In the mid-1800s America was in the midst of the Romanticism movement. During this time readers were entertained by the new writing styles of the latest authors. There were several famous authors in this era such as: Washington Irving, James Fenimore Cooper, and William Cullen Bryant. An innovative author of this movement, however, added a dynamic new writing style that still intrigues many readers today. Edgar Allen Poe, through his invention of detective novels, became a household name to many. In his stories "The Tell-Tale Heart" and "The Black Cat," Poe describes two heinous crimes committed by men whose motivations can only be traced back to their distorted perception of reality, domestic relationships, and a soul whose thirst can only be satisfied. extinguished through violence. In the stories "The Tell Tale Heart" and "The Black Cat", both narrators have misleading perception that causes their senses to confuse reality with delusions. This misleading perception is caused by the abnormal psychology of both men. This is a common theme in Poes' stories. In “The Black Cat” the narrator feels a sense of fear and disgust when he sees the second cat's behavior again. Poe's description of the second cat is eerily similar to that of the first cat, Pluto. As author Magdalen Wing-Chi Ki states, "the narrator is convinced that he 'must be' Pluto for two things: he follows him in hopes of becoming his absolute partner, and one of his eyes is missing." A rational person understands that it is impossible for the second cat to be Pluto, but the narrator is so misguided as to believe this inconceivable illusion. This mistaken fantasy fuels the narrator's madness, providing him with further evidence that mu...... middle of paper ......d the rational explanation is that the narrator wanted to kill the old man out of his own indulgence. The liberation described by the narrator after the murder of the old man shows that violence was indeed the main motive of his crime. In both stories Poe shows that both the narrators of "The Black Cat" and "The Tell Tale Hart" desire violence. He provides no clear motivations for their crime; instead, he leaves the detective work to the readers. After careful analysis of both stories, the reader understands that the narrators' psychotic perception of reality, their domestic lifestyle, and their desire for violence are the sole reason why these men commit such heinous acts without reason. The horrific crimes illustrated in these two stories along with his dynamic writing style are what led Poe to be one of the most recognizable authors of the 19th century..