SET A PURPOSE

FOR READING
Read "The Tell-Tale Heart"
to find out whether the
narrator really is insane.
The
Tell-Tale
Heart
I'
l
I

Short Story by
EDGAR ALLAN POE
'
BACKGROUND Edgar Allan Poe is often credited with
having invented the modern horror or suspense story.
Many of the familiar elements _from today's horror
movies are found in this story--fury, murder, blood,
and madness. Poe was also one of the first writers to
explore science fiction and detective styles .
Y

. .
acute (o-kyoot') adj. sharp; keen
Why does the narrator think that
his hearing is acute?
T rue!-nervous-very, very dreadfully nervous I had
been and am! but why will you say that I am mad?
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 'I

observe how healthily-how calmly I can tell you the

whole story.
It is impossible to say how first the idea entered my
10 brain; but once conceived, it haunted me day and night.
iv) v to think of Object there was none. Passion there was none. I loved the

!,
READER / UNIT 1: PLOT AND CONFLICT
» f
 L

old man. He had never wronged me. He had never given

me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I think it was his
eye! yes, it was this! He had the eye of a vulture--a pale
blue eye, with a film over it. Whenever it fell upon me, my
blood ran cold; and so by degrees- _ very gradually-· I made'
up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid
myself of the eye forever.
Now this is the point. You fancy me mad. Madmen know
20 nothing. But you should have seen me. You should have seen
how wisely I proceeded-with what caution-with what
foresight--with what dissimulation! I went to work! O EVALUATENARRATOR·;
I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole Reread lines 1-22.Underline the 'x
words that the narrator uses to :},-'2-}
week before I killed him. And every night, about midnight, convince you that he is not mad. % ?
I turned the latch of his door and opened it--oh, so gently! Does the narrator's opinion of?2
himself
' ... make you trust him more+
.
And then, when I had made an opening sufficient for my .or less? Why?
. ' (..

•, \. '•

head, I put in a dark lantern, all closed, closed, so thatno

light shone out, and then I thrust in myhead. Oh, you
t
Would have laughed to see how cunningly I thrust it in!
3o I moved it slowly--very, very slowly, so that I might not
' ' disturb the old man's sleep. It took me an hour to place
my whole head within the opening so far that I could
see him as he lay upon his bed. Ha!--would a madman
have been so wise as this? And then, when my head was
well in the room, I undid the lantern cautiously--oh, so
cautiously-cautiously (for the hinges creaked) I undid
it just so much that a single thin ray fell upon the vulture
eye. And this I did for seven long nights--every night just
at midnight--but I found the eye always closed; and so it ------;:__-'--~~-..:..,:._
ao was impossible to do the work; for it was not the old man
·
!
who vexed me, but his Evil Eye. And every morning, when
f

the day broke, I went boldly into the chamber, and spoke
courageously to him, calling him by name in a hearty tone,
and inquiring how he had passed the night. So you see·

1. dissimulation (di-sim'yo-la'shon): a hiding of one's true feelings.

 I5PENSE 3. " he would have been a very profound old man, indeed, to
es 23-47, the narrator suspect that every night, just at twelve, I looked in upon ) .
scribes what he does
peatedly, night after night. him while he slept. ©
, (hy does this repetition create a
ise of dread? ±:. Upon the eighth night I was more than usually cautious
in opening the door. A watch's minute hand moves more
so quickly than did mine. Never before that night had I felt
the extent of my own powers of my sagacity. I could
scarcely contain my feelings of triumph. To think that
there I was, opening the door, little by little, and he not
even to dream of my secret deeds or thoughts. I fairly
chuckled at the idea; and perhaps he heard me; for he .3

moved on the bed suddenly, as if startled. Now you may

think that I drew back-but no. His room was as black as
pitch with the thick darkness (for the shutters were close
(r
fastened, through fear of robbers), and so I knew that he
so could not see the opening of the door, and I kept pushing it
) , «1 on steadily, steadily.
i th

1
@ SUSPENSE • . I had my head in, and was about to open the lanterr,
Reread lines 62-69. In what way when my thumb slipped upon the tin fastening, and the
does the characters' inaction'
s 3p'3
create tension? •
Yo +
.• old man sprang up in the bed, crying out--Who's there?" '
Y .,3

I kept quite still and said nothing. For a whole hour

I did not move a muscle, and in the meantime I did
not hear him lie down. He was still sitting up in the
bed listening,just as I have done, night after night,
hearkening to the death watches? in the wall. @
o Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was
the groan of mortal terror. It was not a groan of pain or
grief-oh, no!--it was the low, stifled sound that arises
from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe.
I knew the sound well. Many a night, just at midnight,
when all the world slept, it has welled up from my own
bosom, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors that
stifled.(sti'fold) adj. smothered distracted me. I say I knew it well. I knew what the old
stifle v %% +

2. sagacity (so-gas'i-te): sound judgment.

3. death watches: deathwatch beetles--insects that make a tapping sound
with their heads.

'. »4
60 INTERACTIVEREADER / UNIT 1: PLOT AND CONFLICT
% '
 9
Monitor Your Comprehension

man felt, and pitied him, although. I chuckled at heart.

