tell tale heart essay prompts

56 The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Topics & Examples

Looking for The Tell-Tale Heart essay topics? The short story by Edgar Allan Poe, a recognized master of horror fiction, is definitely worth analyzing!

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In your The Tell-Tale Heart essay, you might want to write about the story’s characters, themes, or symbols. Anyway, our article will be helpful. Find here all you might need to write a paper on Poe’s short story! The Tell-Tale Heart essay examples, prompts, questions, and topic ideas.

The Tell-Tale Heart Point of View Analysis

Poe wrote the novel from the first-person point of view. The protagonist tells the story of a murder while stating that his senses were destroyed by “the disease” but he’s still sane. Think why this might be important. Is the mad person’s narration reliable?

How different would be the story if it were told by the old man or police officers?

Symbols in The Tell-Tale Heart

If you’re writing The Tell-Tale Heart symbolism essay, you may choose one or few symbols in the story:

• The old man’s eye. Analyze why the eye catches the attention of the killer. The narrator calls it the “vulture eye” and “evil. In your essay you can explain why the narrator does not dare to kill the old man when his eye was closed, and the crime was committed only when he saw the open eye.
• The old man’s heart. The heart in the novel symbolizes the killer’s conscience and his humanity as he finally confesses. Analyze why the narrator hears the heartbeat twice.

Another point to consider in your The Tell-Tale Heart essay is the analysis of the connection between time and heart. Time is compressed and stretched.

It pulses as the heart. But time also symbolizes death and the killer acts as part of a watch. Thus, the heart in the novel symbolizes life, and, through time, it turns out to be a symbol of death.

The Tell-Tale Heart Literary Analysis

Typical academic articles are hard to read because of complex words and compound sentences. When you read Poe’s masterpieces, you read them quickly because the author writes in short sentences.

Poe uses many figures of speech like similes, personification, anaphora, and irony. Analyze how these figures help Poe to convey the main idea to the reader.

The Tell-Tale Heart Characters

There are four characters you might want to explore in your character analysis: the narrator, police officers, the old man, and the neighbor.

All of them play an important role in the plot. For example, the narrator is mentally ill person who doesn’t make a difference between the “unreal” and “real”. There are also a few signs that he rarely sleeps. You can analyze how his insomnia might impacted his actions and desire to kill.

• What is the theme of The Tell-Tale Heart ?
• What is the mood of The Tell-Tale Heart ?
• What genre is The Tell-Tale Heart ?
• What is the conflict in The Tell-Tale Heart ?
• What does the heart symbolize in The Tell-Tale Heart ?
• What is the tone of The Tell-Tale Heart ?
• What is the central idea of The Tell-Tale Heart ?
• What point of view is The Tell-Tale Heart ?

If you’re looking for The Tell-Tale Heart essay topics or ideas to add to it, check IvyPanda’s free samples of high-quality papers!

