Tell-Tale Heart By Edgar Allan Poe

Point of View: Q: What point of view is the story told from? Remember that point of view is the perspective from which a story is told. A: First person point of view. In this point of view, the narrator is a character in the story and uses first-person pronouns (I, me, we).

First Person Point of View in “Tell- Tale Heart” It gives the story great immediacy. Terrible events are likely to be more vivid if described by the person experiencing them. Would you rather hear a survivor tell their own story, or listen to a historian talk about the event? First-person voice enables Poe to dramatize the psychological as well as the physical aspects of the narrator’s ordeal. Poe depicts the internal workings of a man.

Mood: Mood in horror writing grows through details. The most horrific events are lingered over to create atmosphere.

Plot: There is a typical pattern for horror stories. Poe follows it in “Tell-Tale Heart.” Threat Victim Threat closes in on victim Final confrontation

Plot: Poe uses plot twists as well. Reader must remain off-balance so they are surprised. Knowing when to end the story is also important. Poe ends when the story is powerful, yet he gives closure as well.