“The tell-tale heart” by Edgar Allan Poe

The story begins with the main character’s thoughts. He addresses the
reader directly, trying to deny the fact that he is crazy and he is also
explaining the reason why he wants to kill the old man. It had nothing to do
with the man himself, but with his blue eye covered by a white pelt. This
first part of the story is the exposition.
The obsession generates an interior conflict and everything which
happens next is related to it.
The initiating action presents the plan he established in detail and the
way he acted before committing the crime. He was kind and gentle to the
old man and used to “visit” him every day, by midnight. This lasted for a
week…It took him so long because each time he entered the man’s room, his
eyes were shut as he was sleeping, and he couldn’t have killed him without
seeing the blue eye.
On the 8th night something strange happened. While opening the door,
due to the fact that he was feeling nervous, the main character produced an
odd noise. The old man was woken up by the noise and asked who was
there…there was no answer to his question as the one who intended to kill
him stood there motionless. This particular part of the story represents the
rising action.
The story has got two climaxes: one of them on a global level, while
the other one is the psychological climax.
The first one describes the moments full of tension which follow right
after the old man perceives that sound. The murderer knew his victim so
well that he was able to express the way he felt…the old man was trying to
convince himself that the noise he heard was only the wind in the heater, a
mouse on the floor or a cricket. After several minutes of silence he decided
to turn on the flashlight and then he could see the mysterious eye…The heart
of the old man started to beat louder and louder as the fear grew inside of
him. There was only one scream…just one. Then the murderer pushed his
victim onto the floor and toppled the bed on him. His heart could still be
heard…and suddenly it stopped. The man was dead. Furthermore, without
feeling guilty or stressed, he chopped the dead body and buried it underneath
the floor boards.
The psychological climax of the story presents the murderer’s feelings
of guilt towards the crime he had committed. It was 4 o’clock in the
morning, and still darkness when the doorbell rang. Surprisingly enough,
when he opened the door, there stood three men in front of him, called by a
neighbor who claimed he had heard a scream. He invited them inside,
showed them the old man’s belongings and he even offered them some
chairs. The policemen were satisfied with the suspect’s behavior.
Everything went really well, until an unusual sound started to affect the main
character’s mental condition…The noise was similar to the sound produced
by a clock. As the sound became increasingly obsessive, he couldn’t take it
anymore and confessed to having committed the horrible crime. This is the
denouement of the story.

The whole action takes place in an old house. In the old man’s
chamber it was dark even during the day because of the shutters that were
always drawn. The only source of light was the flashlight…This kind of a
place has a huge impact on the reader, as it creates a sinister atmosphere
which suggests death. The time also makes reference to death, considering
the fact that the action takes place at night (more precisely at midnight-
symbolizing the link between life and death).
The narrator is an invented character and also the main character. He is
a round, complex and dynamic character. He transforms a lot throughout the
whole story, he has got contradictory feelings and at the end as he finds
himself under great pressure he confesses to the crime. The other characters
are the old man and the three policemen (episodic characters).
The text is written in the 1st person(singular) narrative, which involves
subjectivity. The literary technique is self-introspection. What makes this
text special is the fact that the narrator addresses the reader directly, inviting
him to take part in the action, by using certain expressions, such as:”but why
will you say that I’m mad?”,”observe how calmly I can tell you the whole
story”, ’you fancy me mad”, ”But you should have seen me” etc.
The effect on the reader is suspense, fear, curiosity etc.