Suspense In Tell Tale Heart And The Raven
Edgar Allen Poe is one of the most infamous and well regarded writers in modern times, even though he died in 1849. Part of this fame was due to the dark sense, but most was because of the suspense he caused in his writing. In Tell Tale Heart and The Raven, he used diction, point of view, and irony to create suspense in both the short story and the poem. Right away, in Tell Tale Heart, Poe uses point of view to not only creep the reader out, but to enhance the context of the rest of the plot. Since the short story was in first person, we got to see inside the mind of the murderer, which wasn’t really a gift. The main character seems to be mad, a certain kind of mental, as you can see by the quote, “very, very dreadfully nervous I had been
and am; but why will you say that I am mad?” The reader is immediately drawn into the story, wondering what will happen when a change is at the mercy of a madman. He even admits to having a mental issue when he said, “the disease had sharpened my senses… I heard all things in heaven or hell. How, then, am I mad? “ Everything he says after that is questioned, every time the reader is wondering whether his account of events are accurate, and every reader that has a fully functioning brain can figure out that some crime is about to be committed. Which is exactly why the point of view creates suspense. Diction, word choice is presented in both Tell Tale Heart, and The Raven, pulling the reader in to learn more about the plot. In only a minute into Tell Tale Heart, he tells the reader that, “in an instant I dragged him to the floor, and pulled to heavy bed over him. I then smiled gaily, to find the deed so far done” These specific sentences create an eerie feeling, knowing how happy the man was to kill over a single eye. In fact, in the very beginning, he says, “He had never wronged me. He had never given me insult.” Yet thanks to the point of view (the whole “I’m not crazy thing”), we already know that this isn’t going to end well, especially when the murderer is explaining his actions. In The Raven, the repetition of “Nevermore”, makes the reader anxious, a telltale sign of suspense. In Tale Tell Heart, dramatic irony is the last source of suspense listed here. The policemen that show up at the door are told that the old man is “out in the country”, and that everything is absolutely fine, even though the reader knows full well of what happened a few hours ago. They are even at ease, relaxing on a couch, just five feet away from where the dismembered body lays. The reader wants to read ahead, to see whether the police find out or not, causing suspense in the story. Overall, in both The Raven and Tell Tale Heart, point of view, diction, and irony are used to create suspense.
and am; but why will you say that I am mad?” The reader is immediately drawn into the story, wondering what will happen when a change is at the mercy of a madman. He even admits to having a mental issue when he said, “the disease had sharpened my senses… I heard all things in heaven or hell. How, then, am I mad? “ Everything he says after that is questioned, every time the reader is wondering whether his account of events are accurate, and every reader that has a fully functioning brain can figure out that some crime is about to be committed. Which is exactly why the point of view creates suspense. Diction, word choice is presented in both Tell Tale Heart, and The Raven, pulling the reader in to learn more about the plot. In only a minute into Tell Tale Heart, he tells the reader that, “in an instant I dragged him to the floor, and pulled to heavy bed over him. I then smiled gaily, to find the deed so far done” These specific sentences create an eerie feeling, knowing how happy the man was to kill over a single eye. In fact, in the very beginning, he says, “He had never wronged me. He had never given me insult.” Yet thanks to the point of view (the whole “I’m not crazy thing”), we already know that this isn’t going to end well, especially when the murderer is explaining his actions. In The Raven, the repetition of “Nevermore”, makes the reader anxious, a telltale sign of suspense. In Tale Tell Heart, dramatic irony is the last source of suspense listed here. The policemen that show up at the door are told that the old man is “out in the country”, and that everything is absolutely fine, even though the reader knows full well of what happened a few hours ago. They are even at ease, relaxing on a couch, just five feet away from where the dismembered body lays. The reader wants to read ahead, to see whether the police find out or not, causing suspense in the story. Overall, in both The Raven and Tell Tale Heart, point of view, diction, and irony are used to create suspense.