Black cats have historically represented witchcraft, bad luck and death in many parts of the world. In “The Black Cat,” Pluto takes the place of one of the narrator's most beloved pets until the animal becomes frightened. The narrator ends up cutting out Pluto's eye causing him to become half blind and ultimately kills Pluto. Shortly thereafter, the narrator is haunted by a feline that resembles Pluto. The only difference between Pluto and the second cat is that the second feline has a white mark on its neck. In "The Black Cat", the feline Pluto represents the underworld, narcissism and mental instability. Pluto's name in Greek mythology means "God of the Underworld", and this is how Pluto represents both the first and the second. Hades is known as the God of the Underworld. Hades and Pluto are both mistreated individuals, thus leading to the general consensus that their common experiences are what drives them to start mistreating others. The cat seems to have a dark and evil role in the story. Traditionally, black cats are representative of evil, black magic and are often kept as "familiars" or protectors of witches in Wiccan society. Pluto is a black cat, and historically black cats have been perceived as much more evil than others. As Benjamin Fisher states in his literary analysis, “…black cats are unpredictable, but usually evil creatures…” (Fisher, 86). Pluto, as well as the second cat, begin to torture the narrator. Slowly, the situation turns into an even more dire fate for both the cat and the narrator. The narrator's narcissism contributes to the overall darkness of the story and is largely instrumental to the underlying darkness and malevolence of Poe's consciousness. The cat in "The...... middle of paper ......lute represents the underworld, self-indulgence and madness. Works Cited Atsma, Aaron J. "HADES: Greek king of the underworld, god of Died; Images: HAIDES, PLUTO." HADES: Greek king of the underworld, god of the dead; Mythology; Images: HAIDES, PLUTO. Aaron J. Atsma, nd Web. April 11, 2014. Buranelli, Vincent. Edgar Allen Poe. Np: np, 1961. Print.Frye, Steven. Critical Insights: The Tales of Edgar Allan Poe. New York: Cambridge UP, 2008 . Print.Gill, NS "Pluto - The Roman and Greek God Pluto." About.com Ancient/Classical History. NS Gill and Web. 11 April 2014.WING-CHI KI, MADDALENA. ." Mississippi Quarterly 62.3/4 (2009): 569-589. Literary reference center. Web. 11 April. 2014.