' '

I knew that he had been lying awake ever since the first
so slight noise, when he had turned in the bed. His fears had
been ever since growing upon him. He had been trying to
fancy them causeless, but could not. He had been saying to
himself "It is 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 chirp." Yes, he has been trying to·
comfort himself with these suppositions; but he had found
all in vain. All in vain; because Death, in approaching
him, had stalked with his black shadow before him, and
enveloped the victim. And it was the mournful influence of crevice (krev'is) n. crack
'» s¥·
oo the unperceived shadow that caused him to feel-although
he neither saw nor heard--to feel the presence of my head 'stealthily (stel'tho-l) adv.
within the room. cautiously; secretly •
When I had waited a long time, very patiently, without © EVALUATE
. -
NARRATOR
r,\ ,.'
©
hearing him lie down, I resolved to open a little-a very, Reread lines 105-111. Underline ¢ 3
what the narrator claims to be.°
very little crevice in the lantern. So I opened ityou hearing. What do you think of. g
cannot imagine how stealthily, stealthily--until, at length, thatclaim? Does it make you % ±'3'5
suspicious ofthenarrator or
a single dim ray, like the thread of the spider, shot from out does it make you trust him? Add
the crevice and fell full upon the vulture eye. your idea to your chart. "
ts

It was open--wide, wide open-and I grew furious as Makes Me Suspicious

1oo I gazed upon it. I saw it with perfect distinctness- all a
,
dull blue, with a hideous veil over it that chilled the very ®'

>
marrow in my bones; but I could see nothing else of the
old man's face or person: for I had directed the ray as if by
instinct, precisely upon the damned spot.
And now have I not told you that what you mistake
for madness is but over-acuteness of the senses?--now,
I say, there came to my ears a low, dull, quick sound, such Makes Me Trust Him
as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I knew that
sound well too. It was the· beating of the old man's heart.

•
110 It increased my fury, as the beating of a drum stimulates
.'¢
the soldier into courage. ©
I '

i' sf ¥ I

THE TELL-TALE HEART • ·61

 ,.
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Monitor Your Comprehension

? «7
'O SUSPENSE But even yet I refrained and kept still. I scarcely
Rereadlines 112-137. What is the
scariest or most exciting part
•
breathed. I held the lantern motionless. I tried how steadily
of this paragraph? Circle details I could maintain the ray upon the eye. Meantime the
contribute to this feeling.
hellish tattoo of the heart increased. It grew quicker and
quicker, and louder and louder every instant. The old
man's terror must have been extreme! It grew louder, I say,
louder every moment!-do you mark me well? I have told
you that I am nervous: so I am. And now at the dead hour
o of the night, amid the dreadful silence of thatI
old house,
so strange a noise as this excited me to uncontrollable
terror. Yet, for some minutes longer I refrained and stood
still. But the beating grew louder, louder! I thought the
heart must burst. And now a new anxiety seized me- the
sound would be heard by a neighbor! The old man's hour
had come! With a loud yell, I threw open the lantern and
leaped into the room. He shrieked once-once only. In an
instant I dragged him to the floor, and pulled the heavy
bed over him. I then smiled gaily, to find the deed so far
1Bo done. But, for many minutes, the heart beat on with a
\

muffled sound. This, however, did not vex me; it would

not be heardI through the wall. At length it ceased. The
old man was dead. I removed the bed and examined the
corpse. Yes, he was stone, stone dead. I placed my hand
upon the heart and held it there many minutes.: There was
no pulsation. He was stone dead. His eye would trouble me
no more. @
If still you think me mad, you will think so no longer
when I describe the wise precautions I took for the
o concealment of the body. The night waned,? and I worked
hastily, but in silence. First of all I dismembered the corpse.
I cut off the head and the arms and the legs.
I then took up three planks from the flooring of the
chamber, and deposited all between the scantlings. I then

) 4. hellish tattoo: awful drumming.

5. waned: approached its end.
6. scantlings: small wooden beams supporting the floor. ,

'INTERACTIVE READER /.UNIT 1: PLOT ANDCONFLICT

I ,\
 replaced the boards so cleverly, so cunningly, that no
human eye-not even his-could have detected anything
wrong. There was nothing to wash out-no stain of any
kind--no blood-spot whatever. I had been too wary for I

that. A tub had caught all-ha! ha! O O EVALUATE NARRATOR

Reread lines 138-149. Underline
so When I made an end of these labors, it was four the words the narrator uses to
o'clock--still dark as midnight. As the bell sounded the describe himself and his actions.
How does narrator's view of
hour, there came a knocking at the street door. I went himself affect your evaluationof
down to open it with a light heart,for what had I now to him? Add your ideas to the chart.
~... .. ✓ , • : ' .. ., ~' .. • •, 1' •.

fear? There entered three men, who introduced themselves, Makes Me Suspicious
with perfect suavity,' as officers of the police. A shriek
had been heard by a neighbor during the night: suspicion
, of foul play had been aroused; information had been
lodged at the police office, and they (the officers) had been
deputed to search the premises.
1so I smiled,-for what had I to fear? I bade the gentlemen
3 - +

