Grades: 6-8Description:Join us for our Book Club! series featuring Edgar Allan Poe: Master of Madness! Poe is the inventor of the detective story, father of the psychological thriller and a master American poet. Our session will discuss the life and times of the author and the grisly short story “The Tell-Tale Heart”. We will focus on literary elements such as imagery and figurative language, as well as the life and times of Edgar Allan Poe.Lesson Outcomes:The student will:•Be able to use, understand and apply new vocabulary related to the story.•Be able to understand and identify a writer’s sense of style such as figurative language, imagery, and repetition.•Be able to gain more knowledge about the life and times of the author and his purpose for writing the story “The Tell-Tale Heart”.Activity # 1: Vocabulary DevelopmentWhile reading the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, students will work on developing an understanding of specific vocabulary words by defining each word and writing down the passage in which the word is used in the short story. After completion of the novel, students will complete the “The Tell-Tale Heart” Crossword Puzzle activity.Activity # 2: Literary Elements: A Writer’s Sense of StyleStyle is a writer’s characteristic way of writing, such as his choice of words, sentence structure, imagery, and subject matter. After reading the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart” students will answer questions about the writer’s style and identify various characteristics of Poe’s style.Activity # 3: Edgar Allan Poe Webquest/Scavenger HuntStudents will journey to several exciting websites to complete the “Edgar Allan Poe – Master of Madness” webquest/scavenger hunt.Challenge Questions:1. Explain what you think the title of “The Tell-Tale Heart” means.2. Describe a time in your life when your guilty conscience led you to do the rightthing.3. Write an alternate ending to the story “The Tell-Tale Heart”.Grades: 6-8Activity #1:Vocabulary WordsStudents will use the dictionary to define the following words taken from the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart”.1. conceived: to form an idea; think.2. vulture: a person or thing that preys, esp. greedily or unscrupulously.3. dissimulation: to hide under a false appearance; feigning; hypocrisy.4. vexed: irritated; annoyed.5. courageously: possessing or characterized by courage; brave.6. profound: having deep insight or understanding.7. sagacity: acuteness of mental discernment & soundness of judgment; wisdom.8. hearkening: to listen attentively; give heed.9. stifled: to suppress, curb, or withhold; muffled.10. unperceived: not perceived or commented on; not seen.11. stealthily: acting with quiet, caution, and secrecy intended to avoid notice.12. acuteness: sharp or penetrating in intellect, insight, or perception; sensitive.13. pulsation: a beat or throb, as of the pulse.14. dismembered: to cut, tear, or pull off the limbs of; to divide into pieces.15. suavity: smoothly agreeable and courteous; sophistication.16. audacity: boldness or daring, esp. with confident or arrogant disregard forpersonal safety.17. vehemently: strongly emotional; intense or passionate.18. gesticulations: a deliberate, vigorous motion or gesture with one’s hands.19. mockery: ridicule, contempt, or derision; subject of laughter.20. dissemble: to give a false or misleading appearance to; conceal the truth or realnature of.Vocabulary definitions taken from .Grades: 6-8Activity #1 cont.:Vocabulary Cross Word PuzzleAcross4. acuteness of mental discernment; wisdom5. to cut, tear, or pull off the limbs of; to divide into pieces6. to suppress, curb, or withhold; muffled7. irritated; annoyed8. strongly emotional; intense or passionate12. a beat or throb, as of the pulse13. boldness or daring16. having deep insight or understanding17. a deliberate, vigorous motion or gesture with one’s hands18. to listen attentively; give heed Down1. perceived or commented on; not seen2. sharp or penetrating in intellect, insight, or perception3. a person or thing that preys, esp. greedily or unscrupulously4. acting with quiet, caution, and secrecy intended to avoid notice5. to give a false or misleading appearance to; conceal the truth9. smoothly agreeable and courteous; sophistication10. possessing or characterized by courage; brave11. ridicule, contempt, or derision; subject of laughter14. to hide under a false appearance; feigning; hypocrisy15. to form an idea; thinkWord Bank:conceivedsagacitypulsation vulturehearkeningdismembered dissimulation stifled suavityvexed unperceived audacity courageously stealthily vehemently profoundacutenessgesticulations mockery dissembleGrades: 6-8Activity #2:Literary Elements: A Writer’s Sense of StyleEdgar Allan Poe uses the following literary elements to develop his sense of style within his writings. Before reading the short story, discuss these literary elements with your students. While reading, have them identify examples of these elements and discuss them. After reading the story, students will then answer the questions that follow.IMAGERY:Language that appeals to the senses (sight, sound, taste, touch, smell). Example: “the hinges creaked”.FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE: Whenever you describe something by comparing it with something else, you are using figurative language. The most common figures of speech are simile, metaphor, and alliteration.•Simile: a comparison of two unlike things, typically marked by use of "like" or "as". Example: “much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped incotton”.