Demon Possession In The Tell Tale Heart

Demonic Possession Edgar Allan Poe is regarded as one of the greatest writers of all time, writing many of some America’s most well known stories. “A Tell-Tale Heart” is a story narrated by a man who, is believed to have schizophrenia and kills an innocent old man merely because of his eye. Though there may be a different diagnosis for the murderer, the story is told in first person but referring to the past, meaning that the narrator may be telling someone else. Throughout the story, the narrator shows a few strange actions. Such as how; the perspective in which the story is being told, the narrator strangely confesses in a loud and expressive way, the old man’s eye being the only reason as to why the narrator would want to kill him, the

He only knew it was the eye. “It is impossible to say how first the idea entered my brain; but once conceived, it haunted me day and night”... “He had never wronged me. He had never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I think it was his eye!” (Poe “Tell-Tale Heart” 2). Through this it is shown how the narrator has a lack of emotion towards the old man, but only the idea that he wants to kill him. The narrator had grown an obsession with the eye, so much so that the eye is mentioned four times in the second paragraph alone. The eye is described as, “a pale blue eye, with a film over it. Whenever it fell upon me, my blood ran cold” (Poe “Tell-Tale Heart” 2). The way this is described, it almost seems as if it has some mystical power, maybe it could be the equivalent to the all seeing eye. The Eye of Providence is found in many different cultures, “In Buddhism, for example, Buddha is often called the “Eye of the World.” In Hinduism, it is known as the “third eye” of Lord Shiva. And in Christianity, the triangle surrounding the eye is said to represent the Holy Trinity.” (Schwarz “Secret Symbols” 3). Therefore it may be possible that the eye depicted on the old man sees through the narrator and sees the demon within him. The narrator, in knowing this, as see when his blood turns cold, hates the eye and wishes it

In plotting the death of the old man, the narrator would spy on him for seven nights in a row. Strangely, the narrator would only look in upon the old man at exactly twelve midnight, no sooner or later, only exactly. But on the eight night, when he entered the old man 's room, he is described to have, “Never before that night had I felt the extent of my own powers.” (Poe “Tell-Tale Heart” 3) The word choices of the narrator is not a mistake. This power is shown when the narrator began to enter the old man 's room. While entering the old man heard him and called to him. Yet the narrator did not respond, he only stood there, “for a whole hour I did not move a muscle, and in the meantime I did not hear him lie down.” (Poe “Tell-Tale Heart” 3) It is near impossible for a person to stand still for a whole hour and not move a muscle, unless the person is possessed by a demon. This is further shown when the narrator talks about the groaning the old man makes, “Many a night, just at midnight, when all the world slept, it has welled up from my own bosom, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors that distracted me” (Poe “Tell-Tale Heart” 5). The narrator not only is being possessed, but is actually self aware of the possession, moaning to drown out the noises of his demon. The powers of the narrator are further shown when he