Symbolism: The Tell Tale Heart

The Tell Tale Heart Symbolism: The Eye

The Eye in "The Tell Tale Heart" symbolizes the part of the narrator's identity that he refuses to accept or confront. Eyes are often viewed as representative of one's true nature, and as being able to reveal an aspect of one's personality that the other senses may hide. The narrator believes this is the case with his victim, believing the eye reveals something of the old man, that no one else was able to see. The narrator even reduces the old man's identity to his eye, when he states "I saw [the eye] with perfect distinctness...I could see nothing else of the old man's face or person;". The reader is able to realize, however, that it is not the old man, but the narrator himself that the eye represents. Looking at the words that the narrator uses to describe the eye prove this. The narrator describes the eye as "evil" and comparing it to that of a "vulture". These words, however, better describe the narrator. The narrator can be described as "evil" when without reason or motive, he kills the old man, dismembers his body, hides it under the floor, and even boldly allows the police to sit over the site of the old man's body, and converses with them. He can also be described as a "vulture" when like an animal he stalks his victim, relying on instinct, and forgetting all human qualities. It is also evident that the narrator has a problem accepting himself and his actions. The story opens with him rejecting the notion that he is crazy, and he remains adamant throughout. This problem accepting his identity also explains why, whenever he looks at the old man's eye he becomes angry, and why he felt the need to get rid of it.

Narrator: The Tell Tale Heart

Narrator in The Tell Tale Heart

The Great Edgar Allan Poe

 One of the best examples of an unreliable narrator, the narrator in “The Tell Tale Heart” can also be classified as a participant narrator based on his first-hand account of events in the story. Evidence of his first-hand account can be found in the use of the word "I" as well as his vivid description of the murder he committed. He also proves himself to be an unreliable narrator when he fails to distinguish between his imagination and reality. He fails to realize that the beating heart he hears, is actually inside his head, and wasn't actually happening. 

The combination of a participant narrator that is also unreliable is intentional. The story is best told from his point of view, because the depth of his madness would have been lost had it been told from anyone else’s. This narrative style causes the reader to be more amazed at the mental roller coaster that is the narrator, than the actual murder. The reader is left more amazed at the how detailed he was in the execution of his plan, than the actual plan itself.  The narrator reducing the old man’s identity to an eye ensures that very little emotional affiliation is attached to the Old Man, instead causing you to examine his insanity.

Character Analysis: The Tell Tale Heart

A Tell Tale Heart

Character Analysis: Unnamed Narrator

The unidentified narrator is also the main character in "The Tell Tale Heart." One of the most intense characters of all time, his mental state is shocking yet strangely magnetic, taking the reader to  the rarely visited mind of the insane. He is a highly dynamic character, constantly shifting from one mental state to another. When analyzing this character, the first question that has to be asked is, was he truly mentally insane? While many may say that he is definitely mentally unstable, the answer highly depends on the context within which one defines insanity, within which one decides to analyze this character. From the psychological standpoint he seems to be suffering from paranoia and narcissism. He constantly brags about his "acuteness of the senses", how well he was able to carry out his crime, and he does not acknowledge the human attributes of his victim, instead reducing him to an eye.  He states "I saw [the eye] with perfect distinctness...I could see nothing else of the old man's face or person;". The strongest evidence of his insanity is shown when he believes he is hearing the dead man's beating heart. The reader knows he wasn't really hearing it, because the other people in the room (the police officers), heard nothing. The reader realizes that the sound of the beating heart is actually inside his head.

Summary: The Tell Tale Heart

The Tell Tale Heart

The Tell Tale Heart Summary

"The Tell Tale Heart" by Edgar Allan Poe is one of the most compelling short stories which takes the reader into the mind of the mentally insane. "The Tell Tale Heart" opens with a defiant unidentified narrator who protests at the presumption that he is insane. He continues by stating how improved his perception had become using it as a means of defense against the claim of insanity. He begins to describe in vivid detail the murder of an old man, stating that he had no real motive to commit the act, save the victims eye, which greatly bothered him. He begins to brag about how meticulously he went about the act, stalking the old man night after night with his lantern, taking extra care not to alert his victim, and taking as much as an hour to simply push his head through the door to see his victim. The eighth night is particularly exhilarating to the narrator. His victim seemingly sensing his presence, awakes, and never returns to sleep. The narrator states that he is able to sense the victim's extreme fear, and even relates to it, stating that he had often experienced the same intense fear. The narrator realizing that the man has no intention of returning to sleep, slightly turns on his lantern, and sees his victim's eye. A sort of frenzy eventually builds up in the narrator, and he attacks the old man suffocating 

him.