• The Tell-Tale Heart Psychological Analysis & Critique The outstanding character in the tale, who is also the narrator, attracts a lot of attention from the readers. The narrator forms the basis of the tale.
• The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Poe This metaphor is necessary to show that the feeling of guilt distorts his perception of reality. This is one of the details that can be distinguished.
• Edger Allen Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” Analysis The narrator in the beginning of the story clearly states that he is not insane but his actions make the reader frown at his sanity.
• The Investigation of Ethical Issues in The Tell-Tale Heart and The Pond The secondary problem is related to an ethical dilemma with regards to the responsibility of the husband to provide and care for the family.
• Gothic Romanticism in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”, Nathaniel Hawthorn’s “The Birthmark” In the film “The Black Swan” directed by Darren Aronofsky, Nina struggles to fit into the ultimate role of the play “The Swan Lake”, as the Black Swan, even though she is comfortable playing the […]
• The Tell-Tale Heart (1843) This section tackles the main characters of the story and as aforementioned, the narrator and the old man are the only central characters in the story.
• The Tell-Tale Heart Essay However, when the police came to the Old Man’s house he gives himself away to the police because he hears the heart of the old man beating behind the floorboard and this incident may suggest […]
• The Murderer’s Motivation Depicted in Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• The Characters of Nervousness in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Morality in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Paranoia in Prose and an Analytical Treatment of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Stylistic Analysis of “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Sanity of the Narrator in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Poe’s Use of the Senses in “The Cask of Amontillado” and “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• The Role of the Gaze in Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• An Analysis of the Creating of an Atmosphere of Horror and Build Tension in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Writing Styles in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgary Allen Poe
• Stability of Characters in “To Build a Fire” and “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Styles of “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” Versus “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Feeling of Madness Throughout “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgary Allen Poe
• The Inspiration From the Authors’ Lives in “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Cask of Amontillado” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Inescapable Truth: An Analysis of “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Rationalization and Suspense in Poe’s “The Raven” and “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Identity as an Important Part of “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Analysis of Symbolism in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” and “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• “The Tell-Tale Heart” Character Analysis of Main Character
• The Importance of Suspense in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Horror and Figurative Language in “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Imagery Through the Eye of “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• The Attempt to Prove a Man’s Sanity in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Psychosis and Guilt in “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Literary Elements of Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Philosophy of Composition in the “Tell-Tale Heart”
• The Reflection of the Soul in Edgar Allan Poe’s “Tell-Tale Heart”
• Role of Realism in Edagar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Mental Challenges in “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• The Themes of Surveillance and Control in “Discipline and Punish” by Michael Foucault and “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• The Narrator’s Story in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• Similarities Between Edgar Allan Poe and “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart” as a Gothic Horror
• Techniques Used in Writing “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Red Room”
• Understanding Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart”: Insanity or a Stroke of Brilliance
• Mind Games and the Narrator Madness in “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• A Comparison of “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe and the Work of Raymond Carver
• Misperceptions and “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
• “The Cast of Amontillado” vs. “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Alan Poe
• Morality in “Young Goodman Brown” by Hawthorne and “The Tell-Tale Heart”
• Internal Conflict in “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe
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The Tell-Tale Heart

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Why does the narrator commit murder according to them? What is your explanation for the crime?

If you had to represent the narrator in court, what kind of defense would you propose?

Why do you think the narrator kept hearing the heartbeat even after the old man’s death? Why does the story emphasize the heartbeat over any other element of the murder? Do you think it was otherworldly, a hallucination, or something else? Explain your reasoning.

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116 The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Topics You Need to Know

Oct 28, 2022

Oct 28, 2022 | Topics

The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe is a classic short story written by an American writer. The story follows an unnamed narrator who murders his old friend and hides the body under the floorboards of his house. As the police begin to suspect him, he experiences guilt and paranoia.

In this article, we’ll take a look at some of The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Topics :

Simple Essay Topics on The Tell-Tale Heart

• What motivates the narrator to kill an old man?
• Is the narrator insane, or is his conscience telling him he must do what he does?
• How does Poe’s use of language and imagery contribute to the story’s mood and tone?
• Why did Poe end it unusual instead of having the person be caught in another way readers expected at that time (or now)?
• Why do you think the older man killed his friend?
• Do you think that he saw a beating heart? Or maybe there was something else going on?
• Discuss the symbolism of the vulture eye in Allan Poe’s short story “The Tell-Tale Heart.”
• Analyze Poe’s use of repetition in this story.
• Compare and contrast how different characters react to what they see in “The Tell-Tale Heart.”
• Discuss how Poe uses foreshadowing in this story.
• Discuss how Poe uses irony in this story.
• Discuss how Poe uses personification in this story.
• Discuss how Poe uses repetition in this story.
• Discuss how Poe uses hyperbole in this story.

Easy Essay Topics on The Tell-Tale Heart

• How does the narrator’s description of himself contradict his actions?
• What role does the man’s eye play in the story?
• What do we learn about human nature from this story?
• How does Poe use foreshadowing to build suspense?
• What is the significance of the title?
• What is the narrator’s attitude toward death?
• How does Poe create an atmosphere of suspense and horror in this story?
• What do the different settings tell us about the story?
• How does Poe use language to create an atmosphere of suspense and horror in this story?
• What role does nature play in this story?
• What is the significance of the setting for this story?

