The tall-tale heart by Edgar Allan Poe

We were assigned to read this short story and express the thoughts and feelings it evoked.

The story is about a young man, describing his experience of planning and executing the murder of the old man he was catering for. He suffered from a disease that heightened and made all his senses more sensible. Although he did long to kill the old man, he did not have a problem with him, but rather for his pale blue vulture eye. Every time he paid a visit to the elderly man’s chamber, he thought it was watching him. To me, that seems quite paranoid. It is very interesting to mention that throughout his descriptive monologue, he repeats he is not mad, as though trying to convince himself that this is true. Nevertheless, after committing the terrible crime, he is consumed by guilt and the illusion that he can still hear the poor deceased man’s heart beating from where he had hidden him, under the wooden floorboards. This forces him to give up his well-planned act as the policemen investigate the house and confess to having killed the man.

 I found the story very well-written and the illustration of the guilty man's feelings quite exemplary. Moreover, I admired the idea of telling the story from a first-person perspective. It was definitely an enjoyable read, although I found the author's raw description of the stalking and actual murder a bit disturbing at first. I would undoubtedly recommend it to someone who enjoys scary stories.