•Metaphor: A comparison of two unlike things using the verb "to be" and not using “like” or “as”, like a simile does. Example: “He is a pig”.•Alliteration: Repeated consonant sounds occurring at the beginning of words or within words. Alliteration is used to create melody, establish mood, call attention to important words, and point out similarities and contrasts. Example: “h ideoush eart”.REPETITION: where words or certain phrases are repeated for a stronger emphasis by the author. Example: “louder, louder”.GRIM HUMOR: topics and events that are usually treated seriously – death, mass murder, sickness, madness, terror, drug abuse, rape, war etc. – are treated in a humorous or satirical manner. Example: “I was never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before I killed him”.SUBJECTS OF HORROR & SUPERNATURAL: intended to scare, unsettle, or horrify the audience. Historically, the cause of the "horror" experience has often been the intrusion of an evil—or, occasionally, misunderstood—supernatural element into everyday human experience. Example: “Death, in approaching him, had stalked with his black shadow….”.Grades: 6-8Activity #2, cont:QUESTIONS:Style is a writer’s characteristic way of writing, such as his choice of words, sentence structure, imagery, and subject matter. After reading the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart” answer the following questions about the writer’s style and identify various characteristics of Poe’s style.1. What special words does the author use to help you see, hear, smell, and/or tastethings in the story? (imagery)2. How do these words set the mood for the story?3. What pictures did the author leave in your mind? (imagery)4. What did you like/dislike about the way the author has written the story?5. How did the author describe the character(s) within the story?6. Give two examples of figurative language used in the story.7. Locate one example of grim humor and/or horror used in the story.8. What sort of conclusion is the reader most likely to make after reading these openinglines from the story? “You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But youshould have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded….”9. What sound is being described in the following passage from the story? “….now, Isay, there came to my ears a low, dull, quick, sound, such as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton.”10. Why do you think the main character “admits the deed” to the police officers?Grades: 6-8Activity #3: Use the following websites to answer the questions that follow./poe/1. Where was Edgar Allan Poe born and where was he educated?2. What kind of writing was his first love?3. What types of jobs did he have?4. What famous work was published in 1841 and what was significant about it?/selected_works/index.htmlCLICK ON EACH OF THE SELECTED WORKS AND READ THE FIRST LINE OF EACH (there are six stories to click on).5. Read the first sentence in each of the six selected stories. What word choicesdoes Poe use in his opening sentences?6. How do these words set the mood and tone of the story?7. What do the words requiem, pendulum, and macabre mean?• Requiem:• Pendulum:• Macabre:/~Alien49690/annabel-lee.htmlREAD THE POEM “ANNABEL LEE” AND ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS.8. What was the girl's whole purpose in life?9. What came out of a cloud?10. What do you think happened to Annabel Lee?11. From what you have found in your research today, whom do you think Poe waswriting about?/acis/textarchive/rare/76.htmlREAD THE PARAGRAPH.12. What did Poe have to do in order to preserve a copy of his poem?CLICK ON PAGE 1 AND PAGE 2 TO LOOK AT EDGAR ALLAN POE’SORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT/eapoe.html13. What is cryptography?14. Name a piece of writing where Poe references it.Scroll down and read the solution for one of the cryptographs.Grades: 6-8Edgar Allen Poe – Master of Madness –Webquest/Scavenger HuntKEY1. Born in Boston, Educated in England and Virginia.2. First love was poetry.3. His careers was as a soldier, writer (author) editor, publisher.4. 1841 Murder in Rue Morgue – first fictional detective.5. Words in opening sentences: dark, dreary, oppressive, pestilence, devastated,madness, blood, insult, revenge, threat, nervous, made, weary.6. The words set the mood for the story by being negative, dark, dreary etc.7. Definitions:•requiem: any musical service, hymn, or dirge for the repose of the dead•pendulum: an apparatus consisting of an object mounted so that it swings freely under the influence of gravity•macabre: gruesome and horrifying; ghastly; horrible8. Purpose of Annabel Lee: to love and be loved by me (Poe).9. The wind blew out of the cloud.10. This is opinion. Annabel Lee most likely died of a chill, cold, etc.11. This is opinion, but almost certainly, Virginia, his cousin and wife.12. Poe wrote out several copies of his last poem, Annabel Lee, and circulated itamongst his friends.13. Cryptography: the science or study of the techniques of secret writing, especiallycode and cipher systems, methods, and the like.14. “The Gold Bug”Grades: 6-8Additional Websites and resources:•Knowing Poe: Great site to get an overall taste for Edgar Allan Poe! It has lesson plans, activities and much, much more!/default_flash.asp•Poe Stories: This site is a fairly extensive exploration of short stories by Edgar Allan Poe.