Interesting Essay Topics on The Tell-Tale Heart

• The effects of guilt on the narrator
• The relationship between sanity and insanity in the story
• Why do you think the narrator is so naive or gullible?
• How can we be sure that the narrator tells us everything that happens?
• Did you sympathize with the murderer more than his victim or even feel sorry for him?
• What do you think this story says about humanity and our capacity for compassion, empathy , kindness, and love—or its lack thereof?
• How does Poe use imagery to create suspense?
• What is the narrator’s motivation for killing the older man?
• How do we know that the narrator is a murderer from his first words?
• What does this story say about human nature?
• How does Poe create suspense?
• What does the narrator’s insanity tell us about his character?
• What are some of the other ways that Poe builds suspense?

Controversial Essay Topics on The Tell-Tale Heart

• The moral message behind this piece
• How effective are Poe’s descriptions?
• What is going on with this guy’s head? Is he crazy or just driven mad by guilt?
• What do you think the narrator’s motives are?
• Discuss how this story relates to psychology and psychiatry
• Has society changed since Poe’s time?
• Explain why the narrator is reliable.
• Why do you think Poe chose the setting of an old house at night?
• Describe the relationship between madness and sanity in this story.
• How does the narrator’s paranoia affect his ability to see things clearly and accurately?
• Does the narrator’s guilt over his crime cause him to go mad?
• Why does Poe choose to end the story with a loud beating heart?
• Explain the meaning of each of the following lines: “the beating of my own heart,” “I felt that my brain was becoming too powerful for me,” and “it grew upon me by degrees until it seemed to surround me on every side.”
• What is the significance of the character with the cough?
• What is your interpretation of the title The Tell-Tale Heart?

Compare and contrast Essay Topics on The Tell-Tale Heart

• Compare The Tell-Tale Heart with other short stories by Edgar Allan Poe.
• Compare The Tell-Tale Heart with another famous work that has influenced its interpretation today (i.e., Game of Thrones).
• Write about what makes this story so iconic in literature classes today.
• What do you think the primary emotion is in the story?
• How does Poe use his words to convey this feeling?
• How does the theme of guilt play out in both mindsets of the narrator and Rizzio’s character?
• What is the point of view of the story?
• How does Poe use his choice of words to convey this feeling?
• What do you think makes the narrator’s character so unique in literature?
• Why do you think Poe wrote this story?
• What do you think Poe was trying to say about human nature through this story?
• How does the setting affect the plot of The Tell-Tale Heart?
• What is the significance of using an old house as a setting?
• What does Poe mean by the term “soul-searing”?
• Are there any historical references or allusions in this tale?

The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Topics for Kids

• Why does the narrator tell the police about his crime?
• Why does the narrator insist that he is telling the truth?
• What does the narrator say about himself when talking to the police?
• What does the narrator mean when he says: “Because I have to tell someone. I’ve got to get this off my chest”?
• What does the narrator mean when he says: “I just want you to know that me and Stella were happy together? We were very happy. And it wasn’t my fault what happened”?
• What does he mean when he says: “But what I’m saying is, if I hadn’t been there that night, it wouldn’t have happened. And Stella wouldn’t be dead now. So you see, I am responsible for her death”?
• Why does the narrator have to tell someone about his crime?
• What did the narrator lie about?

The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Topics for Middle school

• How does the setting affect the main character and his actions?
• Is it possible to sympathize with someone who commits or plans to murder?
• In what ways do psychological forces play into this story before and after the crime?
• What is the significance of the tell-tale heart?
• What can be learned from this story about human nature and its dark side?
• What is the significance of the narrator’s confession?
• What is Poe trying to say about human nature in this story, and how does he express these ideas through imagery and figurative language?
• What does it mean to be a good person? What makes a person evil?
• How do we know when someone is lying?

