This week's blog post is yet another of Edgar Allan Poe's short stories. However, this week I have a different analysis for you. The concentration of this week is on Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart". I must say that this is my favorite story of Poe's literary work. The tone of the writing is very passionate and captivating. It is truly a vivid image with the power and diction that Poe experiments with. But....one cannot read this story once and see the power of the whole story. Correction, well one could do that, but he or she will not be able to depict the great meanings, symbols, and connections of Poe's classic tale. Therefore, after countless power naps, cans of Sierra Mist Free, bottles of grape G2 Gatorade, runs to my refrigerator for refueling, and hours of hearing MTV, I have an overview analysis of Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart". (And I forgot to mention, the panic of almost forgetting to post this weeks topic...oops...but it is okay now, because I am here to discuss my interpretations and analysis).
Before I share my analysis, here are the questions all the Ultimate Decepticons were supposed to think about when writing the analysis for this week:
1. Discuss who could be the villain (antagonist) in Tell-Tale Heart? Consider your many options for the villain and discuss your rationale for your final choice.
2. What is the narrator’s motivation in reciting the crime? Consider the details he provides as he recites the crime from the beginning to the end.
3. What is the ultimate irony in Tell-Tale Heart and how does it relate to the title of the story?
Okay, those were the questions, and here is the best part. Well, considering if you are one who ignores the rest of my posts and scrolls down to see my analysis of the literary concentration for the week. Whoever you may be, here it is:
1. In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”, one could analyze and conclude that there is a possibility of multiple villains in the gothic piece. One could conclude that the villain was the old man’s eye, the old man’s heart, or even himself. In gothic literature, the villain depicts the repressed emotions of the protagonist. In this case, the protagonist is the narrator. If one chooses the villain of the story as the heart, the heart represses the guilt of the protagonist. Through symbolism, the heart speaks to the conscience of the old man with its beat. In the story, the narrator describes the heartbeat to get louder and louder, which reflects the growing remorse of the narrator as he continues to suffer with his actions. In this case, could one perceive that the protagonist is hearing his own heartbeat, as he believes that he is hearing the heartbeat of the dead old man? The protagonist is driven crazy by the end of the story, in which he hears the “speaking” of his own heart, along with knowing the heart of the old man reflects his guilty conscience. This affects the protagonist in his demise, which he fell into his remorse, and ultimately presented his crime and dismembered heart and old man to the police striving for an act of penance.
Now I am starting to have second thoughts about who is the true villain of the story is. The ultimate emotion that the protagonist is trying to repress is his insanity. Throughout the entire story, the protagonist tries to convince readers and himself that he is not crazy. However, the murder of the old man is not one that is attached emotionally, due to the narrator's love for the old man and he does not have anything against him. When the protagonist sees the "Evil Eye", it makes him nervous, which creates anxiety. At the end, it is the sight of the eye, which drives the protagonist to confess his awful deed. The sight of the eye, adds to the remorse of his guilt, but is considered the representation of the protagonist's insanity. Thus, proving that the villain prevails, the sight of the eye controls and overpowers the protagonist's insanity.
Now I am starting to have second thoughts about who is the true villain of the story is. The ultimate emotion that the protagonist is trying to repress is his insanity. Throughout the entire story, the protagonist tries to convince readers and himself that he is not crazy. However, the murder of the old man is not one that is attached emotionally, due to the narrator's love for the old man and he does not have anything against him. When the protagonist sees the "Evil Eye", it makes him nervous, which creates anxiety. At the end, it is the sight of the eye, which drives the protagonist to confess his awful deed. The sight of the eye, adds to the remorse of his guilt, but is considered the representation of the protagonist's insanity. Thus, proving that the villain prevails, the sight of the eye controls and overpowers the protagonist's insanity.
2. The narrator quotes at the beginning of the story, “The disease had sharpened my senses-not destroyed-not dulled them. Above all was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell. How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe, how healthily-how calmly I can tell you the whole story” (Poe 121). The narrator’s motivation for committing the crime is his view of the old man’s vulture eye. His motive is not the old man himself, because the protagonist views the old man and his eye as two separate factors. This affects how it took the protagonist seven nights to finally kill the old man. Leading up to the murder, the protagonist would go into the old man’s room at around midnight. Since the old man was sleeping, he was unable to see the “Evil Eye”. In this, the protagonist only saw the innocent old man sleeping, which means that there is a deeper meaning to the “Evil Eye”. One could theorize that the eye symbolizes a deep manifestation of the protagonist, which could symbolize something that he is unable or unwilling to separate from himself. The narrator opens the story with describing as he not crazy for his action and can tell one in a calm manner for this reasoning.
Where in reality, as one reads the story, the narrator explains in a very loud and passionate tone of his reasoning. The narrator creates a vivid image of the situation, which perceives one to be alive in that scenario as the narrator is narrating the story. In all, the does not persuade one to believe that the narrator is not crazy, but more or less it convinces one that the narrator is unable to convince himself with his imagery and tone that he is not crazy or wrong in his action.
Where in reality, as one reads the story, the narrator explains in a very loud and passionate tone of his reasoning. The narrator creates a vivid image of the situation, which perceives one to be alive in that scenario as the narrator is narrating the story. In all, the does not persuade one to believe that the narrator is not crazy, but more or less it convinces one that the narrator is unable to convince himself with his imagery and tone that he is not crazy or wrong in his action.
3. All right, this question has stumbled me the most. However, after a few hours of thought I think I have something…maybe. The narrator main objective in the story is to perceive readers that he is not insane, and that his actions were done for the greater good. In this, the narrator tells us his story, and how he really loved the old man and how he had really no reason to kill the old man himself. All the narrator wanted was the “Evil Eye” to be gone. The narrator tells a tale about the murder of the old man, but if the protagonist listened truly to the “speaking tale” of his own heart, he would have not needed to blame his guilt of the old man’s heart. As he killed the old man, in reality the old man’s heart would have stopped, which illogically cannot prove that is was the old man’s beating heart that was repressing the narrator’s guilt. The protagonist’s heart was really leading his own mind, not the beating of the old man’s heart, which he convinced himself that it was the entire time.
Moreover, the protagonist’s heart was the factor leading his mind throughout the telling of this disheartening tale, as if he truly loved the old man himself, his heart would have never told him to kill the old man, nor tell this tale.
Moreover, the protagonist’s heart was the factor leading his mind throughout the telling of this disheartening tale, as if he truly loved the old man himself, his heart would have never told him to kill the old man, nor tell this tale.
I hope everyone enjoyed this week's analysis and post!
This is your Ultimate Decepticon, A, with love,
Allison
All of your analysis posts are so long and full of detail! That's amazing. I'll be posting mine shortly.
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