Stylistics

1. The Tell-Tale Heart
by
Edgar Allan Poe
(published 1850)
TRUE! -- nervous -- very, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but
why will you say that I am mad? The diseasehad sharpened my senses --
not destroyed -- not dulled them. Above all was the senseof hearing acute.
I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell.
How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observehow healthily -- how calmly I
can tell you the whole story.
Itis impossibleto say how firstthe idea entered my brain; but once
conceived, it haunted me day and night. Objectthere was none. Passion
there was none. I loved the old man. He had never wronged me. He had
never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I think it was his eye!
yes, it was this!He had the eye of a vulture --a pale blue eye, with a film
over it. Whenever it fell upon me, 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.
Now this is the point. You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But
you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded --
with what caution --with what foresight --with what dissimulation I went to
work!I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before
I killed him. And every night, about midnight, I turned the latch of his door
and opened it --oh so gently! And then, when I had made an opening

2. sufficient for my head, I put in a dark lantern, all closed, closed, so that no
light shoneout, and then I thrustin my head. Oh, you would have laughed
to see how cunningly I thrustit in! I moved it slowly --very, very slowly, so
that I might not disturb the old man's sleep. Ittook me an hour to place my
whole head within the opening so far that I could see him as he lay upon his
bed. Ha! --would a madman have been so wiseas this? And then, when my
head was well in the room, I undid the lantern cautiously --oh, so cautiously
--cautiously (for the hinges creaked) --I undid it justso much that a single
thin ray fell upon the vulture eye. And this I did for seven long nights --
every night justat midnight --but I found the eye always closed; and so it
was impossibleto do the work; for it was not the old man who vexed me,
but his Evil Eye. And every morning, when the day broke, I went boldly into
the chamber, and spokecourageously 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 suspectthat every
night, justat twelve, I looked in upon him while he slept.
Upon the eighth night I was morethan usually cautious in opening the
door. A watch's minute hand moves more quickly than did mine. Never
before that night had I felt the extent of my own powers --of my sagacity. I
could scarcely contain my feelings of triumph. To think that there I was,
opening the door, little by little, and he not even to dream of my secret
deeds or thoughts. I fairly chuckled at the idea; and perhaps he heard me;
for he moved on the bed suddenly, as if startled. Now you may think that I
drew back --butno. His roomwas as black as pitch with the thick darkness,
(for the shutters wereclose fastened, through fear of robbers,) and so I
knew that he could not see the opening of the door, and I kept pushing it
on steadily, steadily.
I had my head in, and was about to open the lantern, when my thumb
slipped upon the tin fastening, and the old man sprang up in bed, crying out

3. --"Who's there?"
I kept quite still and said nothing. For a whole hour I did not movea
muscle, and in the meantime I did not hear him lie down. He was still sitting
up in the bed listening; --justas I have done, night after night, hearkening
to the death watches in the wall.
Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was the groan of mortal
terror. Itwas not a groan of pain or of grief --oh, no! --it was the low stifled
sound that arises fromthe bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe.
I knew the sound well. Many a night, justat midnight, when all the world
slept, it has welled up frommy 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. I knew that he
had been lying awakeever 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 --"Itis nothing but the wind in the chimney --it is only a mouse
crossing the floor," or "Itis merely a cricket which has made a single chirp."
Yes, he had been trying to comforthimself with these suppositions: buthe
had found all in vain.All in vain; becauseDeath, in approaching him had
stalked with his black shadow beforehim, and enveloped the victim. And it
was the mournfulinfluence of the unperceived shadow thatcaused him to
feel --although he neither saw nor heard --to feel the presenceof my head
within the room.
When I had waited a long time, very patiently, without hearing him lie
down, I resolved to open a little --a very, very little crevice in the lantern. So
I opened it --you cannotimagine how stealthily, stealthily --until, at length a
single dim ray, like the thread of the spider, shot fromout the creviceand
fell full upon the vulture eye.

