Edgar Allan Poe The Tell Tale Heart
Andrew McClarren
English 015
Edgar Allan Poe remains widely recognized in literature to this day for his gloomy, mysterious writings. Prior to becoming an author, Poe lived an unfortunate life which significantly influenced his works. As a young child, he entered an orphanage after the death of both parents. Soon after his adoption, his new mother whom he loved immensely, passed from Tuberculosis leaving Poe with his stepfather who sincerely disliked him. He lost several women he loved either through death or tragic heart-break. Many of his poems and stories directly reflect his internal emotions regarding his traumatic and listless life. A kind-hearted, old fellow brutally murdered and dismembered solely out of the profound fear instilled within one self-proclaimed sane man. In Edgar Allan Poe’s 1843 short story The Tell-Tale Heart, an unknown narrator discovers the beloved, elderly man whom he frequently encounters, possesses a pale blue eye which provokes him towards insanity. The narrator lurks outside the old man’s bed chamber for seven days until he gains the perfect view of the eye and can execute his plan to kill him; “I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him. And every night, about midnight, I turned the latch of his door and opened it --oh so gently!”.
Upon the elderly fellow’s demise, the narrator dismembers his body and hides the pieces under the floor boards. Policemen arrive at the man’s door upon a neighbor’s noise complaint and request permission to search the premises. Unable to find any evidence, the officers speak happily with the killer in the very room he hid the body. Time passes and the man feels extreme guilt and paranoia then demands the officers tear up the floor boards, exposing the body and confessing to the crime. One of the most profound themes within The Tell-Tale Heart displays the separation of love and hatred. The old man’s eye represents evil that provokes overwhelming contempt within
English 015
Edgar Allan Poe remains widely recognized in literature to this day for his gloomy, mysterious writings. Prior to becoming an author, Poe lived an unfortunate life which significantly influenced his works. As a young child, he entered an orphanage after the death of both parents. Soon after his adoption, his new mother whom he loved immensely, passed from Tuberculosis leaving Poe with his stepfather who sincerely disliked him. He lost several women he loved either through death or tragic heart-break. Many of his poems and stories directly reflect his internal emotions regarding his traumatic and listless life. A kind-hearted, old fellow brutally murdered and dismembered solely out of the profound fear instilled within one self-proclaimed sane man. In Edgar Allan Poe’s 1843 short story The Tell-Tale Heart, an unknown narrator discovers the beloved, elderly man whom he frequently encounters, possesses a pale blue eye which provokes him towards insanity. The narrator lurks outside the old man’s bed chamber for seven days until he gains the perfect view of the eye and can execute his plan to kill him; “I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him. And every night, about midnight, I turned the latch of his door and opened it --oh so gently!”.
Upon the elderly fellow’s demise, the narrator dismembers his body and hides the pieces under the floor boards. Policemen arrive at the man’s door upon a neighbor’s noise complaint and request permission to search the premises. Unable to find any evidence, the officers speak happily with the killer in the very room he hid the body. Time passes and the man feels extreme guilt and paranoia then demands the officers tear up the floor boards, exposing the body and confessing to the crime. One of the most profound themes within The Tell-Tale Heart displays the separation of love and hatred. The old man’s eye represents evil that provokes overwhelming contempt within