Confession Of A Madman

Worksheet Description

This worksheet is designed to deepen students’ understanding of the narrator’s motivations and the progression of events in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Tell-Tale Heart.” It includes a series of questions:

1. Students will explore why the narrator tells his story.
2. They will identify the various things the narrator accuses others of mistaking for madness throughout the story.
3. Students will analyze the qualities the narrator claims to possess to prove his sanity.
4. They will consider what the narrator claims convinced the policemen that there is nothing to discover in his home.
5. Lastly, students will identify the narrator’s ultimate downfall.

This exercise encourages students to think critically about the narrator’s perspective and the unraveling of his sanity as the story unfolds. It also fosters discussions about the reliability of the narrator’s account.