The Pit And The Pendulum Gothic Elements Essay

In The Pit and the Pendulum by the late Edgar Allan Poe, Poe explores gothic elements in his short story. Born in the 1800s, he uses his life’s stories to write. In Poe’s story, set during the Spanish Inquisition, a man is sent to the chambers and sentenced to death. In that time he faces many tortuous acts. Gothic elements are used by authors to create a scary mood. Poe uses a dark setting, the characters situation, and 1st person narration to convey suspense, fear and mystery.
Poe expresses the gothic element of a dark setting in the entire story. During the Spanish Inquisition, a man is sentenced to death and sent to a chamber. He is weak, scared and alone. The man awoke to find himself in a pitch black, damp and cold room. “ The blackness of eternal night encompassed me … Was I left to perish of starvation in this subterranean world?” (310). In other words, the man feels like he is buried alive, isolated from the world. The gothic settings Poe uses, “blackness of eternal night” and “starvation in this subterranean world” emphasizes the suspense and fear of the main character. The man is in the chamber unaware of what is happening, in that the room is pitch dark. Because the man is awaiting
After the man escapes from death once again, the inquisitors send the last method to kill, fire. As the man comes quicker to death, he starts to give up a little. The story is written in 1st person, that being the readers see what the character sees. “I was sick… unto death with that long agony.” “ I panted! I gasped for breath!… and buried my face in my hands - weeping bitterly.” (321). Realizing he is going to die, gives up and starts to weep. Because the man is in danger, emotionally and physically, the 1st person narration makes him seem more vulnerable and weak. Therefore, an over-rot of emotions is found in the story. Poe uses a large amount of emotion to make his writing more gothic and