The Tell Tale Heart

What was the reason the narrator killed the old man?

• he wanted the old man's money

• he has an aversion to the old man's eye

• he wants to put the old man out of misery

• he wants the house to himself

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

What kept the narrator from killing the old man on the first night?

• there was someone else in the house

• the eye was closed

• he lacked the courage and dedication

• the old man was not asleep on the first night

Which of the following DOES NOT describe the narrator's tone?

• narcissistic

• defensive

• conflicted

• remorseful

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

The story is filled with detailed imagery, which would be the primary sense that the author appeals to and activates?

• touch

• sight

• sound

• smell

Tags

CCSS.RI.7.4

CCSS.RI.8.4

CCSS.RI.9-10.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

Which of the following is the main focus of the story?

• the complexity of the relationship between the old man and the narrator

• the grisly details of the heinous murder

• the narrator's mental state and thought processes

• the clever investigative work the police officers utilize to capture the killer

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.4

CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

1. What does the narrator want people to think about him at the BEGINNING of the story?

• That he is mentally unstable, and therefore his crime is not his fault.

• That he suffers from anxiety (nervousness), but that he is not a madman.

• That he is angry at the old man, and the old man deserves death.

• That he has been driven to madness by the beating of the old man’s heart.

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

8. Why do you think the narrator finally admitted to his crime at the end of the story?

• He realized he was wrong and knew he should pay for his crime.

• The ghost of the old man was haunting him, and he wanted it to stop.

• The officers tricked him into admitting the deed.

• The noises he was hearing were driving him insane and he couldn’t take it.

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

10. Read the excerpt below. What is the narrator’s tone (the author's attitude toward the writing)?

And every morning, when the day broke, I went boldly into the chamber, and spoke courageously to him, calling him by name in a hearty tone, and inquiring how he has passed the night. So you see he would have been a very profound old man, indeed, to suspect that every night, just at twelve, I looked in upon him while he slept.

• confident

• suspicious

• happy

• terrifying

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.4

CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

11. Select the words that best support the tone you chose for #10.

Excerpt: And every morning, when the day broke, I went boldly into the chamber, and spoke courageously to him, calling him by name in a hearty tone, and inquiring how he has passed the night. So you see he would have been a very profound old man, indeed, to suspect that every night, just at twelve, I looked in upon him while he slept.

• broke, inquiring, passed, profound (wisdom)

• morning, chamber, spoke, suspect

• boldly, courageously, hearty (cheerfully), inquiring (questioning)

• suspect, profound (wisdom), night, boldly

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.4

CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

12. Read the excerpt below. What is the mood (the feeling the reader gets) of the passage?

I knew that he had been lying awake ever since the first slight noise, when he had turned in the bed. His fears had been ever since growing upon him. He had been trying to fancy them causeless, but could not. He had been saying to himself --"It is nothing but the wind in the chimney --it is only a mouse crossing the floor," or "It is merely a cricket which has made a single chirp." Yes, he had been trying to comfort himself with these suppositions: but he had found all in vain. All in vain; because Death, in approaching him had stalked with his black shadow before him, and enveloped the victim. And it was the mournful influence of the unperceived shadow that caused him to feel --although he neither saw nor heard --to feel the presence of my head within the room.

• calm / confident

• tense / suspenseful

• unclear / confusing

• evil / malevolent

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.4

CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4