The Tell-Tale Heart

A ) Interesting facts about the author:

1. He lost his parents when he was very young.
2.He was married to his 13 years old cousin.
3.His first book was published under the name of ­­­­" A bostonian "
4.The cause of his death is still unknown.
5.He lied about his age to get in the army.

B) Plot of the story

This story is about a servant who is obsessed by the eye of his master. He sees it everywhere and he is always thinking about "the eye". For seven days, the servant is thinking about killing his master to be releaved from the hypnotizing effects of "the eye ". One night, the servant finally decides to deliver himself of his obsession, and he kills his master. He then hides the body under the floor of the master's bedroom.

After few minutes, three policemen arrive at the house and explian that the neighboors just heard a scream and they alerted the police. The narrator lets the policemen in and they begin searching in the house. Everything seems normal so the are ready to leave but the narrator asks them to stay and to have a cup of tea with him. While sitting and discussing, the servant becomes very nervous because he can't stop hearing the thumping of the heart of his dead master. He goes through a psychotic moment and he confesses the murder.

C) Analysis
1. Setting

It takes place in the house of an old man where the narrator of the story lives. It takes place in the 1840 in the U.S.A. and probably in Boston. The story last 8 days.

2. Characters

The servant, he thinks he is sane but he is a madman. we dont know he is really a man or not. But Poe always writes with men's point of vue.

Old man: He has the evil eye.

The neighbors: They hear the scream and they call the police

The policemen: They investigate and the arrest the servant.

3.Themes (reader interpretation)

A) A human being has a perverse,wicked side-another self-that can provoke him to doing evil things without an apparent motive.

B) He was afraid of being discovered, wich lead to his discovery.

C) The evil within is worse than the evil without.

4. Point of view

1st person narrator.

5. Sentence style

"Object there was none, passion there was none, I loved the man..."

6. Figures of speech

A) Anaphora (repetition) : "I heard thongs in heaven, I heard things in hell..."

B) Personification: "death" becomes a person .

C) Simile: "a single ray of light like the thread of a spider"

D) Aliteration(repetition of sound): "Heardden ! Observation how heartily how calmly."

E) Irony " I was never kinder to the old man during the week before I killed him. "