Abstract

The Black Cat, a representative work of Edgar Allan Poe’s short stories, is fraught with his unique application of Gothic writing features. The story is narrated by the hero, also the murderer, about the crime he has committed to his pets and his innocent wife. It depicts the struggle between the hero and the two black cats, aiming at exposing human beings’ evil nature, thereby creating a dreadful horror effect. This kind of horror originates from the depths of people, which is called “terror of the soul” by Poe. This paper attempts to interpret this terror mainly by analyzing the three aspects of  elaborate creation of the appalling scenes, perfect employment of a creepy imagery and exquisite portrayal of a psychopathic character, thus giving readers a strong shock and also showing Poe’s unique artistic charm.

Key words:  Edgar Allan Poe, The Black Cat, terror of the soul
 
摘 要

《黑猫》是爱伦•坡具有代表性的一部充满独特哥特特色的短篇小说。该小说采用杀人犯主人公自述的形式，讲述了他对他的宠物黑猫以及无辜妻子的谋杀过程。作者围绕主人公和两只黑猫的斗争，刻画了人类内心的邪恶本性，从而营造令人毛骨悚然的恐惧效果。这种恐惧来源于人的内心深处，坡称之为心灵的恐惧。本文主要从该小说精心制造的恐怖场景，恰到好处的恐怖意象以及对心理变态的人物的细腻刻画这几个方面来解读这种恐惧，从而带给读者强烈的心灵震撼，展现坡独特的艺术魅力。

关键词：埃德加•爱伦•坡；《黑猫》；心灵式恐怖

1. Introduction
Edgar Allan Poe (January 19, 1809– October 7, 1849) was a famous American novelist, poet and literary critic of 19th century, who occupied a special and important position in American literature. He composed more than 70 short fictions in his lifetime, and was acknowledged worldwide as “the father of detective story”. Despite of this, Poe’s literary talent is best exemplified in his poems and Gothic stories. His Gothic stories create a nightmarish and horrible world, but poe is keen on such weird and uncanny topics, intending to achieve extremely shocking effect. Among these stories the most famous and representative works are The Fall of the House of Usher, The Black Cat, The Tell-Tale Heart and The Cask of Amontillado, etc.