The Pit and the Pendulum
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The speaker is a prisoner who has
been sentenced to death.
After being given his sentence, the
speaker faints.
He then explains that there is two
ways of coming out of a faint
(swoon)—1) come aware
mentally/spiritually; 2)physically
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When the speaker wakes up from his
faint he finds himself in a dungeon.
He is afraid to open his eyes at first
because he is afraid he will see
“nothing.”
When he does open his eyes, he
really sees nothing—there is nothing
but darkness.
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Even though he can’t see anything, the
speaker tries to determine how big the
dungeon he is being held in is, but he is
too weak. He falls and passes out again.
While trying to determine how wide the
dungeon is, the speaker finds a very deep
pit in the middle of the room.
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After finding the pit, the speaker is
drugged and falls asleep. He awakes
and is able to see his surroundings.
He also finds himself tied to a piece
of wood in the middle of the room.
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Above the speaker is a blade
swinging back and forth and slowly
descending toward him. The blade
will eventually cut him in half.
Because it’s moving slowly, the
speaker slowly goes insane watching
the blade move toward him.
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The speaker tricks the rats into
eating through the straps that are
holding him down so that he can get
out.
After getting out, the walls of the
dungeon begin to heat up and move,
pushing him toward the pit in the
middle of the room.
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Just as he is about to jump in before
being pushed, he is saved by General
Lasalle.