A man who declares himself of sound mind before telling his story, yet that story seems to refute his original assertion. His hatred of the old man’s evil eye consumes him to such a degree that he spends every night waiting for it to open so that he can feel sufficient rage to kill the old man. But though he calculates and waits, his guilt and paranoia after the crime, which he has hidden perfectly, become too much for him in front of the police and he confesses.
Narrator (The Tell-Tale Heart) Quotes in Poe's Stories
The Poe's Stories quotes below are all either spoken by Narrator (The Tell-Tale Heart) or refer to Narrator (The Tell-Tale Heart). For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
The Tell-Tale Heart
Quotes
I loved the 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.
Related Characters:
Narrator (The Tell-Tale Heart) (speaker), The Old Man
Related Symbols:
Eyes
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
And have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is but over-acuteness of the sense? – now, I say, there came to my ears a low, dull, quick sound, such as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I knew that sound well, too. It was the beating of the old man's heart. It increased my fury, as the beating of a drum stimulates the soldier into courage.
Related Characters:
Narrator (The Tell-Tale Heart) (speaker)
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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Narrator (The Tell-Tale Heart) Character Timeline in Poe's Stories
The timeline below shows where the character Narrator (The Tell-Tale Heart) appears in Poe's Stories. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
The Tell-Tale Heart
The narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" defends his sanity – he says he is nervous, but that he can not be...
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The narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" thinks we must suspect him of madness again, but we will be dissuaded when we...
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On the eighth night, the narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" is particularly gleeful about his sneakiness. He marvels at how the old man knows nothing...
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For an hour, the narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" keeps very still and can sense the old man is awake, listening for intruders. The...
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After a while, without any change to the old man’s obvious alertness, the narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" opens the shutter a tiny bit and emits a ray upon the man, and sees...
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As the power of the heart and the eye cease, the narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" ’s calm patience return and he says that if there was any doubt that he...
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When the narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" is finished, it is four o’clock, and he hears the chime of the clock but...
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The calm manner of the narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" puts the policemen at ease, and they sit and talk, and the narrator talks animatedly...
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The narrator of "Tell-Tale Heart" talks faster and louder to try to cover it up and now, panicked, paces the...
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