4. Itwas open --wide, wide open --and I grew furious as I gazed upon it. I
saw it with perfectdistinctness --all a dull blue, with a hideous veil over it
that chilled the very marrow in my bones; but I could see nothing else of
the old man's face or person: for I had directed the ray as if by instinct,
precisely upon the damned spot.
And haveI not told you that whatyou mistake for madness is but over
acuteness of the senses? --now, I say, therecame to my ears a low, dull,
quick sound, such as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I knew that
sound well, too. Itwas the beating of the old man's heart. It increased my
fury, as the beating of a drumstimulates the soldier into courage.
But even yet I refrained and kept still. I scarcely breathed. I held the
lantern motionless. I tried how steadily I could maintain the ray upon the
eye. Meantime the hellish tattoo of the heart increased. Itgrew quicker and
quicker, and louder and louder every instant. The old man's
terror must havebeen extreme! Itgrew louder, I say, louder every
moment! --do you mark me well? I havetold you that I am nervous: so I
am. And now at the dead hour of the night, amid the dreadfulsilence of
that old house, so strangea noise as this excited me to uncontrollable
terror. Yet, for someminutes longer I refrained and stood still. But the
beating grew louder, louder! I thought the heart must burst. And now a
new anxiety seized me --the sound would be heard by a neighbor!The old
man's hour had come! With a loud yell, I threw open the lantern and
leaped into the room. He shrieked once --onceonly. In an instantI dragged
him to the floor, and pulled the heavy bed over him. I then smiled gaily, to
find the deed so far done. But, for many minutes, the heart beat on with a
muffled sound. This, however, did not vex me; it would not be heard
through the wall. At length it ceased. The old man was dead. I removed the
bed and examined the corpse. Yes, he was stone, stone dead. I placed my

5. hand upon the heart and held it there many minutes. There was no
pulsation. He was stone dead. His eye would trouble me no more.
If still you think me mad, you will think so no longer when I describethe
wiseprecautions I took for the concealment of the body. The night waned,
and I worked hastily, but in silence. Firstof all I dismembered the corpse. I
cut off the head and the arms and the legs.
I then took up three planks fromthe flooring of the chamber, and
deposited all between the scantlings. I then replaced the boards so cleverly,
so cunningly, that no human eye -- not even his --could have detected any
thing wrong. There was nothing to wash out --no stain of any kind --no
blood-spotwhatever. I had been too wary for that. A tub had caught all --
ha! ha!
When I had made an end of these labors, it was four o'clock --still dark as
midnight. As the bell sounded the hour, there came a knocking at the street
door. I went down to open it with a light heart, --for what had I now to
fear? There entered three men, who introduced themselves, with
perfect suavity, as officers of the police. A shriek had been heard by a
neighbor during the night; suspicion of foul play had been aroused;
information had been lodged at the police office, and they (the officers)
had been deputed to search the premises.
I smiled, --for whathad I to fear? I bade the gentlemen welcome. The
shriek, I said, was my own in a dream. The old man, I mentioned, was
absent in the country. I took my visitors all over the house. I bade them
search --search well. I led them, at length, to his chamber. I showed them
his treasures, secure, undisturbed. In theenthusiasmof my confidence, I
broughtchairs into the room, and desired them here to rest fromtheir

