Tell Tale Heart Point Of View Analysis

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A narrator’s point of view can shape the perceived perception upon the listener or reader. “Tell-Tale Heart,” by Edgar Allen Poe, is a story about a deranged caretaker who killed an old man due to an imperfection, which is his “vulture eye,” that caused fear. This short story captivates the readers by using first person point of view and the writer making the main character an unreliable narrator. The author used first person point of view to display character journeys, growth, and emotional closeness. This point of view can show specific events that effected the narrator rather than a narrator observing the event on the outside. One of the best examples is in the form of gossip, it’s better to hear it from the person that made the comment, …show more content…
An unreliable narrator is perfect for suspense stories because their personality represents many layers such as a complex character. The readers job is to recognize the narrator unreliability but also what’s the reality that’s hidden. Some unreliable narrators can have a positive effect on a story unintentionally, while some can have an intentional sinister effect on the story. For example, “Tell-Tale Heart,” represents insanity perceived by the readers but behind closed doors is fear. An example of an unintentional narrator “is the protagonist of J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye," as well as young narrators such as Scout in Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird." (wiehardt, 2017) To conclude the writer successfully accomplished their message given upon the reader in this short story by using first person point of view and representing the main character as an unreliable narrator. The author’s purpose was to show how first person point of view can provide character journeys, growth, emotional closeness, and development of the main character. Also, the author using an unreliable character to create suspense and intrigue. Point of view and narration can determine the connectivity between the reader and