Madness And Symbolism In The Tell-Tale Heart By Edgar Allen Poe

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The Tale Tell Heart” is a short story in which Edgar Allen Poe, the author, illustrates the madness and complexity of an individual. The unnamed narrator, who is Poe’s main character, is sharing his story of him murdering an old man on the sole reason of his dislike for his filmy blue eye, which reminds him of a vulture. He meticulously plans the murder of this old man, and attempts to cover up the act through his twister persona. In the "Tell-Tale Heart", Poe uses satire, imagery, and symbolism to portray how startlingly perverted the mind of the narrator is and how guilt always prevails. Poe starts off the short story by giving us insight into the unnamed narrator’s twisted mind. The narrator explains his desire and plans to kill the old …show more content…

The imagery of the blue eye is vital for the story, which reminds the narrator of a vulture. This symbolism can be portrayed as a foreseeable death, because in the nature of vultures they sweep in on already dead prey and feast. This can present a foreseeable act, in which he commits the murder of the old man because of his lack of sanity. As the story proceeds, the narrator is cautious and meticulous in his plan of murder. This gives the narrator a false sense of sanity, because he believes if he is careful and scrupulous, then he is sane and in control of his situation. For Poe to use this satire that the narrator is sane and believes he is in control is vital to the building of this tale. As he constructs his murder plan, he watches and stalks the old man, who he has deemed as innocent, and eventually commits the murder on the old man. When stalking the old man in the middle of the night he is startled when the old man awakens from …show more content…

Though the narrator just murdered the innocent old man, he believes he is justifiably sane and calm. This ironically, is not the case in retrospect. After burying the evidence of the murder the police arrive and question the narrator of the screams the neighbor reported. Still during this time, the narrator thought he was completely justified and sane. He kept reassuring himself they knew nothing while chatting and answering their questions. Just as he thought he was in the clear for the murder of the old man, the narrator begins to hear a thumping and beating noise. He is alarmed by the noise, worried the police who are questioning him are hearing the same noise he is. The noise he is hearing is of a heart. Not his own heart, nor the heart of the old man he just murdered, but is the cadence and realization of his own guilt. Throughout this story, it is obvious that he is either criminally insane and this story is real and has happened, or it is all in his imagination. The setting of this story is not known, so he could either be in prison telling this story, or in an insane asylum. Regarding the beating heart he is hearing, it symbolizes and shows satire in the murder that he has committed. After hearing the noise loudly and clearly, the narrator confesses to the police who he thinks also can hear the noise. The irony of his

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