The Tell-Tale Heart

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

Consider the genre of Gothic literature. When was this literary form created, and when was it most popular? What were some of its features? Which authors are associated with it? What was the genre’s effect on subsequent waves of literature?

Teaching Suggestion: This question orients students with the literary context of Edgar Allan Poe’s short story as an example of Gothic literature. Originally popular in the late 18th to mid-19th century, Gothic literature often focused on haunted settings, combining supernatural elements with a tone of thrill and psychological disturbance. Occasionally referred to as the “Father of Gothic Literature,” Poe’s work combined the elements of mysterious settings with morbid and macabre plots through the eyes of tormented narrators. “The Tell-Tale Heart” is a classic example, as Poe explores the dichotomy between conscious and unconscious decisions and motivations.

• This entry from Britannica provides a brief overview of the novel in Gothic literature.
• This resource from the University of Alabama’s Digital Humanities Center provides a succinct overview of Edgar Allan Poe and his connection to Gothic literature.