The Tell-Tale Heart

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“The Tell-Tale Heart”
This chilling tale of madness and murder penned by American horror genius Edgar Allan Poe revolves around the irrational acts of one poor tormented soul. Because Poe chose to allow the reader to experience the events of “The Tell-Tale Heart” through the main character’s own perspective, the narrator is never even given a name; however it is still this use of the first-person that most dramatically contributes to the character’s development.
Right off the bat, Poe gives the reader an indication that the narrator is unstable. In the first sentence of the story, the narrator admits, enthusiastically even, that he is “nervous-very, very dreadfully nervous,” (36) then he is quick to add, “[. . .] why will you say that I am mad” (36)? By giving the reader the narrator’s first-hand account of his feelings and his fears, Poe allows the reader to deduce for himself that the narrator is very possibly paranoid. His admission of nervousness immediately followed by such a defensive question shows the narrator’s suspicion of his audience. He seems compelled to convince the reader of his justification for committing a crime of passion, and his first-person appeal to the reader’s good judgment makes the story come alive.
The narrator’s initial defense is that of his illness. He claims to have some ailment that “had sharpened [his] senses” (36), but his mention of this ailment is vague. He neither names nor describes other aspects of the disease. His casual mention of the problem is indicative of a real-life excuse and makes the narrator seem like every other screw-up, but his elaboration on the sharpening of his senses makes him seem strange. At first he seems just to exaggerate by saying he “heard all things in the heaven and in the earth” (36), but then he goes on to say that he “heard many things in hell” (36) and follows by asking, “How, then, am I mad” (36)? Could the narra...