The narrator of the story, "The Black Cat," would not gouge out the cat's eye and then hang it from a tree as well as he would not kill his wife if he were sane. ... For instance, in the short story, "The Black Cat," addiction to alcohol is portrayed in the relation with insanity of the narrator: "Our friendship lasted, in this manner, for several years, during which my general temperament and character - through the instrumentality of the Fiend Intemperance - had (I blush to confess it) experienced a radical alteration for the worse. [] But my disease grew upon me - ...

• Word Count: 1406
• Approx Pages: 6
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate