The Man of the Crowd by Edgar Allan Poe. Short summary

5 seconds

Sitting in a coffee shop, the narrator notices an unusual passerby. He decides to follow him. Soon the hero realizes that he has run into a man of the crowd, who cannot stand being alone and is looking for people.

1 minute

The narrator is sitting in a coffee shop watching passersby. A stranger with a strange expression on his face catches his attention. It was a bad-looking old man dressed in rich, tattered clothing. A dagger with an encrusted diamond was visible on his belt.

The man’s unusual behavior compels the hero to follow him to find out who he is. Until morning, he follows the old man, who enters various places in the city: the market of a disadvantaged neighborhood, the theater, squares and others. At the same time, the object of observation did not do anything, but only went somewhere.

The man notices that the old man is good in a crowd. When he finds himself in deserted places, he begins to worry and panic seizes him. As a result, he runs out looking for people. The old man was a man of the crowd and was afraid to be alone. He was willing to be anywhere as long as there were people around.