•Poe Cryptographic Challenge:Cryptic Message written by Poe/eapoe.html•Teachers First "Interactive Raven”: Take a look at the vocabulary and literary devices in Edgar Allen Poe's famous poem, The Raven./share/raven/start-fl.html•Puzzlemaker: This site is how the crossword puzzle activity was made. Many other types of puzzles can be made here.Below is given annual work summary, do not need friends can download after editor deleted Welcome to visit againXXXX annual work summaryDear every leader, colleagues:Look back end of XXXX, XXXX years of work, have the joy of success in your work, have a collaboration with colleagues, working hard, also have disappointed when encountered difficulties and setbacks. Imperceptible in tense and orderly to be over a year, a year, under the loving care and guidance of the leadership of the company, under the support and help of colleagues, through their own efforts, various aspects have made certain progress, better to complete the job. For better work, sum up experience and lessons, will now work a brief summary.To continuously strengthen learning, improve their comprehensive quality. With good comprehensive quality is the precondition of completes the labor of duty and conditions. A year always put learning in the important position, trying to improve their comprehensive quality. Continuous learning professional skills, learn from surrounding colleagues with rich work experience, equip themselves with knowledge, the expanded aspect of knowledge, efforts to improve their comprehensive quality.The second Do best, strictly perform their responsibilities. Set up the company, to maximize the customer to the satisfaction of the company's products, do a good job in technical services and product promotion to the company. And collected on the properties of the products of the company, in order to make improvement in time, make the products better meet the using demand of the scene.Three to learn to be good at communication, coordinating assistance. On‐site technical service personnel should not only have strong professional technology, should also have good communication ability, a lot of a product due to improper operation to appear problem, but often not customers reflect the quality of no, so this time we need to find out the crux, and customer communication, standardized operation, to avoid customer's mistrust of the products and even the damage of the company's image. Some experiences in the past work, mentality is very important in the work, work to have passion, keep the smile of sunshine, can close the distance between people, easy to communicate with the customer. Do better in the daily work to communicate with customers and achieve customer satisfaction, excellent technical service every time, on behalf of the customer on our products much a understanding and trust.Fourth, we need to continue to learn professional knowledge, do practical grasp skilled operation. Over the past year, through continuous learning and fumble, studied the gas generation, collection and methods, gradually familiar with and master the company introduced the working principle, operation method of gas machine. With the help of the department leaders and colleagues, familiar with and master the launch of the division principle, debugging method of the control system, and to wuhan Chen Guchong garbage power plant of gas machine control system transformation, learn to debug, accumulated some experience. All in all, over the past year, did some work, have also made some achievements, but the results can only represent the past, there are some problems to work, can't meet the higher requirements. In the future work, I must develop the oneself advantage, lack of correct, foster strengths and circumvent weaknesses, for greater achievements. Looking forward to XXXX years of work, I'll be more efforts, constant progress in their jobs, make greater achievements. Every year I have progress, the growth of believe will get greater returns, I will my biggest contribution to the development of the company, believe inyourself do better next year!I wish you all work study progress in the year to come.。
The Tell-Tale HeartPublished 1843I ABOUT THE AUTHOREdgar Poe was born on January 19, 1809, in Boston, Massachusetts, the son of indigent actors. At age three, when his parents died, Poe was taken in by John Allan, a merchant from Richmond, Virginia. He attended a private school in England where he lived with the Allans between 1815 and 1820. After returning to America, he continued private schooling until 1826, when he entered the University of Virginia. However, he was forced to leave after less than a year because of gambling debts which John Allan refused to pay. After quarreling with his guardian, Poe went to Boston where, under an assumed name, he joined the army.A few months later, at the age of 18, his first collection of poems, privately financed, was published. In 1829, after the death of John Allan's wife, Poe was discharged from the army. He reconciled with his guardian, and received an appointment to West Point. However, because Allen would not support him adequately (and because he did not like military life) he purposely neglected his duties to get himself dismissed from the academy.Poe then went to Baltimore, where he resided with his impoverished aunt and her young daughter, Virginia. In 1832 he began his career as a writer of bizarre and romantic short stories by publishing 'Metzengerstein,' a tale about feuding families and supernatural revenge. However, his first real success came the following year when his 'MS. Found in a Bottle,' an eerie tale about a shipwreck and ghostly seamen, won a $50 prize from a Baltimore newspaper. More importantly, it won him recognition and led to a position as an editor on a monthly magazine published in Richmond.In 1836, Poe married