A
welcome. The shriek, I said, was my own in a dream. The
old man, I mentioned, was absent in the country. I took
my visitors all over the house. I bade them search-search
well. I led them, at length, to his chamber. I showed them
his treasures, secure, undisturbed. In the enthusiasm of my
confidence, I brought chairs into the room, and desired
them here to rest from their fatigues, while I myself, in the
wild audacity of my perfect triumph, placed my own seat
upon the very spot beneath which reposed? the corpse of
no the victim.
The officers were satisfied. My manner had convinced
them. I was singularly at ease. They sat, and while
I answered cheerily, they chatted of familiar things. But, audacity (O-dais''i-te) n.
shameless daring or boldness
ere long, 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. The ringing bebame more

7. suavity (swa'vi-te): graceful politeness. r /

8. deputed: appointed as a representative.
9. reposed: rested. 'I

THE TELL-TALE HEART 63

 RB?

Monitor Your Comprehension

'
distinct:-it continued and became more distinct: I talked
more freely to get rid of the feeling: but it continued and
gained definitivenessuntil at length, I found that the
180 noise was not within my ears.
Nodoubt I now grew very pale; but I talked more
fluently, and with a heightened voice. Yet the sound
increased--and what could I do? It was a low, dull, quick
derision (di-rizh'on) n. ridicule sound- much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped
~
3
I

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' •• '.

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.....
i in cotton. I gasped for breath-and yet the officers heard
hypocritical (hip'a-krit'1-kal) adj. it not. I talked more quickly-more vehemently; but the
false or deceptive /»..},
noise steadily increased. I arose and argued about trifles, in
PAUSE & REFLECT a high key and with violent gesticulations, 10 but the noise
Think about the emotions that' steadily increased. Why would they not be gone? I paced
the narrator is feeling in this
' final scene. How does Poe help 19o the floor to and fro with heavy strides, as if excited to fury
the reader feel thesame way?
r,4> , by the observation of the menbut the noise steadily
increased. What could I do? I foamed-I ravedI swore.
I swung the chair upon which I had been sitting, and
grated it upon the boards, but the noise arose over all and .''

continually increased. It grew louder-louder-_louder!

And still the men chatted pleasantly, and smiled. Was
it possible they heard not?-no, no! They heard!-they
suspected!-they knew!-they were making a mockery of
my horror!-this I thought, and this I think. But anything
200 was better than this agony! Anything was more tolerable
than this derision! I could bear those hypocritical smiles
no longer! I felt that I must scream or die!-and now-
again! hark! louder! louder! louder!-
"Villains!" I shricked, "dissemble! no more! I admit the
deed! tear up the planks!-here, here!-it is the beating
of his hideous heart!" PAUSE & REFLECT

10. gesticulations (j-stik'yo-la'shons): energetic gestures of the hands or arms.

11. dissemble: pretend.

r ,

64 INTERACTIVE READER/ UNIT 1: PLOT AND CONFLICT

 After Reading

Literary Analysis: Suspense

Review the story sections shown in the chart. Then list an appropriate
example of a technique Poe uses to build suspense. Finally, rank the sections
READING 6 Draw conclusions
from 1-3, with 1 being the most suspenseful. about the structure and elements
offiction.

Lines I Examples of Techniques I Rank

1--104 1. repeated words and actions:

\
'

2. description of fear:

'T

105-149 ,. repeated sounds:

'

lee

2. vivid description of event:

,- , I

150-20 6 ,
" . description of anxiety:
•

2. vivid description of event: I

How did you choose the section that you ranked as 1, most suspenseful?
Which of Poe's techniques for creating suspense were most effective for you?

THE TELL-TALE HEART 65

 After Reading

' t '
Reading Skill: Evaluate Narrator
,
Evaluate the narrator of "The Tell-Tale Heart" by analyzing the following
'
quotations from the story. How reliable is the narrator? Do you believe what
READING 6C Analyze different he says? List your ideas in the chart.
forms of points of view,

Detail:
i .'T¥
»
a%4
en znothing.Butyou should have seen me.Yoush
s e ' f@%sg\3N

seen how wisely I proceeded."(lines 19-21) j%± { ±-]

Au Evaluation

Detail: "Never before that night had I felt the extent of my own powers-
of my sagacity" (lines 50-51) • " #-»
\y Evaluation:

Detail: "And now have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is
but over-acuteness of the senses?" (lines 105-106)' ._]_ :

\y Evaluation

What makes you SUSPICIOUS?

Review your list of warning signs that make someone suspicious. Which of
these warning signs did the narrator show while talking to the police?

Vocabulary Practice
Write S if both words are synonyms (words with similar meanings). Write A
if they are antonyms (words with opposite meanings).

1. hypocritical/genuine 6. stifled/crushed
2. stealthily/boldly 7. conceived/thought _

3. acute/dull 8. crevice/crack _

4. derision/praise 9, audacity/caution

S. vex/bother 10. vehemently/strongly

66 INTERACTIVE READER / UNIT 1: PLOT AND CONFLICT