6. fatigues, while I myself, in the wild audacity of my perfect triumph, placed
my own seat upon the very spotbeneath which reposed the corpseof the
victim.
The officers were satisfied. My manner had convinced them. I was
singularly at ease. They sat, and while I answered cheerily, they chatted of
familiar things. But, ere long, I felt myself getting pale and wished them
gone. My head ached, and I fancied a ringing in my ears: but still they sat
and still chatted. The ringing became more distinct: --it continued and
became more distinct: I talked morefreely to get rid of the feeling: but it
continued and gained definiteness --until, at length, I found that the noise
was not within my ears.
No doubt I now grew very pale; --butI talked more fluently, and with a
heightened voice. Yet the sound increased --and what could I do? Itwas 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.
I talked more quickly --more vehemently; but the noise steadily increased. I
aroseand argued about trifles, in a high key and with violentgesticulations;
but the noisesteadily increased. Why would they not be gone? I paced the
floor to and fro with heavy strides, as if excited to fury by the observations
of the men -- but the noise steadily increased. Oh God! whatcould I do? I
foamed --I raved --I swore!I swung thechair upon which I had been sitting,
and grated it upon the boards, but the noise aroseover all and continually
increased. Itgrew louder --louder --louder! And still the men chatted
pleasantly, and smiled. Was it possiblethey heard not? Almighty God! --no,
no! They heard! --they suspected! --they knew! --they were making a
mockery of my horror! --this I thought, and this I think. But anything was
better than this agony!Anything was more tolerable than this derision! I
could bear thosehypocritical smiles no longer! I felt that I must screamor
die! --and now --again! --hark!louder!louder! louder! louder! --

7. "Villains!" I shrieked, "dissemble no more! I admit the deed! --tear up the
planks! --here, here! --it is the beating of his hideous heart!"
Analysis of the story "The Tell-Tale Heart" by Edgar Allen Poe
Born January 19, 1809, Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. American short-story
writer, poet, critic, and editor Edgar Allan Poe's tales of mystery and horror
initiated the modern detective story, and the atmosphere in his tales of horror is
unrivaled in American fiction. With his shortstories and poems, Edgar Allan Poe
captured the imagination and interest of readersaround the world. Hiscreative
talents led to the beginning of differentliterary genres, earning him the nickname
"Father of the Detective Story" among other distinctions.
Poe became a literary sensation in 1845 with the publication of the poem "The
Raven." It is considered a greatAmerican literary work and one of the best of
Poe's career.
In late 1830s, Poe published Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque, a
collection of stories. It contained several of his most spine-tingling tales, including
"The Fall of the House of Usher," "Ligeia" and "William Wilson." Poe launched the
new genre of detective fiction with 1841's"The Murdersin the Rue Morgue." A
writer on the rise, he won a literary prize in 1843 for "The Gold Bug," a suspenseful
tale of secret codesand hunting treasure.
Continuing work in differentforms, Poe examined his own methodology and
writing in generalin several essays, including "The Philosophy of Composition,"
"The Poetic Principle" and "The Rationale of Verse." He also produced another

8. thrilling tale, "The Cask of Amontillado," and poemssuch as "Ulalume" and "The
Bells."
Poe’swriting possesses indubitable literary meritand serves as an
encouraging example for aspiring writers. Hiswriting demonstratesstylistic
brilliance in the form of varying vocabulary, remarkable repetition, and
instrumentalimagery.
Poe's best known fiction worksare Gothic, a genre he followed to appease the
public taste. His most recurring themesdealwith questionsof death, including its
physicalsigns, the effects of decomposition, concernsof premature burial, the
reanimation of the dead, and mourning. In many of Poe'sworks, setting is used to
paint a dark and gloomy picture in our minds. His mysteriousstyle of writing
appealsto emotion and drama.
Poe has a brilliant way of taking gothic tales of mystery and terror and mixing
them with variations of a romantic tale by shifting emphasis from surface
suspense and plot pattern to his symbolic play in language and variousmeanings
of words. Poe uses a subtle style, tone, subconsciousmotivation of charactersand
serious themes to shift his readerstowardsa demented pointof view. This is the
unique tactics Poe utilizes that makeshim an impressionable writer and poet.
Beyond horror, Poe also wrote satires, humor tales, and hoaxes. For comic
effect, he used irony and ludicrousextravagance, often in an attempt to liberate
the reader from culturalconformity.
In “The Tell-Tale Heart”, Poe takesus to the mind of a mad man as he
struggleswith the thoughtsthat caused him to do the unthinkable. He killed an
old man, because of his eye, which scared the narrator. Through the whole story,
the main character insists that he is not crazy.
There are three main themes of "The Tell Tale Heart":

