for+I+had+directed+the+ray+as+if+by+instinct,+precisely+upon+the+damned++spot.


 * For I had directed the ray as if by instinct, precisely upon the damned spot.**

He beamed the ray precisely on the old man's eye in order to blind him. This prevented the old man from knowing his murderer.

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Yes, this is what he did, but what is its significance? Why does he say "as if by instinct"? What does this suggest? Why would Poe have our narrator say it that way?

Remember to put a link back to the story on each of your annotation pages.1197254101

The phrase "as if by instinct" tells us that the death of the old man was planned precisely and that the murderer had practiced the situation continuously. 1197301093