This page will contain my writing for school. I will post all my writing assignments/pieces on this page and I’m excited for you to read and comment on them.
Insane, Unreliable, and Paranoid
The narrator reveals his true character and self through his determination that he made throughout the story. The Tell-Tale Heart follows an unnamed narrator who insists that he is sane, after murdering an old man because of his evil eye. This murder is carefully thought out and planned. The narrator hides the body by cutting it into pieces and hiding it under the floorboards. Ultimately, the narrator’s guilt manifests itself in the hallucination that the man’s heart is still beating under the floorboards. It is unclear what relationship, if any, the old man and his murderer share. In the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart”, the narrator’s decision to kill the old man because of his evil eye impacts the story by making him confess to the police about the murder.
In the short story “The Tell-Tale Heart”, the narrator’s mental instability drives him to plan and describe a murder, and his unreliability leads him to try to convince the readers that his actions don’t make him unstable. This has a big impact on the ending result of the story. In the text, the narrator states “How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe how healthily — how calmly I can tell you the whole story.” (Poe 1). This supports that the narrator is unreliable because he said that he would retell the whole story by himself. This has an impact on the outcome of the story because we are only getting to hear his side and opinion of the story, not the truth. What we are hearing is biased opinion, which makes us view the story differently and changes our thoughts on it. The narrator also shows how he continues after making a bad choice by saying “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” (Poe 3). Even though the narrator’s guilt was building up inside of him, he still proceeds to continue those bad actions. These choices helped him gain enough grief to admit his wrongdoings to the police.
When the narrator chose of committing the murder, it changes the outcome of the story because it gives us a sense of the type of character he is, and it shows us how someone who’s mentally unstable would react to this type of situation. It also shows that he is insane because his only reason to murder the old man was because of his evil eye. Poe shows that the narrator’s unstable decisions affect the outcome of the story by stating “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” (Poe 2). The awful choices that the narrator made gave him a horrible feeling throughout his body. After having this terrible rush of feelings inside of him, he begins to feel even more sorrowful for his wrong actions. This then foreshadows that the narrator’s guilt will catch up with him.
In the end, the narrator’s paranoia led to his confession, which contributed to the outcome of the story. In the short story, the narrator showed this by saying “ ‘Villains!’ I shrieked, ‘dissemble no more! I admit the deed!….tear up the planks! — here, here! — it is the beating of his hideous heart!’ ” (Poe 18). You can tell that the narrator is paranoid because he shows worried he is about the old man’s heart beating under the floor. This changes the outcome of the story because he is so concerned and it very easy to tell.
The short story “The Tell-Tale Heart” demonstrates how the narrator’s actions and choice to kill the old man, impact the story by making him confess to the police about what happened. As you can see, the narrator’s traits and actions help contribute to the outcome of the story. Others today still face these types of situations today. Just know that your guilt will always find a way to catch up to you.
See the good in all things
Have you ever heard of the 9/11 attacks? On September 11, 2001, four planes were hijacked by terrorists. They crashed two of the four planes into the Twin Towers in Lower Manhattan. The World Trade Center had 104 floors, with thousands of innocent people working on them. Little did they know that one of the most tragic things were about to happen. The book “Eleven” by Tom Rogers is about a young boy named Alex who is turning 11 on 9/11. In the book “Eleven”, Alex and Mac showed that it is always best to see the good in all things.
One of the many themes in the book “Eleven” is to see the good in all things. Mac’s wife, Dottie, is slowly slipping away. Her memory isn’t as good as it used to be. The circumstance made Mac aggravated and upset, but instead of taking his anger out he decides to look at it a different way. Mac sees it as a blessing that Dottie is even alive. He is grateful for her company and existence. “ ‘It all depends on how you look at things’ ”(Rogers 143). The way you look at things can determine your behavior, which can affect the way you see the world. You are always better off to have a good attitude, than a bad one. It will benefit you more. You can either look at the glass as half empty or half full. The choice is yours to decide.
Seeing the good in all things is a very important aspect of the novel “Eleven”. When Mac was telling Alex everything that he and Dottie have been through, he said something that everyone should live by. “ ‘I suppose I could be mad’ He paused. ‘But what good would that do’ ” (Rogers 144)? It’s not worth it to get upset about things that are out of your control. It doesn’t do you any good. Mac couldn’t change the fact that Dottie had Alzheimer’s. He just makes the most out of the time he has with her. The same thing goes for easily solved problems. Always try to make the best out of the situation.
Mac and Alex showed that you should see the good in things, multiple times in the book. Looking on the bright side makes a difference on your perspective of things. Finding something good in a bad situation makes the moment seem more cherished. “ ‘Sometimes when a terrible thing happens, it can make a beautiful thing seem even more precious’ ”( Rogers 144). It’s important to be optimistic or cheerful in spite of difficulties. Live as an optimist, not a pessimist. One way that this theme has related to my life is when I was playing a basketball game. We were losing by 17 at half time. My team saw the good in this terrible situation by realizing there was still a whole other half, where we could change the way we played. In the second half, we made a huge comeback. The final score of the game was 24-25. At the end of our game, we didn’t hang our heads low because we put up a good fight, right till the last second. We all looked on the bright side that we made a huge comeback. My coach was very pleased with our effort and did not see it as a loss, but a fight.
Mac and Alex saw the good in all things in the book “Eleven” by Tom Rogers. As you can see, it’s important to always look on the bright side. If you look on the bright side, the more people will want to be around you because you are happier and more positive. It plays a big role in your social life. In conclusion, the book “Eleven” teaches that you don’t have control over every situation, but you can choose how you respond, which can make a bad situation more bearable.