How Does Poe Create Suspense In The Tell Tale Heart

There is always something that bothers us in life, whether it’s others or even our own conscious. In “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, the narrator has a difficult time following through with his cruel acts because a part of him knows it’s truly wrong. Throughout the story, his crimes bring more tension between him and the old man. Suspense is created with his every move, leaving readers hanging on the edge of their seats. In “The Tell-Tale Heart”, Poe builds suspense by using symbolism, inner thinking, and revealing information to the reader that a character doesn’t know about.

There are times in life where people do commit a small mistake, or a huge crime, but what really matters is if one will listen to their conscience. In “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, the main character lives with an old man who has an eye that “resembled that of a vulture--a pale blue eye, with a film over it.” The story revolves around the main character’s obsession over the eye, and how he got rid of it-- by murdering the old man. Towards the end of the story, the young man confesses to the police about his insane stunt after they searched his house. In “The Tell-Tale Heart,” Edgar Allan Poe focused on having the reader know more than the secondary character, using description, and using a first-person narrator, to build suspense.

Suspense by Edgar Allen Poe Suspense is a writing style that authors use to make people think about when something will happen. Edgar Allen Poe profoundly used this technique in his story “Tell Tale Heart”. He made the reader constantly question what was going to happen. It makes the reader think and sparks a certain interest.

Do you ever get the urge to get rid of something?The noise it makes, like an alarm clock. Just something about it makes you want to get rid of it. Well in The Tell-Tale Heart the narrator did. In The Tell-Tale Heart, by Edgar Allan Poe, takes place in an old man’s house. The main character, the narrator, wants to take the life of the old man because he hates his eye. But every time he goes into his room at night the eye is closed, he was no motivation to kill him. So, one night he accidentally wakes up the old man, shines the light on his hideous eye, and is consumed with anger. He finally took action and killed him. Poe uses suspense,a state or feeling of excitement or anxious uncertainty about may what happened. He uses characteristic anxiety, vivid words, and repetition.

Have you ever wanted to kill someone because of their eye?Most people would not either but, in The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe, that is just the reason the crazy main character wants to kill this old man. “He had the eye of a vulture” (Poe 89), he thought. In the story, the foolish main character has a plan to kill an old mean in the dead of night. Suspense is a feeling of tension, fear, and excitement felt by the reader when reading. Poe builds suspense throughout the story when using descriptions of the character’s anxiety and fear, vivid words, and details of a creepy setting.zz

For example, the reader can feel the suspense when he writes, “ And when the old man sprang up in the bed, crying out who's there” (Poe 91)? And when he writes “ I kept quiet and said nothing for a whole hour I did not move a muscle, and in the meantime I did not hear him lay down” (Poe 91).It is evident that the old man was scared because even though the man watching him was quiet and didn't move the old man still was not laying down. The reason he was scared because Poe further said that the narrator “Thumb slipped upon the tin fastening. ”(Poe 91).Poe creates more suspense when he says “ I felt myself getting pale and wished them gone My head ached, and I fancied a ringing in my ears: but still they sat and still chatted” (Poe 94). This shows anxiety the main character has and he was scared that they would find out that he killed the old man and that he has his beating heart.

Suspense is an integral part of storytelling. Without suspense, certain stories would not create their intended effect. Edgar Allen Poe wrote many books and poems, which were all under a gothic theme. His writings were very dark and mysterious, and they all contained suspense. Poe’s novel “The Tell-Tale Heart” and his poem “The Raven” contain suspense, which is created through point-of-view, irony, and diction.

Poe has an interesting writing style he uses foreshadowing in many stories. His stories usually consist of strange and spine-chilling events. In the Tell Tale Heart the ending leaves off in a mystery, I think that the police eventually arrested him. But also I think that the butler imagined or was paranoid most of the events. Poe’s writing attracts many people because multiple people like gothic or murder stories.

In the story “The Tell Tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Poe. The main character is the narrator. The narrator’s wants to kill the old man, the setting takes place in the old man’s house at 12:00 midnight. In the story “ The Tell Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, Poe describes the anxiety and fear to create suspense. For Example, the reader can feel the suspense when he writes “Villain!” I shrieked “dissemble” no more I admit the deed, tear up the planks here ,here - it is the beating of his hideous heart”(Poe 91).He knows that he killed the old man’s heart and he thinks the cops will find out that he did it. This continued the first example because it shows that the narrator was scared that he was going to get caught. so the suspense was that the narrator didn’t want to go to jail for what he did to the old man’s heart. A second example of anxiety and fear is “It nothing but the wind in the chimney-it is only a mouse crossing the floor or it is merely a cricket which has made a single chart”(poe 91). It explains how the old man’s was very scared and he tries to put himself back to sleep.

In Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” suspense is created through the reoccurring use of repetition which, conjures up feelings of unease in the readers. The speaker is clearly unstable. The speaker who is “nervous-very,very dreadfully nervous”(1) throughout the story repeatedly asks the reader “How, then, am I mad?”(1), then goes on to justify his actions. The reader understands that the fear in the speaker is building up, but do not know the reason why. With an unstable speaker the readers are not certain if what is being told is true or just in the speaker’s mind. The reader remains in anticipation of the speakers next move.

How does it feel to be completely lost without knowing you are lost? Always having to constantly reassure yourself of your own sanity? In the short story “Tell-Tale Heart,” Edgar Allen Poe follows the thoughts of a young man who has just committed a murder and is recounting the event in his thoughts. In doing so, he tries to justify his actions and affirm his sanity. “You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen me” (Poe). Poe’s gothic style brings forth a grotesque and thrilling story full of symbolism that seeks to make the tale much more visual for the reader. He transmits the emotions and feelings of the perpetrator in an attempt to draw the reader into his mind. Without this symbolism, the reader would miss the profound torment of the narrator.

“The Tell Tale Heart” Suspense Paragraph Final Draft It is apparent that the element of suspense is elevated via the use of various literary devices in the short story, “The Tell Tale Heart,” by Edgar Allan Poe. Poe uses repetition for great effect in order to further the feeling of suspense throughout the story. For instance, the narrator states, “I moved it slowly, very, very slowly…” (Poe 3).

“ The Tell-Tale Heart” Interpretive Essay Is the complex character created by Edgar Allan Poe a calculated killer or a delusional madman. In the short story “The Tell Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, the main character has a mental condition which causes him to kill a neighbor. He believes that his neighbor has a “vulture eye” which is the reason why he killed him. Night after night, he watches the man and plans how to kill him. Then one night, he puts his plan into action.

The Style of Poe Analysis In “The Tell-tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Poe, the demented, arrogant and dark tones reflect the man’s guilt and insanity that eventually leds him to admit to the crime he committed. Poe’s diction heightens the arrogant tones which is seen as the man plans the murder and carries it out in a careful, organized way. He goes “boldly” into the chamber, “cunningly” sticks his head in the doorway and feels “the extent of his own power”. Poe’s use of diction shows how cocky the man actually is.

Tell-Tale Heart Lit Analysis Imagine having a glassy blue eye and some one hates it so much that he kills you. That is what happened to the old man with the glassy blue eye in Tell- Tale Heart by Edgar Allen Poe. In the story the main character hates the old man’s glassy eye, so for seven nights at midnight the narrator would watch the old man sleep. On the eighth night the narrator is so sick of the eye, that he kills the old man.