The Tell-Tale Heart – Mental Illness Or Insanity?

“The Tell-Tale Heart:” Mental illness or insanity?
At first glance, Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" appears to be a tale of sanity versus madness. Poe expresses this theme through his use of imagery and symbolism, character interactions, and word choice. The main character keeps telling himself he is not "mad" throughout the story. The effects of mental illness, such as astigmatism in civilization, crime vs. mental illness, and sleep deprivation, seem to be, nevertheless, the focus in "The Tell-Tale Heart" that continues to stand out more than anything, as per my careful analysis of the short story. The best telling of this tale leads the reader to believe that this heinous crime may have been motivated by mental illness. This theme

Each of the seven days was the same: "Every night about midnight, I turned the latch of his door and opened it—oh, so gently "(Poe 3). The character would use a lantern later and shine the light into the old man's eye. Staying awake for seven days is not healthy. When one is unable to sleep, it is known that someone can develop delusions and paranoia. After reading an article describing the immediate effect of lack of sleep for even just 24 hours, it is easy to infer that the character was going through extreme sleep withdrawal. Even with just the mental illness alone, sleep deprivation amplifies violent intrusive thoughts and makes the brain's reaction time slower. Some effects of sleep deprivation include "psychosis," i.e., inappropriate emotional and behavioral responses" (Chittora 214). It is extremely possible that the actions that led the character to kill the old man were not only attributed to his mental illness but also to his severe sleep deprivation. On the eighth night, the character planned to treat the stalking like any other night. After "chuckling", the old man woke up terrified, as he had a feeling something in his room was making the noise. The use of the word "chuckling" creates the idea that the character had no regard for the old man's fear; in fact, the

Mental illness is one of the leading illnesses in America today, and I can only imagine the illness those faced in the 1800’s. There are many times that Poe decides to use symbolism and imagery, whether it be to emphasize an event or give a different perspective on how the story unfolds. One thing that can be informative to many is that feeling guilty can drive someone to become insane and unlike themselves. One of the best understandings of this story is that mental illness led the character to take the life of someone. By understanding the ultimate effects of mental illness and how drugs can impact the severity and crime is the typical resolution, one can further understand how “The Tell-Tale Heart” is not only a story of guilt, but also what the character was suffering internally to compel the actions. The best thing to do in this scenario is to own up to the mistakes made, think before acting on something, and receive the help that could bring back reality before it has gone too