Dear all,


I am hereby sending the responses to The Tell-Tale Heart from the last literature seminar.


1.      The main themes are guilt, madness, and moral responsibility.


2.      The narrator insists on his sanity, which contrasts with his irrational behavior and
thoughts, exploring the thin line between madness and reason.


3.      The narrator is obsessed wiht the old man’s ‚vulture eye‘, which he believes is the source
of his torment, leading him to commit murder.


4.      Poe uses detailed description, repetition, and the narrator’s unpredictable behavior to
build intense tension and fear.


5.      The beating heart symbolizes the narrator’s guilt and escalating madness, which ultimately
drives him to confession.


6.      The narrator’s guilt contributes to his madness, his overwhelming sense of guilt leads to
hallucinations and eventually his confession.


7.      The first-person perspective provides an intimate view into the narrator’s mind, enhancing
the tension and allowing readers to experience his madness.


8.      Time is perceived distortedly, the narrator describes events with unusual precision and
slow motion, reflecting his mental state.


9.      He claims his actions are logical and well-thought-out, insisting that his ability to
meticulously plan proves his sanity.


10.  The ending, where the narrator confesses, demonstrates that guilt and fear cannot be
surpressed, reinforcing the theme of psychological breakdown and moral failure.


………………………………………………………………………………………………………………




And furthermore, answer these questions based on the theory from the lecture.


1.      What is an example of metaphor found in The Tell- Tale Heart?

2.      Can you identify an example of irony in the story?

3.      How is oxymoron used to express the narrator’s mental confict?

4.      What is the role of contrast between calm and chaos in the story?

5.      What is the significance of the heart’s beating as a symbol?


For the next class, you do not have to read any text, we will conduct a very brief analysis of a
single poem.


I wish you a pleasant weekend, and see us on Wednesday.


Best regards,

Jakub Hájek