his cousin Virginia, who was not quite 14 years old at the time, and in 1837, after the end of his editorship, he and his childbride and her mother moved to Philadelphia. Poe soon published the only novel-length fiction he ever wrote, The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym, a rambling adventure yarn filled with mutiny at sea, shipwreck, cannibalism, fierce South Sea natives, and a voyage to the South Pole. Between 1838 and 1849, the year he died, Poe was at the center of magazine publishing in America, serving as the editor of several journals and writing reviews, critical articles, stories, and miscellaneous pieces which won him admiration for his critical acumen. His most famous works—including gothic horror stories such as 'The Fall of the House of Usher' and 'Ligeia,' detective stories, such as 'Murders in the Rue Morgue' and 'The Purloined Letter,' and tales of obsession such as 'The Black Cat' and 'The Tell-Tale Heart'—all were published during this period. He also earned great fame and wide acclaim with poems such as 'The Raven.'II OVERVIEW'The Tell-Tale Heart' is one of a number of Poe stories that focus on an obsessed protagonist/narrator. Indeed, what holds the story together and holds the attention of the reader is the single-minded voice of the madman who, even as he denies his madness, tells a story that confirms it. Poe's use of a first-person narrator obsessively recounting a past event is an important element in his contribution to the short story form as a highly unified aesthetic entity.Poe's theory that every element in a short prose story should contribute to its overall effect is exemplified by the fact that the protagonist/narrator is obsessively concerned with his irrational desire to kill the oldman because of the old man's eye and by his rational method of proceeding. Poe's stories are often characterized by a psychological mania held in check by the rational control of the narrative structure of the story itself. The narrator insists that his logical plot to kill the old man and the calm way he tells the story are evidence of his sanity. This reflects Poe's primary narrative method.III SETTINGAs is usually the case with first-person narratives, there are multiple settings to the story. The action of the recounted tale takes place in the house the narrator shares with the old man. At the same time, the narrator is telling the story from either a prison or an insane asylum where he has been incarcerated. But even more importantly, the setting is actually inside the obsessed mind of the narrator himself, for the crucial climactic event of the story—his hearing the beating of the dead man's heart—take place solely within his own tortured imagination.IV THEMES AND CHARACTERSAlthough there are two characters involved in the story—an old man and the younger man who lives with him—it is really about a single character. An examination of the nature of the narrator's obsession shows how Poe sets up this story about a split psyche. The narrator insists that he loves the old man, has no personal animosity toward him, does not want his money, and has not been injured by him. Instead, he says he wishes to kill the old man because of his eye! Although there is no way to understand this obsession, the reader must determine the method and meaning of the madness. For Poe, there is no such thing as meaningless madness in fiction.To understand what the old man's eye means to the narrator, it is necessary to examine the relevance of other themes and ideas. Besides the theme of the 'eye,' there are two primary motifs: the idea of time, and the identification of the narrator with the old man. The narrator says at various points in the story that he knows what the old man is feeling as he lies alone in bed, for he himself has felt the same things. He says the moan the old man makes does not come from pain or grief, but from mortal terror that arises from the bottom of the soul overcharged with awe. '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 terror that distracted me.'The narrator's own terror and awe is related to his obsession with time. He associates the central image of the beating of the heart with the beating of a clock; he says the old man listens, just as he has done, to the death watches (a kind of beetle that makes a ticking sound) in the wall; he emphasizes how time slows down and almost stops as he sticks his head into the old man's room. To comprehend the meaning of time for the narrator, we must consider the significance of the title and ask: what tale does the heart tell? Although at the end of the story, the beating heart beneath the floor gives the murderer away, more generally, every heart tells the tale of passing time—each beat bringing one closer to inevitable death.The narrator's strong identification with the old man and his obsession with the eye, suggests that the narrator really wishes to destroy the 'I,' that is, himself. The only way to defeat time is to destroy that which time would inevitability destroy, that is, the self. But to save the self by destroying the self is a paradox that the narrator cannot overcome. Indeed, by destroying the old man's eye, the narrator indirectly destroys himself in the end by exposing himself as the murderer.V LITERARY QUALITIES'The Tell-Tale Heart,' like many of Poe's stories, is deceptively simple at first reading. One might easily dismiss it as a story about a crazy murderer who kills without motivation. However, this would underestimate both Poe's idea of artistic control and his concern with the deepest urges of the human heart. To read 'The