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The Tell-Tale Heart Narrative Analysis

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Intro- “The Yellow Wallpaper” takes place inside the mind of a woman suffering a slow mental breakdown illustrated by her obsession with the yellow wallpaper. In “The Tell-Tale Heart”, the narrator tells his story of living with an old man who had a "cloudy blue eye" that drove the narrator insane, but through the story he insists he is not insane. The point of view contributes to the meaning of “The Yellow Wallpaper” and “The Tell-Tale Heart” because it emphasizes narrative reliability, setting, and the theme of illusion vs reality. Narrative Reliability- The point of view contributes to the meaning of “The Yellow Wallpaper” and “The Tell-Tale Heart” because it emphasizes narrative reliability. “The Yellow Wallpaper” narrated in first person point of view, from the entries in the main character’s journal. The journal entries are strictly of her present thoughts and feelings. The main character’s reliability is faulty because reality is filtered through her depleting mental state. “The Tell-Tale Heart” is told in …show more content…

In “The Yellow Wallpaper” the setting is only available to the audience through what the main character describes in her journal. The main character extensively describes the present 19th century estate where she lives, her bedroom and the bedroom’s wallpaper. The main character’s mental state is reflected by the setting. “(The house) is quite alone standing well back from the road, quite three miles from the village. It makes me think of English places that you read about, for there are hedges and walls and gates.” The estate is isolated from the road and from society. The house itself is described as a place that binds and restricts with its barred windows, many locks and gates. The setting is much similar to the narrator’s emotional position that is isolated and restricted. In “The Tell-Tale Heart” the

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