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I really need help-I don't know what to do.

Before beginning this assignment, please make sure you are completely familiar with Edgar Allen Poe's short story "The Pit and The Pendulum". Review the enotes study guide.

A narrative essay from the point of view of the pit would entail first understanding why the pit was constructed and being creative about what the pit has seen in addition to the story of the original narrator.

"The Pit and The Pendulum" takes place during the Spanish Inquisition.  During this time, the Spanish would question, torture and sometimes kill non-Catholics if they refused to convert or admit to some religious charge. We never know why the original narrator is there, but you can invent some reasons as long as you stay historically accurate.

Personify the pit; give it human characteristics and thoughts so that you may communicate your comprehension of the story through your essay. You should have the pit discuss what it experiences with the original narrator and possibly compare the man's experience to previous prisoners.  When the prisoner first discovers he is on the edge of the pit is perhaps the best part of the story, so you may want to focus on that part.  Pay close attention to the end of the story and try decide whether you would like the pit to be relieved at the escape from danger or not.

This is quite an interesting assignment.  So, you have to write the story from the pit's perspective?  Well, first of all, you need to have in mind a map or chronology of all of the major events of the story; that will help you to retell it accurately, from a different perspective.  So, giving the story a quick read, and writing down all of the major points of action is the first step.  I have provided a link to a summary and review of the story itself that should help you map out those major events.

So, the next step is to describe the above events, through the "eyes" of the pit.  Now, the pit can't see most of these things happening, so you will have to describe mostly the sounds.  I would also give the pit a personality; is it a lonely pit, and so it really, really wants the man to fall into it so that he can have some company?  Is the pit bored out of its "mind", and so wants the man to fall in so he can have a little bit of action?  Is it an evil pit, and wants the man to fall in so it can see a bit of torture and suffering?  Or, is it a sympathetic pit that champions the cause of the narrator, cheering him on in his attempts to thwart the torturers?  Once you've decided on a personality for the pit, describe all of the events through that personality.

I hope that those suggestions give you a place to start; good luck!  It sounds like an interesting assignment!

You need to decide if the pit is welcoming or annoyed by the presence of the narrator.  Does the pit want the man to fall into him, or is the pit willing him away from danger due to his private nature or perhaps even his nurturing nature.  What attitude will the pit have toward the prisoner? 

In order to write this assignment, you will need to think of the pit having human thoughts and feelings. This kind of literary device is called anthropomorphism, and it is a subset of personfication.

It sounds as though you will need to assume the persona of the pit and write in the first person (I/we), as though you are the pit speaking to the reader. Good luck with your assignment!