Tell-Tale Heart' meaningfully, one must take Poe's fictional theory seriously and attempt to understand the relevance of all the details of the story. This transforms the temporal narrative flow of the story into a meaningful pattern which makes sense of what at first seems to make no sense.Reading 'The Tell-Tale Heart' is like trying to solve a mystery story; in this case, the mystery is the motivation of the killer. The key to motivation in a Poe story is his use of a central idea or effect to hold the story together. As a result, everything coheres around this effect and radiates from it. The core of the story is like an obsession that can be identified by the principle of repetition, since those obsessed return again and again to the core of their obsession. Thus, the reader must be alert to repetitions in the story, references to single-minded motifs or themes. These repeated details are the 'clues' to the mystery; repetition is the principle by which the reader makes a distinction between relevant and irrelevant details. 'The Tell-Tale Heart' is a classic example of Poe's method.VI SOCIAL SENSITIVITYPoe is unconcerned with the broad social issues of his time. His protagonists are, by and large, not social figures. Instead, they seem to live cut off from society, detached from the large world around them and either content to, or doomed to, live alone. It may be that the short story form itself, which Poe is most credited with creating in America, is a form that is less suited to dealing with social issues than it is with solitary people. The novel, which is able to place characters within a realistic external world, is more open to the depiction of social issues than the short story, which usually focuses on one or two characters confronting psychological and metaphysical issues.VII TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION1. The narrator insists from the very beginning of the story that he is not insane. What characteristics does he say prove his sanity? What characteristics suggest his madness instead?2. Look carefully at the narrator's discussion of his motivation for the crime. Why does he assure the reader that he loves the old man and has no reasonable cause to kill him?3. Notice how cautiously the narrator sets up the murder of the old man? How does he do this? Why does he take so long before killing him?4. Notice all those places in the story when the narrator identifies with the old man. Discuss the nature of this identification.5. Discuss all the references to time in the story—watches, clocks, time passing, etc. Why is the narrator so concerned with time?6. Notice the narrator's insistence that what is mistaken for madness is actually an over-acuteness of the senses. What sense is particularly acute? What relevance does this have in the story?7. When the police call to investigate, why does the narrator invite them in and ask them to stay for a while? What does this reveal about his personality?8. If this is not a supernatural story which actually presents the beating of a dead man's heart, then whatmakes the narrator finally confess? Explain.VIII IDEAS FOR REPORTS AND PAPERS1. Although this is a story of madness, for Poe there is no such thing as 'meaningless madness.' Write a discussion of the nature of madness in the story.2. Poe insisted that every detail in a short story should relate to its central effect and thus contribute to a unified story. What unifies this story? What central effect holds it together? How can you tell the difference between those details that are meaningful and those that are not?3. Poe is often concerned with the theme of time and mortality, that is, how human beings are trapped in time and thus doomed to death. Explain how this story reflects this common Poe theme.4. Look at other Poe stories which focus on an obsessed, seemingly mad, narrator, such as 'The Black Cat,' 'The Imp of the Perverse,' and 'The Cask of Amontillado.' What characteristics do the narrators in these stories share?IX RELATED TITLES AND ADAPTATIONS'The Tell-Tale Heart' is one of a group of Poe stories that deal with obsession and madness. The central and most explicit of these stories is 'The Imp of the Perverse' (1845), a combination of story and essay in which a Poe narrator discusses and illustrates how humans often persist in some act or behavior for the very fact that they should not. Although the story notes such examples as procrastination in action and digression in speech, the central example is murder and a compulsion to confess.Even more closely related to 'The Tell-Tale Heart' is the story 'The Black Cat,' in which Poe once again uses the notion of the Imp of the Perverse, some primitive force in the human mind that drives one to commit an act for the very reason that one should not. Once again, the story focuses on a protagonist who murders someone and then gives himself away by a final act of bravado, much like the narrator in 'The Tell-Tale Heart.'Other Poe stories which deal with an obsession or an unmotivated compulsion to murder are 'The Premature Burial' (1844) and 'The Cask of Amontillado.' Stories which focus on a central character who seems obsessed and thus whose sanity is in question are 'The Fall of the House of Usher' and 'Berenice' (1835). 'The Tell-Tale Heart' has been the subject of more than one film treatment, but the best version is a short animated film narrated by James Mason. The surrealistic animated images reflect the distorted psychological perspective of the narrator and visually reflect the principle elements of his obsession. Contributed by: Charles E. MaySource: Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults.Copyright by Gale Group, Inc. Reprinted by permission.。
