Symbolism in The Tell-Tale Heart Essay Example

“The Tell-Tale Heart,” by Edgar Allan Poe, tells the story of an old man’s murder and the events that follow, through the narrator’s point of view as he tries to justify his sanity and reasoning behind committing homicide. The short story is full of hidden meanings and includes multiple instances of symbolism throughout the entirety of the story. The use of symbolism in “The Tell-Tale Heart,” gives a deeper and darker meaning to the story, the narrator’s thought process, and the reasoning behind the old man’s death. The uses of symbolism that are present in the short story are; the old man's eye, the beating heart, the house, and time. The symbolism of these objects hints at the true emotions and thoughts of the narrator, and the dark undertones of the overall message in the story hidden by the narrator’s guilt.

One of the first major symbols present in “The Tell-Tale Heart,” by Edgar Allan Poe, is the old man's eye. The narrator in the story is fixated and obsessed with the man’s eye and describes it with vivid detail. He compares the eye to one of a vulture and describes the feeling when the old man looks at him as one of coldness and fear. The feeling of fear that the narrator has towards the old man’s eye is the main reason the narrator decides to kill the man.

“One of his eyes resembled that of a vulture—a pale blue eye… my blood ran cold; and so, by degrees—very gradually—I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever. (Poe, Paragraph 2).” 

The eye of the old man symbolizes the narrator’s hidden identity and the truth. The eye represents the identity and actions that the narrator refuses to accept, along with the true nature of the old man, as eyes are the window to the soul. As the old man’s eye to the narrator is one of a vulture, he sees the old man as one who scavenges and preys upon him and sees him for what he truly is.

The second symbol present in the short story is the beating heart of the old man. A heart typically symbolizes the feelings of affection and love, however in “The Tell-Tale Heart,” the heart stands for the gradual humanization of the narrator, and his guilty conscience, as the beating of the old man’s heart drives the narrator to kill the old man, and to confess to his murder. The beating heart that the narrator hears symbolizes and gives a human-like quality to the narrator. This is seen at the beginning of the story as the narrator is animal-like, driven, with no emotions or sympathy towards the old man, or even guilt for his actions. However, while being questioned by the police, he hears the beating of the old man’s heart in his ears get louder and louder as he feels increasingly more guilty. He goes mad, as the false narrative he has built around the old man falls apart. The narrator then confesses to the murder of the old man to the police, due to his guilt and moral conscience, as the beating heart is a constant reminder of the murder.

Another major symbol present in the short story is the house that the narrator lives in, which is where he disposes of the old man’s corpse. The house in “The Tell-Tale Heart” symbolizes the “hiding” of the narrator’s guilt, as he hides the dismembered pieces of the old man’s corpse underneath the floorboards of his house. The manner and the actions behind the narrator’s concealment of the old man’s corpse beneath the floorboards symbolically represents the narrator’s attempt to hide his guilt in his subconscious. Additionally, the house could symbolize a tomb or a grave, as that is what it truly becomes when the narrator disposes of the old man’s corpse within the floors of his house.

One other major symbol present in “The Tell-Tale Heart,” is time. The narrator obsesses over the concept and passage of time, and constantly mentions the ticking of watches, and clocks throughout the story. The watch symbolizes the control the narrator has over the murder of the old man, and the countdown of the events leading to the man’s death. In “The Tell-Tale Heart” the narrator compares himself to a watch as he prepares for the certain death of the old man.

“...A watch’s minute hand moves more quickly than did mine. Never before that night had I felt the extent of my own powers… (Poe, Paragraph 4).”

In the comparison of the narrator to the watch, it also represents the control the narrator has on the time and manner of the old man’s death, as he is the one who commits the murder. The narrator also mentions several times hearing a muffled ticking sound similar to one of a clock while watching the man before and after his death. The ticking of the clock is symbolic of the events, creating suspense, leading to the old man’s inevitable death, as for every tick of time that the narrator hears, the old man grows closer to his demise.

In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart,” the presence of symbolism within the old man’s eye, the beating heart, the house, and time, influence the narrator’s actions throughout the short story. The usage of symbolism in the short story allows the story to have multiple interpretations of the theme of death and guilt, while enhancing the dark undertones of the overall message of the story hidden by the narrator’s guiltiness. In addition to the assortment of literary devices present in the short story, along with the inclusion and emphasis on symbolism in “The Tell-Tale Heart,” allows the reader to look for the hidden meanings and messages of the emotions and thoughts of the narrator.