Literary Devices Used In Tale Tell Heart

Words: 579
Pages: 3

Edgar Allen Poe uses the literary device of setting to create a dark, threatening tone in his “Tale Tell Heart” by using elapsed time, mood, and time of day. Edgar Allen Poe applies his own style of writing along with various primary elements of setting. Throughout “Tale Tell Heart”, he develops the story while leaving possible citations or pieces of evidence that show readers how subjects like location, ancestry, mood, atmosphere, time, climate, and more affect the storyline. “Tale Tell Heart” tells the story of the process a murderer goes through before and after committing the crime. Therefore, darkness and tone are vital to this. Without tone and other primary elements, this story would not be so thorough and meaningful.

In one instance, Edgar Allen Poe uses the element of elapsed time to create a dark, threatening tone in “Tale Tell Heart”. As stated on page 538, paragraph 2, lines six to eight, the murderer states that he was never kinder to the man than during the week before the murder. Next, page 538, paragraph three, line one suggests that the murderer watched the man for eight days before killing the man. Lastly, page 539, paragraph two, line 2 states that the
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As stated on page 539, paragraph two, line five, the murderer says that the man was listening in the room, just as the murderer had done the past few nights. He says that he could hear the deathwatches in the wall. Next, page 539, paragraph three, line seven shows that Edgar Allen Poe uses the sentence, “Many a night, just at midnight, when all the world slept…” to describe what exact time the story took place at, while using personification. Moreover, he tells us that the man may have felt an unperceived shadow lurking in his room on page 540, paragraph one, line nine. Based on this evidence, readers can infer that this took place at midnight, also known as the “witching