Mental Narrator In The Tell Tale Heart

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People who suffer from a mental illness such as schizophrenia strongly believe there is nothing wrong with their behavior in other words crazy people do not know they are crazy. Edgar Allan Poe captures that exact characterization with a demented narrator in his short story “The Tell-Tale Heart”. In “The Tell-Tale Heart”, tension is created through the words of a mental narrator, intense imagery and an insane plot.
Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” a neurotic narrator becomes upset by his roommates “vulture eye”. In the story the narrator’s trouble with the old man’s evil eye is the cause of his frustration. The narrator even mentions how he “love[s] the old man…I think it [i]s his eye!—yes, it [i]s this!” (page 1). Just the look of the
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For instance I am able to tell just how dark the old man’s room is when Poe writes “His room [i]s as black as pitch with thick darkness.” (Page 2.) Poe’s detailed imagery only makes the plot that much more mysterious, aware of the narrators lunacy you can’t help but get swept into the story itself trying to sort out the narrators next move. I am able to picture perfectly in my head just moments before the narrator kills the old man, “For another hour I d[o] not move a muscle…the old man…He [i]s still sitting up in bed, listening; –just as I a[m] do[ing], night after night…The old man’s hour ha[s] come!...I thr[o]w open the lantern and leap into the room” (pages 2-3). With such detailed imagery the author is able to capture my full attention as I read curiously on through the thrilling excitement up until the very moment the narrator gives in to the beat of the heart. I felt this piece was both suspenseful and mysterious especially because of the narrator’s …show more content…
I find it amusing how he constantly reassures the audience he is not a madman because it is evident that he is in fact a madman. I especially like the ending because in the end it is his insanity that drives him into confessing his horrendous crime, he can no longer bare the escalating beat of the dead man’s heart so he confesses to the three officers who are not even suspicious of his crime. With captivating images such as “a pale blue eye, with a film over it” (page 1) Edgar Allan Poe is able to draw the reader into this chilling tale filled with madness and a spine-chilling plot. “The Tell-Tale Heart” is definitely a good read and I recommend it to anyone interested in topics such as crime, thrillers and gory

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