9.  Crime and punishment(every person, who committed a crime can’t escape
punishment);
 Insanity (the reader can understand thatthe main character iscrazy, based
on his behavior, speech and thoughts. However, he believed and believes that he is
and wasperfectly sane. He thinks that it is normally to kill someone, because
something makesyou feel uncomfortable and irritatesyou);
 Time (The narrator had been preparingfor a murder for seven long nights.
On the eighth nightthe old man heard thatsomeonewas in his room: “For a
whole HOUR I did notmove a muscle, and in the meantime I did not hear him lie
down. He wasstill sitting up in the bed listening;--justas I have done, NIGHT
AFTER NIGHT, hearkening to the death WATCHES in the wall.” Our life is measured
in hours.
We can define two typesof the setting of this story: physical and mental.
The physical settings are:
 the place, where now the narrator is(a prison or maybe an insane asylum);
 the house, the bedroom, where wascommitted a murder. There are only
few details aboutthis house in the story, which are directly given. We know that
the old man kepthis shutters tightly locked. And we can only imagine a bedroom,
where the narrator killed the old man. This story taps our fearsof the dark, and
whatthe dark mighthold. Reading this story, you look involuntarilyaround…
Maybe someone also spies on you.
The most important setting of this story is mental. It clearly explains the
personality of the narrator. We can or try to understand the actionsof the
narrator, we knowhisfeelings. It gives us more clear idea of the main character,
of his essence.
The action in the narrator'sstory takesplace over eight days.
This story is written in the first person narrative. Thistechnique is used to get
inside the main character'shead and view his thoughtsand are often exciting. It
helps us to understand the main character better.
The author is the main character of the story. He is theprotagonist and the
antagonist at the same time. He is nervous, paranoid and mentally ill. He doesn't
know the difference between the "real" and the "unreal". He doesn'tshare his

10. name, because he wants only to tell us whathe had done. Or maybe he
remembersthatnight when he committed a murder and tries to convince himself
of being in hisrightmind.
But the reader can understand thathe is crazy, based on hisbehavior, speech
and thoughts. We can’ttrust him, because he tries to show things in the most
favourable light. We must draw conclusionsourselves.
He is a narrator and one of the charactersatthe same time. So we can say,
that he is a dynamic character. There are given indirect(for example, how he
watched the old man eight nights) and speech characteristics("NERVOUS--very,
very dreadfully nervousI had been and am!") of this character.
The next character isthe old man. We can look at him through the eyes of the
narrator. But, asit wasmentioned, we can’ttrust the main character. The old man
had a blue eye, which irritated and scared the narrator: “One of his eyes
resembled that of a vulture--a pale blue eye, with a film over it. Whenever it fell
upon me, my blood ran cold…”. We can suppose that he wasreach enough (the
narrator showed the old man's"treasures" to the police), and he wasafraid of
robbers(“…for the shutterswere close fastened, through fear of robbers…”). But
we can say, that he trusted the narrator, because he didn’tlock his bedroom’s
door. The old man wasincapable of defending himself: “His fearshad been ever
since growing upon him. He had been trying to fancy them causeless, butcould
not. He had been saying to himself: "It is nothing butthe wind in the chimney--itis
only a mouse crossing the floor," or "it is merely a cricketwhich has made a single
chirp." Yes, he had been trying to comforthimself with these suppositions; buthe
had found all in vain.” He was in need of protection.
The policemen and the neighbor are the secondary characters.
The three policemen don't really have any characteristics. But they play a
major role in driving the plot of the narrator'sstory. The three policemen are fairly
unambiguous, flatcharacterswho do exactly whatthey are supposed to do.