The Tell-Tale HeartBy: Edgar Allan PoeMotto: Art is long and Time is fleetingAnd our hearts, though stout and braveStill, like muffled drums, are beatingFuneral marches to the grave.——L ONGFELLOWTRUE！- 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. Above all was the sense of 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 observe how healthily - how calmly I can tell you the whole story.It is impossible to say how first the idea entered my brain；but once conceived，it haunted me day and night. Object there 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 sufficient for my head，I put in a dark lantern，all closed，closed，that no light shone out，and then I thrust in my head. Oh，you would have laughed to see how cunningly I thrust it in！I moved it slowly - very，very slowly，so that I might not disturb the old man's sleep. 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. Ha！would a madman have been so wise as 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 just so much that a single thin ray fell upon the vulture eye. And this I did for seven long nights - every night just at midnight - but I found the eye always closed；and so it was impossible to 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 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.Upon the eighth night I was more than usually cautious in opening the door. A watch's minute hand moves more quickly than did mine. Never beforethat 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 - but no. His room was as black as pitch with the thick darkness，（for the shutters were close 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 - “Who's there？”I kept quite still and said nothing. For a whole hour I did not move a muscle，and in the meantime I did not hear him lie down. He was still sitting up in the bed listening；- just as 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. 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. 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.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 cannot imagine how stealthily，stealthily - until，at length a simple dim ray，like the thread of the spider，shot from out the crevice and fell full upon the vulture eye.It was open - wide，wide open - and I grew furious as I gazed upon it. I saw it with perfect distinctness - 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 have I not told you that what you mistake for madness is but over-acuteness of the sense？- now，I say，there came to my ears a low，dull，quick sound，such as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I knew that sound well，too. It was the beating of the old man's heart. It increased my fury，as the beating of a drum stimulates 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 eve. Meantime the hellish tattoo of the heart increased. It grew quicker and quicker，and louder and louder every instant. The old man's terror must have been extreme！It grew louder，I say，louder every moment！- do you mark me well I have told you that I am nervous：so I am. And now at the dead hour of the night，amid the dreadful silence of that old house，so strange a noise as this excited me to uncontrollable terror. Yet，for some minutes 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 neighbour！The old man's hour had come！With a loud yell，I threw open the lantern and leaped into the room. He shrieked once - once only. In an instant I 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 hand upon the heart and held it there many minutes. There was no pulsation. He was stone dead. His eve would trouble me no more.If still you think me mad，you will think so no longer when I describe the wise precautions I took for the concealment of the body. The night waned，and I worked hastily，but in silence. First of all I dismembered the corpse. I cut off the head and the arms and the legs.I then took up three planks from the 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-spot whatever. 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 neighbour 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 what had 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 the enthusiasm of my confidence，I brought chairs intothe room，and desired them here to rest from their fatigues，while I myself，in the wild audacity of my perfect triumph，placed my own seat upon the very spot beneath which reposed the corpse of 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 more freely 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；- but I talked more fluently，and with a heightened voice. Yet the sound increased - and what could I do？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. I talked more quickly - more vehemently；but the noise steadily increased. I arose and argued about trifles，in a high key and with violent gesticulations；but the noise steadily 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！what could I do？I foamed - I raved - I swore！I swung the chair upon which I had been sitting，and grated it upon the boards，but the noise arose over all and continually increased. It grew louder - louder - louder！And still the men chatted pleasantly，and smiled. Was it possible they 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 those hypocritical smiles no longer！I felt that I must scream or die！and now - again！- hark！louder！louder！louder！louder！“Villains！” I shrieked，“dissemble no more！I admit the deed！- tear up the planks！here，here！- It is the beating of his hideous heart！”《泄密的心》埃德加·爱伦·坡真的——紧张——非常紧张，极度紧张，以前，现在，都是这样。
