Capone and the Krays

The effectiveness of the literary effects used in ‘The Tell Tale Heart’

Edgar Allan Poe uses various different literary elements to great effect in ‘The Tell Tale Heart. Right from the bold, direct introductory ‘TRUE!’ the reader is drawn in to a gripping tale filled to the brim with metaphors such as ‘the hellish tattoo of the heart’, and similes like ‘it increased my fury as the beating of a drum stimulate the soldier into courage’, which make for an interesting read as well as an exciting one.

Because the story is told from the point of view of the narrator, we get a more personal look at his grim escapade. The narrator enforces his points with almost exaggerated repetition, ‘pushing it on steadily, steadily’. Another interesting feature of the story is the structure which allows us to know some things before they’ve happened. Something which has a similar effect is when at the end the narrator believes that the beating of the old mans heart is audible but we as the readers know that contrary to the narrator’s beliefs, the police officers can’t hear what he does. This means that reading of his inevitable capture is like watching a car crash in slow motion; we know that it’s avoidable but he is driven to his ultimate fate by his insanity and paranoia. All this makes for a very suspenseful and interesting read.