Tell-Tale Heart
What sound builds suspense as it gets louder and louder?
What is the beating heart?
How does the setting of the rainy, isolated house create mood?
What is by making the story feel gloomy, eerie, and full of suspense?
How do the villagers react when they see the creature?
What is they attack him or drive him away?
How does the author describe the setting to make it feel tense and uncertain?
What is the dark, cramped, or unusual spaces that make the reader feel uneasy?
What details at the beginning create suspense about where the narrator lives?
What is that he lives in total darkness in a castle-like place?
Why is the narrator unreliable in this story?
What is because he insists he is sane while acting insane?
How do Herbert’s joking comments about the paw create foreshadowing?
What is they make light of the paw’s power, hinting at the tragic consequences to come?
What does the blind man symbolize?
What is kindness, acceptance, compassion, or seeing others for who they truly are rather than their appearance?
What details does the author emphasize about the old lady to increase suspense?
What is her pale skin, eyes like cobwebs, desperate glance, numb hands, narrow shoulders, etc.?
Why is the narrator unreliable in describing himself?
What is because he doesn’t realize he is a monster?
The “vulture eye” is an example of what kind of figurative language?
What is a metaphor/symbol?
How does the mysterious behavior of the visitor in Part 2 build suspense?
What is by connecting the visitor's nervousness and hesitation with the money?
What does the creature learn about humans from the blind man’s kindness?
What is that humans can show compassion and understanding, not just fear and hatred?
What is the purpose of describing the lizards’ eyes as always sparkling?
What is to create an eerie, watchful mood that makes the setting feel tense and alive?
What is foreshadowed by the narrator’s fascination with the outside world and graves?
What is that he is connected to death or the undead?
How does the author’s word choice create a mood of nervousness?
What is by using frantic, repetitive words like “louder! louder!”
According to Sergeant-Major Morris, what was the Fakir trying to prove with the paw?
What is that fate rules people’s lives and interfering only leads to sorrow?
How do the villagers’ reactions to the creature symbolize society’s behavior toward outsiders?
What is fear, prejudice, and rejection of those who are different?
How does Evtimova’s word choice and description create a mood of fear and suspense?
What is by using unsettling details (like the storm, the old woman, and the mob) to keep the reader on edge?
The mirror at the end symbolizes what about the narrator?
What is his true identity as a horrifying creature?
How does Poe use punctuation (like dashes and exclamation marks) to show the narrator’s state of mind?
What is to mimic his racing thoughts and panic?
The monkey’s paw is a symbol of what idea in the story?
What is the danger of greed and the consequences of tampering with fate?
What theme is shown through the blind man’s kindness compared to the villagers’ cruelty?
What is the theme of prejudice vs. compassion?
How does the ending of the story show the consequences of the narrator’s lie?
What is it reveals the theme that dishonesty can spiral out of control and bring danger to everyone?
What is the central theme revealed when the narrator finally sees his reflection in the mirror at the end?
What is the theme of isolation and the fear of being fundamentally different or rejected by society?