 New words:

Vocabulary Pronunciation Meaning

1. evil (a) /ˈiːvl/ Xấu xa
2. enemy (n) /ˈenəmi/ Kẻ thù
3. selfish (a) /ˈselfɪʃ/ Ích kỉ
4. horrible (a) /ˈhɒrəbl/ Kinh khủng
5. pleased (a) /pliːzd/ Vui mừng
6. stay away from sb
/steɪ əˈweɪ frəm/ Tránh xa khỏi ai đó
(phr.v)
7. pick sb up (phr.v) /pɪk ʌp/ Bắt ai đó
8. mad (a) /mæd/ Điên cuồng
9. pocket (n) /ˈpɒkɪt/ Túi
10. full of pain /fʊl əv peɪn/ Đầy đau đớn
11. horror (a) /ˈhɒrə(r)/ Kinh dị
12. deeply (adv) /ˈdiːpli/ Sâu sắc
13. get better /ɡet ˈbetə(r)/ Trở nên tốt hơn
14. go round (phr.v) /ɡəʊ əˈraʊnd/ Đi vòng quanh
15. run away (phr.v) /rʌn əˈweɪ/ Bỏ chạy
16. hang (v) /hæŋ/ Treo
17. servant (n) /ˈsɜːvənt/ Người hầu
18. burn down (phr.v) /bɜːn daʊn/ Thiêu hủy
19. fall down (phr.v) /fɔːl daʊn/ Ngã xuống
20. plaster (n) /ˈplɑːstə(r)/ Thạch cao
21. look over (phr.v) /lʊk ˈəʊvə(r)/ Nhìn qua
22. pressed (v) /prest/ Ép
23. look for sb (phr.v) /lʊk fə(r)/ Tìm kiếm ai đó
24. search for sth
/sɜːtʃ fə(r)/ Tra cứu thứ gì
(phr.v)
25. cupboard (n) /ˈkʌbəd/ Tủ
26. bottles of wine /ˈbɒtlz əv waɪn/ Những chai rượu
27. put sth up (phr.v) /pʊt ʌp/ Nâng cái gì đó lên
28. front (n) /frʌnt/ Phía trước
29. come inside /kʌmˌɪnˈsaɪd/ Đi vào trong
30. jump up (phr.v) /dʒʌmp ʌp/ Nhảy lên
31. keep away from
/kiːp əˈweɪ frəm/ Xa lánh ai
sb (phr.v)
32. murder (v) /ˈmɜːdə(r)/ Giết
33. fear (n) /fɪə(r)/ Sự sợ hãi
34. chest (n) /tʃest/ Ngực
35. press down (phr.v) /pres daʊn/ Dồn nén
36. come down (phr.v) /kʌm daʊn/ Đi xuống
37. cellar (n) /ˈselə(r)/ Hầm
38. axe (n) /æks/ Cây rìu
39. bring sth down Đưa cái gì đó từ trên cao
/brɪŋ daʊn/
(phr.v) xuống thấp hơn
40. pull sth away Kéo cái gì đó ra khỏi cái
/pʊl daʊn/
(phr.v) gì đó
41. bury (v) /ˈberi/ Chôn
42. wrist (n) /rɪst/ Cổ tay
43. put sth into sth Đặt cái gì đó trong cái gì
/pʊt ˈɪntə/
(phr.v) đó
44. throw sth into sth Ném cái gì đó xuống cái
/θrəʊ ˈɪntə/
(phr.v) gì đó
45. wooden box (n) /ˈwʊdn bɒks/ Hộp gỗ
46. underneath (adv) /ˌʌndəˈniːθ/ Bên dưới
47. thick (a) /θɪk/ Dày
48. take off (phr.v) /teɪk ɒf/ Cởi bỏ
49. take out (phr.v) /teɪk aʊt/ Lấy thứ gì đó ra
50. put back (phr.v) /pʊt bæk/ Sắp xếp lại
51. put sth on (phr.v) /pʊt ɒn/ Đặt cái gì đó lên cái gì đó
52. go down (phr.v) /ɡəʊ daʊn/ Đi xuống
53. go up (phr.v) /ɡəʊ ʌp/ Đi lên
54. knock hard /nɒk hɑːd/ Gõ mạnh
55. grow into (phr.v) /ɡrəʊ ˈɪntə/ Trở thành
56. scream (n) /skriːm/ Tiếng thét
57. run down (phr.v) /rʌn daʊn/ Chạy xuống
58. break down
/breɪk daʊn/ Phá vỡ
(phr.v)
59. dried blood /draɪd blʌd/ Máu khô
60. shine (v) /ʃaɪn/ Tỏa sáng
 Summary:
“The Black Cat” is told from the perspective of a narrator who, in his own words, does
not expect the reader to believe him. Since he will die the next day, he wants to set the
record straight, and tells us the story of his life. From the day he is born, he has always
been a kind and loving person. He has always loved animals more than anything. As
he gets older up these qualities grow stronger. Taking care of his pets and hanging out
with them is his favorite thing to do. He married when he was a young. His wife loves
animals too, and fills the house with a variety of them. One of these is a cat, all black,
super-smart cat named Pluto. He takes care of Pluto, and Pluto follows him everywhere
around the house. It is a very tender relationship. Then, everything goes wrong. The
narrator, an alcoholic, starts getting angry at everyone. He starts physically and
verbally abusing his wife and pets. One night, the narrator comes home from partying
completely drunk and thinks Pluto is avoiding him. He grabs the cat, who bites him. In
retaliation, the narrator cuts out one of the cat's eyes. One morning, not long after the
eye-gouging, the narrator is overcome with a perverse impulse. He catches and hangs
Pluto by his neck from a tree until he is dead. That night, his house burns down. The
narrator, his wife and their servant are lucky to escape, but the fire destroys his home
and all of his possessions. When the narrator returns to the ashes later, he sees the figure
of a cat on the only surviving wall. One night when he’s out drinking, another black
cat appears on the scene. This cat looks just like Pluto, except for the little white spot
on his chest. The man takes the cat home, and his wife is quite pleased. But, as the
weeks pass, he begins to dislike the animal more and more. The more he hates the cat,
the more the cat likes him. The narrator cannot bring himself to hurt the cat because he
is afraid of it. The white shape on its chest morphs into a gallows, a direct reminder of
his crime against Pluto. As his loathing of the cat increases, so does his physical and
verbal abuse of his wife. Eventually, the narrator is driven so mad that he tries to kill
the cat with an axe. The woman stops him, and the man ends up killing his wife. He
decides to conceal the body inside his house, behind the wall of the basement. The
narrator looks for the cat, but it is missing. That night, the man sleeps peacefully for
the first time in ages. Then, on the fourth day, the police come to his house to ask
questions about his wife's disappearance. Right when they are about to leave,
abandoning their search of the cellar, the narrator decides to start bragging about how
well built the house is. He takes his cane and hits it against the spot in the wall where
he's hidden his wife's body. A voice come from inside the wall, in answer to my knock.
It is a cry, like a child's. Suddenly, they all run down in a great hurry and begin breaking
down the wall. It fall quickly, and there is my wife, standing inside, with the cat on top
of her head. And that’s why the narrator is in jail, sentenced to death by hanging.