“The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe Analysis

Setting Setting = time and place of a work of literature Time? We do not know exactly when the actions take place (in a historical context), but we can estimate the timeframe to be over the course of a week with most events happening around midnight. Place? It is the home of an old man who is taking care of a property – a landlord of sorts.

Characters and Point of View Main Characters – an old man with one sightless, pale blue eye and his murderer. The story is told in first-person from the point of view of the murderer. What is it about the narrator that contributes to the overall effect of horror in the story?

Analysis of Certain Aspects Why does the narrator have such a problem with the “evil eye”? Does it represent the dark side of man and the fear men have of it? OR…does it have a historical context dating back to ancient times when people believed in the supernatural power of an evil eye? Because of the presence of the allusions to the ancient world in other works, it is plausible to believe that Poe had some knowledge of this evil eye – but it is merely speculation.

Theme The Duality of Man Light vs. Dark, Good vs. Evil – every man has to find a way to balance these out in the hopes that the light/good will be the predominate side in his life. What is it within each person that causes the suppressed dark side to come to the forefront? In the story, what causes the narrator to give in the dark side? Is it mental illness? Explain. How does this illness prove to be the narrator’s downfall?