The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Topics for high school

• The significance of the title.
• Why is the narrator so obsessed with his victim’s eyes?
• How does Poe use language to create suspense and terror in this story?
• How exactly did Edgar Allen Poe build suspense?
• What do you think is happening in the story?
• How does this story compare with other works by Poe?
• What is the significance of the raven?
• What do you think Poe intended when he wrote this story?
• How does Poe’s use of Gothic fiction conventions influence the story?
• What is the significance of the narrator’s mental illness and death?

The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Topics for college

• What examples of foreshadowing are present in this short story?
• How does Poe use diction to illustrate his theme of madness and obsession?
• What does the tale heart the narrator tells us about himself through his actions and words?
• How does the narrator’s obsession with the gold bug affect him?
• Discuss the theme of madness in Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart.
• Explain how the narrator was driven mad by guilt and fear.
• Discuss why the narrator killed his victim without any remorse or guilt.
• Analyze whether or not you think his actions were justified under these circumstances.
• The symbol of the evil eye in Edgar Allan Poe’s short telltale heart story

The Tell-Tale Heart Essay questions

• What is the significance of this story?
• How does it change your perspective on revenge?
• How does it make you feel about Poe’s other stories and work in general?
• How do the narrator’s tone and diction change throughout the story? What do these changes reveal about his character or attitude toward what happened?
• How would you characterize this short story as a whole?
• How does the author use diction and syntax to create a sense of mystery and intrigue?
• How does the story’s setting contribute to its overall tone, mood, or theme?
• What is your interpretation of the moral lesson that can be drawn from this story?
• How does this story relate to your own life?
• What do you think the author was trying to express through symbolism?
• How is “The Cask of Amontillado” similar or different from other Poe stories? Are these similarities or differences important in understanding the overarching theme?
• What does the narrator mean when he says: “You should have seen how wisely I proceeded –with what caution –with what foresight –with what dissimulation I went to work,”

Now that you know the best Tell-Tale Heart essay topics, it’s time to start! If you need more help, check out our blog post on how to write a good essay. If you have any questions or comments about this post, feel free to leave them in the comment section below.

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The Tell-Tale Heart

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Type of Work

....... "The Tell-Tale Heart" is a short story in the horror genre. It focuses on a mentally unstable man who murders an old man with an "evil eye."

Year of Publication

....... "The Tell-Tale Heart" was first published in the winter of 1843 in The Pioneer , a Boston magazine.

....... The story opens in an undisclosed locale, possibly a prison, when the narrator tells readers that he is not mad. To defend his sanity, he tells a story which he believes will prove him sound of mind. His story is set in a house occupied by the narrator and an old man. The time of the events in the story is probably the early 1840's, when Poe wrote the story. The action in the narrator's story takes place over eight days.

The Narrator : Deranged unnamed person who tries to convince the reader that he is sane. The narrator's gender is not identified, but Poe probably intended him to be a man. Here is why: Poe generally wrote from a male perspective, often infusing part of himself into his main characters. Also, in major short stories in which he identifies the narrator by gender — stories such as "The Black Cat," "The Cask of Amontillado," and "The Fall of the House of Usher" — the narrator is male. Finally, the narrator of "A Tell-Tale Heart" exhibits male characteristics, including (1) A more pronounced tendency than females to commit violent acts. Statistics demonstrate overwhelmingly that murder is a male crime. (2) Physical strength that would be unusual in a female. The narrator drags the old man onto the floor and pulls the bed on top of him, then tears up floorboards and deposits the body between joists. (3) The narrator performs a man's chore by bringing four chairs into the old man's bedroom, one for the narrator and three for the policemen. If the narrator were a woman, the policemen probably would have fetched the chairs. But they did not.  The Old Man : Seemingly harmless elder who has a hideous "evil eye" that unnerves the narrator.  Neighbor : Person who hears a shriek coming from the house of the narrator and the old man, then reports it to the police.  Three Policemen : Officers who search the narrator's house after a neighbor reports hearing a shriek.

