The Tell-Tale Heart

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

2. Select the piece of evidence that best supports your answer in #1.

• I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell. How, then, am I mad?

• I made up my mind to take the life of the old man, and thus rid myself of the eye forever.

• TRUE! --nervous --very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad?

• It was a low, dull, quick sound --much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I gasped for breath --and yet the officers heard it not.

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

3. Read the excerpt below. What conclusion can you draw about the narrator?

Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was the groan of mortal terror. It was not a groan of pain or of grief --oh, no! --it was the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe. I knew the sound well. Many a night, just at midnight, when all the world slept, it has welled up from my own bosom, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors that distracted me. I say I knew it well. I knew what the old man felt, and pitied him, although I chuckled at heart.

• He is a cruel person who enjoys torturing others.

• He is an unhappy person who longs for human connection.

• He finds joy and pleasure in stalking the old man.

• He can relate to the old man’s terror because of the madness that haunts him.

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

4. Select the piece of evidence that best supports your answer in #3.

• Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was the groan of mortal terror.

• It was not a groan of pain or of grief --oh, no! --it was the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe.

• I knew the sound well. Many a night, just at midnight, when all the world slept, it has welled up from my own bosom, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors that distracted me.

• I knew what the old man felt, and pitied him, although I chuckled at heart.

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

5. Read the excerpt below. Which of the following would you NOT INFER (something you can't say) about the narrator’s character?

TRUE! --nervous --very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad? The disease had sharpened my senses --not destroyed --not dulled them.

• The narrator suffers from anxiety (nervousness).

• The narrator suffers from mental instability.

• The narrator is likely insane.

• The narrator has a life-threatening disease.

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

6. Why do you infer the narrator greets the old man so heartily every morning?

• Because the narrator truly cares about him

• Because it is a habit

• Because the narrator is a very cheerful person

• Because the narrator doesn’t want the old man to be suspicious

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.6

CCSS.RL.6.6

CCSS.RL.7.6

CCSS.RL.8.6

7. Read the excerpt below. What can you infer about the narrator?

It took me an hour to place my whole head within the opening so far that I could see him as he lay upon his bed.

• He is very intelligent.

• He is very curious.

• He is very cautious / careful.

• He is very threatening.

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

9. Consider the noises the narrator was haunted by at the end of the story. What do you infer they could represent?

• The old man’s ghost

• The narrator’s guilt

• The amount of time the narrator has left to live

• The suspicion of the police

Tags

CCSS.RL.5.4

CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

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.4.4

CCSS.RL.5.4

CCSS.RL.6.4

CCSS.RL.7.4

CCSS.RL.8.4