Reflection Blog- The Pit and the Pendulum

Edgar Allan Poe wrote many poems and short stories during the Romanticism/ Dark Romanticism time period, and is still today a pretty well known author. In his short story The Pit and the Pendulum, he tells about the horrors of a soldier who is sentenced to death during the Spanish Inquisition and is held in a cell with hot iron walls that are constantly moving in forcing him into a deep pit (Poe 263). When I read this, I was not surprised by all of the horrors and scary things that Edgar Allan Poe wrote about because it seems like a lot of his writing as well as many writings from this time period in general include evil and horror. In this short story, Edgar Allan Poe uses quite a bit of detail in describing the situation this solider is in. For example, on page 263 in the first paragraph he boldly states that this solider is sentenced to death and later on the same page tells us that he will be tortured (Poe 263). I think it is safe to say that death was a very common theme for poems and short stories during this time period. Some characterisitics of the Romanticism/ Dark Romanticism time period are valuing feelings over reason, valuing imagination, and also sometimes it consists of evil and tragedy. I think that there are many instances throughout The Pit and the Pendulum where Edgar Allan Poe shows characteristics from this time period. At many points throughout this story, this solider is telling us how he feels during certain situations. For example, on page 265 he says

I felt nothing; yet dreaded to move a step, lest I should be impeded by the walls fo the tomb. Perspiration burst from every pore and stood in cold big beads on my forehead. The agony of suspense grew at length intolerable, and I cautiously moved foreward...(Poe 265).

and again on page 267 when he says

In other conditions of mind I might have had the courage to end my misery at once by a plunge into one of the abysses; but not I was the veriest of cowards. Neither could I forget what I had read of these pits- that the sudden extinction of life formed no part of their most horrible plan (Poe 267).

Also, Edgar Allan Poe shows us a little evil and horror throughout this short story. For example, on page 271 he is describing to us the rats that surround the solider

They were wild, bold, ravenous; their red eyes glaring upon me as if they waited for motionless on my part to make me their pray (Poe 271).

Another example of evil in The Pit and the Pendulum is on page 272 when the solider is describing the chamber he is kept in

Demon eyes, of a wild and ghastly vivacity, glared upon me in a thousand directions, where none had been visible before, and gleamed with the lurid luster of a fire that I could not force my imagination to regard as unreal (Poe 272).

I guess that this passage is not exactly evil, but I think it is scary and cynical which is what a lot of the stories from this time period had.

Bibliography

Poe, Edger Allan. "The Pit and the Pendulum." Glencoe Literature. By Jeffrey D. Wilhelm and Douglas Fisher. New York: Glencoe McGraw-Hill, 2009. 263-73. Print.