Point of View

....... The story is told in first-person point of view by an unreliable narrator. The narrator is obviously deranged, readers learn during his telling of his tale, even though he declares at the outset that he is sane. As in many of his other short stories, Poe does not name the narrator. A possible explanation for this is that the unnamed narrator becomes every human being, thereby enhancing the universality of the short story. In other words, the narrator represents anyone who has ever acted perversely or impulsively — and then had to pay for his deed.

Plot Summary By Michael J. Cummings ... © 2005

Theme 1 : A human being has a perverse, wicked side — another self — that can goad him into doing evil things that have no apparent motive . This is the same theme of another Poe story, "The Black Cat." The narrator of "The Tell-Tale Heart" admits in the second paragraph of the story that he committed a senseless crime, saying: "Object there was none. Passion there was none. I loved the old man. He had never wronged me. He had never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire." However, he does note that his evil deed, murder, was not entirely unprovoked; for the old man he killed had a hideous eye that unnerved him. Unable to look upon it any longer, he decided to kill the old man.  Theme 2 : Fear of discovery can bring about discovery . At the end of the story, the narrator begins to crack under the pressure of a police investigation, hearing the sound of the murdered man's beating heart, and tells the police where he hid the body. Fear of discovery is the principle under which lie detectors work.  Theme 3 : The evil within is worse than the evil without. The old man has a hideous, repulsive eye; outwardly, he is ugly. But, as the narrator admits, he is otherwise a harmless, well-meaning person. The narrator, on the other hand, is inwardly ugly and repulsive, for he plans and executes murder; his soul is more repulsive than the old man's eye. 

Prose Beats Like a Heart

....... From time to time, Poe uses a succession of short sentences or word groups, creating a rhythm not unlike that of a heartbeat. Note the following examples from the story:

I scarcely breathed. I held the lantern motionless. I tried how steadily I could to maintain the ray upon the eye. Meantime the hellish tattoo of the heart increased. 

Was it possible they heard not? Almighty God! — 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 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! LOUDER! — "Villains!" I shrieked, "dissemble no more! I admit the deed! — tear up the planks! — here, here! — it is the beating of his hideous heart!" 

....... As in other works of his, Poe uses many figures of speech. Examples are the following:

....... Anaphora is a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is repeated at the beginning of a clause or another group of words. Anaphora imparts emphasis and balance. Here are boldfaced examples from "The Tell-Tale Heart":

Meanwhile, the h ellish t a tt oo of the h eart increased.

It is the beating of h is h ideous h eart! 

....... Edgar Allan Poe was born on January 19, 1809, in Boston. After being orphaned at age two, he was taken into the home of a childless couple — John Allan, a successful businessman in Richmond, Va., and his wife. Allan was believed to be Poe’s godfather. At age six, Poe went to England with the Allans and was enrolled in schools there. After he returned with the Allans to the U.S. in 1820, he studied at private schools, then attended the University of Virginia and the U.S. Military Academy, but did not complete studies at either school.  ....... After beginning his literary career as a poet and prose writer, he married his young cousin, Virginia Clemm. He worked for several magazines and joined the staff of the New York Mirror newspaper in 1844. All the while, he was battling a drinking problem. After the Mirror published his poem “The Raven" in January 1845, Poe achieved national and international fame. Besides pioneering the development of the short story, Poe invented the format for the detective story as we know it today. He also was an outstanding literary critic. Despite the acclaim he received, he was never really happy because of his drinking and because of the deaths of several people close to him, including his wife in 1847. He frequently had trouble paying his debts. It is believed that heavy drinking was a contributing cause of his death in Baltimore on October 7, 1849. 

Study Questions and Essay Topics

• Write an essay that compares and contrasts the narrator of " The Tell-Tale Heart " with the narrator of " The Black Cat ." In the latter story, the narrator is also mentally unstable even though he maintains at the beginning of the story that he is not.
• Is the narrator stricken with guilt?
• What is the difference between guilt and remorse?
• If you were the narrator's attorney, what would be your approach in defending him?
• Write an essay about people who maltreat others because of their physical appearance. .

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The Tell Tale Heart Discussion

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Tell Tale Heart Setting Analysis

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