The Tell-Tale Heart Response Paper

793 Words4 Pages

1. Since the narrator entered the old man’s bedroom, it caused the old man to awaken. In order not to get caught, the storyteller does not move a muscle for an hour. Yet, when hearing the old man’s slight groan of fear, the main character is reminded of the feeling of terror he experiences at night. Furthermore, although the old man feels the presence of the narrator in his room, he is trying to convince himself that there is no one there. His attempt to do this is vain because the narrator will kill him regardless and Death is going to envelop the old man. 2. The narrator’s intentions are bad. As stated in the story, it reads, “I knew what the old man felt, and pitied him, although I chuckled at heart.” Based on this, it appears the main character ridicules the old man’s fear. He is laughing silently to himself because the man is afraid of the narrator’s presence in his room. Additionally, in “The Tell-Tale Heart,” it said, “All in vain; because Death, in approaching him, had stalked with his black shadow before him, and enveloped the victim.” Poe stated how Death is approaching and stalking the old man. Being that Death is the narrator, this suggests to the readers the …show more content…

The narrator’s persona is a crazy and an unreliable lunatic. Through the storyteller’s mentally deranged mind, the audience does not know the narrator’s next move, which contributes to the menacing tone of the story. As stated in the story, it said, “It was open – wide, wide open, and my anger increased as it looked straight at me. I could not see the man’s face. Only that eye, that hard blue eye, and the blood in my body became like ice.” Based on this, the narrator is perceived as a mental person. It appears he believes the old man and the old man’s eyes are two different things. The storyteller’s main focus is the eye. From this paragraph, the readers do not know whether the narrator is going to kill or take out the old man’s eyes. Due to this, it creates a spooky and a threatening