The Pit and the Pendulum

Written by Edgar Allan Poe

Narrated by Chris Lutkin

First published in a 1842 literary annual The Gift: A Christmas and New Year's Present for 1843, The Pit and the Pendulum takes place during the Spanish Inquisition. It follows the plight of an unnamed narrator, kept prisoner in a darkened cell full of unseen dangers. Later, by encouraging rats to chew through his bonds, he barely escapes a hideous death by a descending, razor-sharp pendulum. But his torments do not end there. The story is especially effective for its focus on sensory observations, heightening the realism, in contrast to Poe's more frequent reliance on supernatural phenomena.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dreamscape Media
• Release date: Jul 25, 2017
• ISBN: 9781666599947

Edgar Allan Poe

New York Times bestselling author Dan Ariely is the James B. Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke University, with appointments at the Fuqua School of Business, the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, and the Department of Economics. He has also held a visiting professorship at MIT’s Media Lab. He has appeared on CNN and CNBC, and is a regular commentator on National Public Radio’s Marketplace. He lives in Durham, North Carolina, with his wife and two children.