11. The neighbor playsa small but importantrole in the narrator'sstory. Through
the neighbor it is expressed narrator’s fear thatsomeone can hear the
perpetration of a crime.
The plot of the story (extract, passage) runsas follows:
Exposition of the story is when a nameless person (the narrator ) explainsthat
he is and wasextremely nervous, but is not and wasnot insane. Rather, the
narrator hasa "disease" which makesall his senses, especially his hearing, very
sensitive. To prove that he is of sound mind, he tells us the story on how he killed
the old man while pleading his sanity, all his preparationsand how cautioushe
was: “You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. Butyou should have seen me.
You should have seen how wisely I proceeded--with whatcaution--with what
foresight--with whatdissimulation I wentto work!”. Butwhy he did? He loved the
old man and had nothing againsthim. Except…his horrible eye, “…a pale blue eye,
with a film over it”. The narrator hated the eye and decided to kill the old man to
be free of it.
Every night, at almost 12am, the narrator came in the old man's bedroom and
looked if the eye was open or not. The narrator did thatfor eight nights.It’sa story
himself. Here the narrator tellsus how he spied the old man.
The climax of the story comes at night of the murder. The main character is
describing all his actions and feelings in extremely precise way. On the eighth
night the he killed the old man, he smothered the old man and then
“…dismembered the corpse… took up three planksfrom the flooring of the
chamber, and deposited allbetween the scantlings… replaced the boardsso
cleverly, so cunningly, thatno human eye--noteven his--could have detected
anything wrong”.
The denoumentis when three policemen came.The narrator waspretty
calm.He gave them the guided tour of the house, and then invited to hang out
with him in the man'sbedroom. But, the narrator started to hear a terrible noise,
which gets louder and louder. He thoughtthat it was old man’s heartbeatand

12. that everyone in that room heard it… But I think, it washeartbeatof the murderer.
Somewhere deep in his mind he understood whathe had done. To stop that noise,
which drove himmad, the narrator told the cops to look under the
floorboards and confessed tomurder.
It is an author’snarration with some description and inner dialogues
(monologue).
We can define many literary devices in this story. One of them aresymbols.
· The old man’s eye. It is a symbolof narrator’sparanoia and insanity:
“Objectthere wasnone. Passion there was none. I loved the old man. He had
never wronged me. He had never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I
think it was his eye! Yes, it was this! One of his eyes resembled that of a
vulture… Whenever it fell upon me, my blood ran cold”. We also see the old man’s
essence through thiseye. “…a pale blue eye, with a film over it” - it indicates a
lack of visual clarity and reliability of the man. That’s why he did’ttrust people and
wasafraid of surrounding world.
· The watch. The narrator severaltimes mentioned a watch (“…there came
to my ears a low, dull, quick sound, such as aWATCH makeswhen enveloped in
cotton” etc). A watch is a visual and auditory representation of time. Time
symbolize the approach of death. The narrator, wholiterally controlsthe time of
death for the old man, compareshimself to a watch'sminute hand.
· The Heartbeat. It symbolizesthe narrator’sguilt. He thoughtthat he heard
the heartbeatof the old man. But he heard his own heart, subconsciously he
understood whathe had done.
· The bed and the bedroom. In such place as a bedroom we feelourselves
safe, because it’s our own place, where can’tbe any threatfor us. But Poe shows a
bedroom asa place of murder and the bed – as a weapon.
Poe uses a lot of repetitions: “…with whatcaution--with whatforesight--with
whatdissimulation…“, “…how stealthily, stealthily…”, “slowly—very, very

