Read the excerpt from “The Black Cat.”
For the most wild, yet most homely narrative which I am about to pen, I neither expect nor solicit belief. Mad indeed would I be to expect it, in a case where my very senses reject their own evidence. Yet, mad am I not—and very surely do I not dream. But to-morrow I die, and to-day I would unburthen my soul. My immediate purpose is to place before the world, plainly, succinctly, and without comment, a series of mere household events. In their consequences, these events have terrified—have tortured—have destroyed me.
Which details support the idea that the first-person point of view creates a sense of suspense about what is to come in the story?
The details in this excerpt that support the idea that the first-person point of view creates a sense of suspense about what is to come in the story are:
- The narrator states that he is about to pen a wild and homely narrative, suggesting that the events that will unfold will be bizarre and unsettling.
- The narrator emphasizes that he does not expect or solicit belief from the readers, implying that the events may be difficult to comprehend or accept as true.
- The narrator mentions that his senses reject their own evidence, hinting at a possible contradiction or unreliability in his perception of events.
- The narrator mentions that he is not mad, nor is he dreaming, implying that something unusual or disturbing is happening to him.
- The narrator declares that he is going to die tomorrow, creating a sense of impending doom and raising questions about what will lead to his demise.
- The narrator states that his immediate purpose is to unburden his soul and share a series of mere household events that have terrified, tortured, and destroyed him, increasing anticipation for the horrifying events that will be revealed.