1.

Interview Assignment
o Give students the opportunity to interview the unfortunate narrator of "The Pit
and the Pendulum." Making an imaginary time travel leap, students become
talk show hosts interviewing the narrator just hours after he has been rescued
from his horrendous experience. Require students to come up with at least
twenty questions and answers that detail the events of the story beginning with
the trial, the narrator's emotional state, and the significance of the story's
Spanish Inquisition setting. Two students might work together on this project;
however, both will be responsible for the final copy of the interview, which
will be completed as a written assignment and may be presented orally to the
class.

Letter from Poe

o For students who enjoy investigating the symbolism in literature, provide them
with an opportunity to take on the persona of Edgar Allan Poe. In a letter to a
friend, whom students will invent, Poe will explain the symbols he used in
"The Pit and the Pendulum," why he chose these symbols, and how those
symbols came to him as a result of experiences in his own life.

Movie Pitch
o Trying to imagine Edgar Allan Poe as a movie mogul is a stretch; however,
perhaps if movies were around during Poe's lifetime, he might have hired an
agent to pitch his story to producers. In this assignment, students have an
opportunity to act as that agent as they show off their expertise about "The Pit
and the Pendulum." The package for the pitch will include the following: a
summary of the story plot, a description of what the setting would look like, an
explanation of why a certain musical group or composer would be chosen to
write or perform the sound track, and a paragraph explaining what actor would
be chosen for the lead role and why.

Read more: The Pit & the Pendulum Writing Activities | eHow.com
http://www.ehow.com/way_5435589_pit-pendulum-writing-activities.html#ixzz1I59NOFJH

Think Book Questions for Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Pit and the Pendulum”

1. What part of the story did you find most suspenseful? Explain your judgment.
2. What do you think really happens to the narrator at the end of the story?
3. Who do you think shows the greater ingenuity in this story, the narrator or his torturers?
(Consider the methods of torture used, how the torturers exploit human fears, and how
the narrator saves himself from each torture.)
4. Which aspect of the narrator’s torture – physical or psychological – do you find more
horrible? Why?
5. How do you think this story differs from contemporary tales of horror, whether in fiction
or on film? (“The Pit and the Pendulum” was written in 1842.) Explain your answer.