13. slowly”, “steadily, steadily”, “It grew louder--louder--louder!”, “They heard!--they
suspected--they knew!”. Ithelpsto intensify the situation, to make the
atmosphere of the story more intensive and frightful. We are waiting whatwill be
the next. Such repetitionshelp the reader understandthe narrator'snervous
state and his feelings.
We can see some examples of hyperbole, which help us to understand, that
we are reading thoughtsof a true madman: “I heard all things in the heaven and
in the earth. I heard many thingsin hell” , “It took me an hour to place my whole
head…”, “For a whole hour I did notmove a muscle…”
Such metaphor as “One of his eyes resembled that of a vulture--a pale blue
eye, with a film over it” showsus, that the narrator wasafraid the eye. Itis
said, the vulture is an evil bird and associated with evil in literature. So, the
narrator thoughtthatit wasthe eye of Evil. “A watch'sminute hand movesmore
quickly than did mine”. This metaphor showshow cautiousthe narrator was in
opening the door.
The personification of Death helpsto develop mood: “because Death, in
approachinghim. had stalked with his black shadow before him, and enveloped
the victim”.
There are some similes in this story: “His room wasas black as pitch with the
thick darkness …”, “a single dim ray, like the thread of the spider “, “a low, dull,
quick sound, such as a watch makeswhen enveloped in cotton”, “still dark as
midnight”. They emphasize the quality and the state of some things.
alliteration: "Hearken...how healthily, how..."
There is an example of amplification: “I talked more quickly –more
vehemently; but the NOISE STEADILYINCREASED. I arose and argued abouttrifles,
in a high key and with violent gesticulations; but the NOISE STEADILY
INCREASED.” The narrator try to convince us that he is not mad. He emphasizes
the fact.

14. Another rhetoricaldevice that can be found within the story
is epithet“dreadfully nervous”. Itnamesthe importantcharacteristic of
the character.
Parenthesisis also found within this shortstory: “I undid the lantern-oh, so
cautiously –cautiously (for the hingescreaked) –I undid it justso much that a
single thin ray fell upon the vulture eye.” Here Poe uses the parenthesisto explain
why the speaker undid the lantern so cautiously. “His room wasas black as pitch
with the thick darkness(for the shutters were close fastened, through fear of
robbers), and so I knew that he could notsee the opening of the door, and I kept
pushing it on steadily, steadily” – Poe explains, why wasso dark in the bedroom
and gives some additionalinformation aboutthe old man.
We also can find some rhetorical questions:“Would a madman have been so
wise as this?”, “Why would you say thatI am mad”, “For whathad I to fear?”. The
answersare obvious. The narrator insiststhat he is sane, and doesn’teven
suppose that he can be crazy.
Irony:The speaker keeps saying that he is not crazy but through hisactions
and speech we can make a conclusionthathe is.
As we see, this story is really reach on stylistic devices.
During the reading, it is given the impression that you hear thatheartbeat,
the “low, dull, quick sound--much such a sound asa watch makeswhen enveloped
in cotton”, that the old man’s eye, “a pale blue eye, with a film over it”,
are piercinginto you. In this story Poe takesus to the mind of a mad man as he
struggleswith the thoughtsthat caused him to do the unthinkable.
Poe's economic style of writing is a key instrumentin making this story
amazing. In this story, he uses his style to truly bring outwhathe intended for the
story - a study of paranoia. He usesa lot of stylistic devices to reach the story, to
make it more colorfuland interesting.

15. The moralof this story is very clear. The feeling of guilt is very hard or even
impossible to overcome, even a madman can’tcope with it.
The theme of "The Tell-Tale Heart". Expressive means and stylistic
devices in the story
There are three main themes of "The Tell Tale Heart":
 Crime and punishment(every person, who committed a crime can’tescape
punishment);
 Insanity (the reader can understand thatthe main character iscrazy, based
onhis behavior, speech and thoughts. However, he believed and believes that he is
and wasperfectly sane. He thinks that it is normally to kill someone, because
something makesyou feel uncomfortable and irritatesyou);

