In Edgar Allen Poe's short story, The Black Cat, there is a lot of symbolism regarding hidden attributes of his life. The black cat itself represents not only a hidden meaning but a meaning the narrator wished to keep hidden. The black cat symbolizes the narrator's or Poe's alcoholism. Edgar Allen Poe has been accused of being an alcoholic throughout his life and it may have actually lead up to the cause of his death. The short story may give a subtle view at Poe's fight with the disease and the disease's eventual triumph. The black cat may not only be a symbol of the alcoholism that Poe faces but perhaps just his conscious in general regarding most anything deviant.

The black cat, Pluto, is at first the narrator's friend. He takes a liking to it over the other pets he has; including other cats, dogs, fish, birds...