Question

independent practice
directions: answer the multiple - choice questions for \the tell - tale heart\ 5 minutes

1. in the story, what causes the initial conflict between the narrator and the old man? rl.3

a. the narrator and the old man are angry they have to live together.
b. the narrator is driven mad by the sound of the old mans heart.
c. the narrator kills the old man to keep his madness hidden.
d. the narrator is terrified of the old mans blue eye.

1. which piece of evidence best supports the narrators reason for finally acting on his plan to kill the old man? rl.1

a. \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.\ (paragraph 1)
b. \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.\ (paragraph 7)
c. \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 mans hour had come!\ (paragraph 11)
d. \villains! i shrieked, dissemble no more! i admit the deed! - tear up the planks! - here, here! - it is the beating of his hideous heart!\ (paragraph 18)

1. which of the following best describes the significance of the beating heart throughout the story? rl.3

a. it foreshadows the narrators own death.
b. it shows that the old man is not really dead.
c. it represents the narrators guilt and worsening sanity.
d. it shows there is something supernatural happening to the narrator.

1. what does the use of the word \villains\ in paragraph 18 reveal? rl.4

a. the narrator thinks the police officers are making fun of him.
b. the narrator thinks the police officers are creating the sound.
c. the narrator thinks the police officers heard him commit the crime.
d. the narrator thinks the police officers are actually responsible for the crime.

Explanation:

1. In "The Tell - Tale Heart", the narrator is terrified of the old man's vulture - like blue eye, which causes the initial conflict.
2. The sound of the old man's heart growing louder and the narrator's fear of it being heard by a neighbor prompts him to act on his plan to kill the old man.
3. The beating heart throughout the story represents the narrator's guilt and deteriorating sanity as he imagines the sound even after the old man is dead.
4. When the narrator shouts "Villains!" in paragraph 18, he thinks the police officers heard him commit the crime.

Answer:

1. D. The narrator is terrified of the old man's blue eye.
2. C. "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!" (Paragraph 11)
3. C. It represents the narrator's guilt and worsening sanity.
4. D. The narrator thinks the police officers heard him commit the crime.