water, which is drugged, and once again, falls asleep. This time, upon his awakening, he finds that he is tied to a wooden board and a strapped fastened around him. Looking up, the prisoner sees a pendulum, which starts swinging back and forth, nearing his heart. Suddenly, the prisoner thinks of a brilliant plan and places the food that his captors gave him on his strap, which guaranteed his death by the pendulum, attracting rats to chew through the straps. His plan succeeds until he realizes people are watching him and thats when the walls start to heat up and move inward. The narrator suddenly realizes that he was going to die. Either from the pit, or the pendulum. There is no escape from death. To his surprise, just as not even an inch of foot hold remains, the walls retract. However, the narrator fainted into the pit. Surprisingly, to both readers and the prisoner, himself, a French general Lasalle, ave him from falling in because they'd successfully taken over the prison in an effort to terminate the Inquisition. Undoubtedly, Edgar Allen Poe's dark writing easily pulls any reader in and…

    • 618 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    His work, though it contains universal themes and fears, seems very particular to the world and culture that it was written in. This is because his work, like every writer’s, was so greatly influenced by the world around him. If Poe had been born at any other time, his work would have not been the same. It would not reflect the same fears in society, because it would be a different society. Very few people today fear being accidently buried alive, because it is not very likely anymore. In the world of Poe, however, it was a present and real fear in the world. If he were alive and writing today, he would have been writing about something else. The same is true if he were alive and writing in the sixteenth century. The world Poe lived in influenced Poe and Poe influenced the world he lived in. He did then, and he will continue to influence the world that we live in…

    • 1707 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the story, the walls and the pendulum were described in great detail to help us imagine what the character had to go through. Poe writes, “The figures of fiends in aspects of menace, with skeleton forms, and others more really fearful images, overspread and disfigured the walls” (67). Poe describes the drawing on the walls to show us of how the demons on the wall are supposed to make the narrator feel hopeless, because all around the him is demons. Even though the demons were meant to bring the narrator down he still fought on to escape the pit. Poe uses this as an example to not give up hope even if the obstacle seems be to big to break…

    • 864 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Although not originally well received, Edgar Allan Poe, became one of the most influential literary writers in American history. As a child, he wrote numerous poems, many which were later published. As a young adult he focused much of his attention on short fiction. He was credited with creating the detective story and known for his psychological and often violent thrillers. He is also known for his macabre themes and for having a fascination with death. Literary students should recognize these characteristics associated with Poe 's writings were shaped by many tragedies in his life, such as abandonment of his father, untimely death 's of his mother, brother, wife, and other loved one 's, and the problems he faced with his adoptive father.…

    • 2692 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Edgar Allan Poe Dbq

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Edgar Allan Poe endured awful life experiences that caused him to write horror stories and poems. Poe’s dad abandoned him and his mother when Poe was young. His mother died a year later, which put Poe into the hands of two foster parents. Sadly, his foster mom also died (Doc. A & B). Edgar Allan Poe lived in poverty all of his life (Doc. A & B). He made bad decisions, like spending the last of his savings on a piano for his wife, and he drank heavily after her death (Doc. A & B). He never let anything good happen to himself. The evidence supports that Poe had an awful life that inspired him to write about fear due to the lack of guidance in his lifetime.…

    • 599 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Edgar Allan Poe’s story, “The Pit and the Pendulum,” Poe, uses horror elements of isolation, fear, and Explores the violet side of humanity to add suspense to the story. In the story they are using human torture during the _________ period. The first piece of isolation is when Edgar Allen Poe says “And now, as I still continued to step cautiously onward, there came thronging upon my recollection a thousand vague rumors of the horrors of Toledo.” (Poe, 4) It shows isolation because he is walking alone trying to find how big the place he is staying in right now. What showed me the element of fear was when Edgar Allan Poe stated “My worst thoughts, then, were confirmed.”…

    • 211 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tell Tale Heart Suspense

    • 647 Words
    • 3 Pages

    By saying that he was not mad repeatedly,it built up more and more suspense when Poe included that into the text.Another example of repetition is when the narrator said,he shrieked once.Once only.”Poe created suspense by including that into the text because he gave the reader that creepy feeling you get like when you watch scary movies, that sometimes gives you the chills,That is what Poe was doing there,to create more suspense. To wrap up this paragraph,Repition brought more and more suspense to the story.Read it if you dare!…

    • 647 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown”(H.P. Lovecraft). Edgar Allen Poe instills the sense of fear and horror in the Tell Tale Heart. An insane character is disgusted by an evil eye and will not rest until it’s expunged. The sensory details, the building of suspense, and the disturbing actions all play a role in the horrifying atmosphere that Edgar Allen Poe conveys in the Tell Tale Heart.…

    • 793 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    14. Poe is a master at creating an eerie, suspenseful mood in his stories. Dig back into the text of this story and write down two lines that help establish this mood. Yes, I want you to write down the full line.…

    • 1689 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays