How Does Poe Create Tension In The Pit And The Pendulum

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Edgar Allan Poe is a master of creating tension in his stories to convince the reader that they're a part of the story. Poe’s stories contain darkness, physical torment, tension, and keeps the reader intrigue. An example of that is in Poe’s story “The Pit and the Pendulum” and the tension throughout the story is based on whether the narrator will survive the pendulum or not. Poe deception of tension in the story is from strong diction and the emotion of horror that comes with the diction. “Down -- steadily down it crept… Down -- certainly, relentlessly down!” (Poe 1) the word “down” was repeated four times in the quote to emphasize the fact that the pendulum is getting closer to the tied-down narrator. The word “down” brings tension into the