In the opening paragraph of Edgar Allan Poe's short story "The Black Cat,"
the narrator states that his "immediate purpose is to place before the world
... a series of mere household events." In other words, he wishes to
explain to the world a series of events that occurred
in his household. His reason for wanting to do so is stated in the sentence
prior, to "unburthen [his] soul," meaning to unburden his soul, or to
relieve his soul by revealing something that has troubled his soul. By
the end of the first paragraph, he says that he intends to explain a
"succession of very natural causes and effects." Hence, the narrator is saying
his purpose is to relieve his soul by explaining a series of
household events based on their causes and effects . It's his reference to causes and effects that is the most interesting,...
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for it's the causes and effects that directly tie to the most dominant theme in the story.
The most central theme in the story is the dual side
of human nature--good and evil--and what causes will
bring out one side of human nature as opposed to the other. The narrator uses
the second paragraph to explain how gentle and tenderhearted
he has been all his life, starting from childhood and continuing into manhood.
His tenderheartedness was especially reflected in his love for vulnerable
animals. Yet, he also later explains that after getting married, his
"temperament and character" began to change as a result of the "Fiend
Intemperance." The word fiend means devil or demon; the word
intemperance can be defined as an "excessive or immoderate indulgence
in" alcohol (Random House Dictionary, 2015). In other words, the
narrator is explaining that his character significantly changed because he
became an alcoholic. Furthermore, the cause alcoholism led to
the disastrous effects of the cruelty he demonstrated through his murderous
acts, which he is soon to be executed for.
Hence, all in all, the narrator is stating that his purpose is to
explain how a cause like alcoholism can lead
to the effect of changing a good human nature into an evil one, or
unleashing the evil nature that lies hidden beneath the good nature.
References
What is the narrator's "immediate purpose" in writing his narrative in Poe's "The Black Cat"?
Without question, my favorite story by Poe. Like so many of his stories, Poe seems to be toying with his audience. Sort of mentally "winking" at us as he pens his words. For Poe (and in The Black Cat), the cat he finds at the bar doesn't simple "follow him home." Instead, the cat, "evinces a disposition to accompany me." Are you kidding me? This is great stuff if read as intended.
It's not until the story has ended and the narrator has taken us along on his fantastic journey that we get the answer to your question. Let me ask you this? What do you think might be the narrator's "immediate purpose" is writing this story?
I'll wait.......
O.K. now that your done. Think about what it was that the narrator did. What tormented him. What he was driven to do. His punishment? And his atonement? The end of the story has the author about to go somewhere. But before "leaving," he must first clear his conscience. Hence the motivation of this story for the ages.