16.  Time (The narrator had been preparingfor a murder for seven long nights.
On the eighth nightthe old man heard thatsomeonewas in his room: “For a
whole HOUR I did notmove a muscle, and in the meantime I did nothear him lie
down. He wasstill sitting up in the bed listening;--justas I have done, NIGHT
AFTER NIGHT, hearkening to the death WATCHES in the wall.” Our life is measured
in hours.
We can define many literary devices in this story. One of them are symbols.
 The old man’s eye. It is a symbolof narrator’sparanoia and insanity:
“Objectthere wasnone. Passion there was none. I loved the old man. He had
never wronged me. He had never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I
think it was his eye! Yes, it was this! One of his eyes resembled that of a
vulture…Whenever it fell upon me, my blood ran cold”. We also see the old man’s
essence through thiseye. “…a pale blue eye, with a film over it” - it indicates a
lack of visual clarity and reliability of the man. That’s why he did’ttrust people and
wasafraid of surrounding world.
 The watch. The narrator severaltimes mentioned a watch (“…there came to
my ears a low, dull, quick sound, such as aWATCH makeswhen enveloped in
cotton” etc). A watch is a visual and auditory representation of time. Time
symbolize the approach of death. The narrator, wholiterally controlsthe time of
death for the old man, compareshimself to a watch'sminute hand.
 The Heartbeat. It symbolizesthe narrator’sguilt. He thoughtthathe heard
the heartbeatof the old man. But he heard his own heart, subconsciously he
understood whathe had done.
 The bed and the bedroom. In such place as a bedroom we feelourselves
safe, because it’s our own place, where can’tbe any threatfor us. But Poe shows a
bedroom asa place of murder and the bed – as a weapon.

17. Poe uses a lot of repetitions: “…with whatcaution--with
whatforesight--with whatdissimulation…“, “…how stealthily,
stealthily…”, “slowly—very, very slowly”, “steadily, steadily”, “Itgrew louder--
louder --louder!”, “They heard!--theysuspected--theyknew!”. Ithelps to intensify
the situation, to make the atmosphere of the story more intensive and frightful.
We are waiting whatwill be the next. Such repetitionshelp the reader understand
the narrator'snervousstate and his feelings.
We can see some examples of hyperbole, which help us to understand, that
we are reading thoughtsof a true madman: “I heard all things in the heaven and
in the earth. I heard many thingsin hell” , “It took me an hour to place my whole
head…”, “For a whole hour I did notmove a muscle…”
Such metaphor as “One of his eyes resembled that of a vulture--a pale blue
eye, with a film over it” showsus, that the narrator wasafraid the eye. Itis
said, the vulture is an evil bird and associated with evil in literature. So, the
narrator thoughtthatit wasthe eye of Evil. “A watch'sminute hand movesmore
quickly than did mine”. This metaphor showshow cautiousthe narrator wasin
opening the door.

18. The personification of Death helpsto develop mood: “because Death, in
approachinghim. had stalked with his black shadow before him, and enveloped
the victim”.
There are some similes in this story: “His room wasas black as pitch with
the thick darkness …”, “a single dim ray, like the thread of the spider “, “a low,
dull, quick sound, such as a watch makeswhen enveloped in cotton”, “still dark as
midnight”. They emphasize the quality and the state of some things.
alliteration:"Hearken...how healthily, how..."
There is an example of amplification: “I talked more quickly –more
vehemently; but the NOISE STEADILYINCREASED. I arose and argued abouttrifles,
in a high key and with violent gesticulations; but the NOISE STEADILY
INCREASED.” The narrator try to convince us that he is not mad. He emphasizes
the fact.
Another rhetoricaldevice that can be found within the story
is epithet“dreadfully nervous”. Itnamesthe importantcharacteristic of
the character.

19. Parenthesisis also found within
this shortstory:“I undid the lantern-oh, so cautiously –cautiously (for the hinges
creaked) –I undid it just so much that a single thin ray fell upon the vulture eye.”
Here Poe uses the parenthesisto explain why the speaker undid the lantern so
cautiously.“Hisroom wasas black as pitch with the thick darkness(for the
shutters were close fastened, through fear of robbers), and so I knew thathe could
not see the opening of the door, and I keptpushing it on steadily, steadily” – Poe
explains, why wasso dark in the bedroom and givessome additionalinformation
aboutthe old man.
We also can find some rhetorical questions:“Would a madman have been
so wise as this?”, “Why would you say thatI am mad”, “For whathad I to fear?”.
The answersare obvious. The narrator insiststhat he is sane, and doesn’teven
suppose that he can be crazy.
Irony: The speaker keepssaying that he is not crazy but through hisactions
and speech we can make a conclusionthathe is.
As we see, this story is really reach on stylistic devices.