Tell Tale Heart Analysis - 1176 Words

Emma Li Mrs. Gahagan Period 3 30 October 2017 Secrets and Style of Sir Poe Gothic fiction is the strange, dark, spooky, and supernatural writing style loved by readers of all ages. Most of the stories written in the Gothic style were centered in the gothic medieval period. Several renowned books like The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux and The Hunchback of Notre Dame by Victor Hugo were written in this style. Edgar Allan Poe was one well known Gothic writer and poet from the early eighteen hundreds; he was especially famous for his tales of mystery and macabre. A popular dark short story, â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart,† and one of his first and most famous poems, â€Å"The Raven,† are no exception. â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† is a story of murder†¦show more content†¦Therefore, the metaphors used by Poe supports the sinister mood of the short story and poem. Diction, or word choice, is also used in â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† and â€Å"The Raven† to indirectly characterize the narrator and speaker. The narrator of â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart,† upon spying the vulture eye of the old man, depicts it as â€Å"all a dull blue, with a hideous veil over [the eye] that chilled the very marrow in [his] bones† (Poe 355). Through using the word â€Å"hideous† and the phrase â€Å"chilled the very marrow in [his] bones†, the narrator blatantly reveals his wariness towards the old man’s eye. The narrator feels threatened by the eye, which indirectly characterizes him as insane because it is unnatural for people to feel terrorized by appearance. Additionally, the speaker in â€Å"The Raven† claims that while he dreams about Lenore in the presence of the raven, â€Å"the air [grows] denser, perfumed from an unseen censer / Swung by Seraphim whose footfalls tinkled on the tufted floor† (Poe 79, 80). â€Å"Censer† and â€Å"Seraphim† are two words that express the speaker’s longing for Lenore, as a censer is a c overed incense burner usually used in funerals, and Seraphim is an order of angels from Heaven. The reference to angels and funerals indirectly characterizes the speaker asShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of The Tell Tale Heart 1110 Words   |  5 Pagesdespicable villains are marked with indifference towards their moral reprehensibility. â€Å"In the Penal Colony† and â€Å"The Tell Tale Heart† both elucidate the idea that corruption, darkness, and immorality alike are unperceivable to the one afflicted. However, while â€Å"In the Penal Colony† suggests that this blind nature is a result of dutiful honor, responsibility, and hope, â€Å"The Tell Tale Heart† alternatively submits that it is a result of the possibility of fulfillment. Distinction between bothRead MoreLiterary Analysis Of The Tell Tale Heart 1072 Words   |  5 PagesMason Wright Professor Ward English 1101 Oct 2nd, 2015 Literary Analysis: The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe In Edgar Allan Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart, a story is told of a man whom is not named but I willrefer to as the narrator. The narrator is often quite nervous, however the man tells that â€Å"the disease has sharpened my senses- -not destroyed- -not dulled them†. The narrator tells of an old man, whom the narrator loves, but he plans to kill the old man, for the old man has what the narratorRead MoreEssay on Tell-tale Heart Literary Analysis723 Words   |  3 PagesThe Tell-Tale Heart A Literary Analysis Like many of Poes other works, the Tell-Tale Heart is a dark story. This particular one focuses on the events leading the death of an old man, and the events afterwards. Thats the basics of it, but there are many deep meanings hidden in the three page short story. Poe uses techniques such as first person narrative, irony and style to pull off a believable sense of paranoia. In this particular story, Poe decided to write it in the first person narrativeRead MoreAnalysis Of The Tell Tale Heart By Edgar Allen Poe1320 Words   |  6 PagesRory Spillane Mr. Bruno English IV period 8 1.29.15 Analysis of the Tell-Tale Heart Edgar Allen Poe was born on January 19th, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts. He went on to become one of the most famous American poets and authors in history. The subjects of his poems and stories were often morbid in nature, many of them having to do with death and murder. Unfortunately, the dark tone of his work reflected the darkness of his life, which was marked with notable instances of tragedy, such as theRead MoreAnalysis Of Poe s The Tell Tale Heart 839 Words   |  4 PagesTamara Combs Professor Bonds ENG 1102 28October 2015 Poe’s â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† The Tell Tale Heart is a story, on the most basic level, of conflict. There is a psychological struggle inside the speaker himself .Through obvious clues and statements, Poe warns the reader to the mental state of the speaker, which is irrationality. The irrationality is described as a fixation (with the old man s eye), which in turn leads to loss of control and ultimately results in murder. â€Å"†¦I loved the old man.Read More Critical Analysis of Poes The Tell Tale Heart Essay examples1635 Words   |  7 PagesCritical Analysis of Poes The Tell Tale Heart The Tell Tale Heart is a story, on the most basic level, of conflict. There is a mental conflict within the narrator himself (assuming the narrator is male). Through obvious clues and statements, Poe alerts the reader to the mental state of the narrator, which is insanity. The insanity is described as an obsession (with the old mans eye), which in turn leads to loss of control and eventually results in violence. Ultimately, the narrator tells hisRead MoreFreudian Analysis of Edgar Allen Poes a Tell Tale Heart Essay665 Words   |  3 PagesErika Barnett Professor Curley Daring the Nightmare 13 October 2010 A Freudian Analysis of â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† By Edgar Allen Poe As an esteemed psychologist analyzing this accused murderer, I have found a few key pieces of evidence that ultimately lead me to the decision that the murderer is in fact mad and I recommend psychological rehabilitation as well as jail sentence as a proper penalty for the crime committed. Although, he claims he can recount the night of the murder â€Å"healthily andRead MoreAnalysis of The Tell Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe Essay942 Words   |  4 PagesImagine the sight of an old mans eye, vultures, pale blue, with a film covering it. (Farooq). Could this make one’s self so insane that one would murder a man because of it? This is the event that occurs in Edgar Allen Poes The Tell-Tale Heart. Every night at midnight, the narrator, ventured into the old mans room without making a sound, to observe the very eye at which made his blood run cold. The old man did not suspect a thing. During the day the narrator continued to go about his dailyRead MoreAnalysis Of Edgar Allan Poe s A Tell Tale Heart1289 Words   |  6 Pages Inside the Heart There are many well-known poets, but not many are as unique as Edgar Allan Poe. By the age of 13, Poe had become a creative poet (Biographies). Many of Poe s works were horrific fictional stories. His first book was published in Boston in 1827, called Tamerlane and other Poems. More of Poe s major works include Tales of the Grotesque a d Arabesque, which included his most spine tingling tales such as Ligeia and The Fall of the House of Usher. Most of Poe s works haveRead MoreAnalysis Of Edgar Allen Poe s Tell Tale Heart895 Words   |  4 PagesIn Edgar Allen Poe’s Tell-Tale Heart, the narrator says â€Å"It is impossible to say how first the idea entered my brain; but once conceived, it haunted me day and night.† The narrator uses illustration to prove that he is not insane, and plans a story as evidence. In this story, the primary condition is the narrator s decision to kill the old man so that the man s eye will stop looking at the narrator. The eye, the watch, and bedroom are examples of symbolism and imagery that add to the narrator’s