The Motivational Self Fear of a Poe Narrator Essay -- Tell Tale Heart

Poe has given his narrator in â€Å"The Tell Tale Heart† multiple currently diagnosable psychological disorders: bipolarity, obsessive compulsive disorder, psychopathy, paranoia. Although he is a psychopath by Hare’s definition, among the disorders, the narrator’s sense of fear is overwhelmingly the most motivating. On a first reading, it might seem that the narrator committed murder because of his unjustified hatred towards the victim, or more specifically, the victim’s â€Å"evil eye.† And later, he confesses to his crime because of the overwhelming guilt he feels which causes him to hear the beating of the dead man’s heart. However, as a psychopath, the narrator is incapable of feeling guilt. I will demonstrate that it is not hatred toward what is outside of the self that drove the narrator to murder and confession but the hatred and the immense fear of the insane side of himself that drove him to such irrational actions. After the burying the corpse beneath the floorboards, the narrator, being proud of his work, states that â€Å"no human eye – not even his – could have detected anything wrong.† To the narrator, the old man is able to see beyond what the average person can see. One might assume that it was the fear of the eye’s judgement that caused the narrator to resort to murder. Although this is true, a stronger motivation was the fear of his own insanity. The fact that he feared the eye made him see the irrational side of himself. In refusal to acknowledge his mental disorder, the narrator gives an alternative name to his paranoia, characterized by an oversensitivity to sound: â€Å"nervousness.† The phrase â€Å"I have nothing to fear† right after the murder as well as in the presence of the police is repeated because he’s trying to convince... ... but the torment of being labelled insane. The eventual anxiety attack, characterized by irrational behaviour such speaking frequently, and later foaming, raving, swearing and violent actions towards his chair, which is, ironically, the typical behaviour of the insane. Works Cited Haycock, Dean. â€Å"Hare Psychopathy Checklist.† Healthonline. 2003. http://www.healthline.com/galecontent/hare-psychopathy-checklist/3 Jerga, Josh. â€Å"Accused Chainsaw Murderer Had 'Shark' Eyes.† News.smh. 11/15/2010. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/accused-chainsaw-murderer-had-shark -eyes-20101115-17u4c.html. Merriam-Webster. 2010. http://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/antisocial%20personality%20disorder Poe, Edgar Allan. â€Å"The Tell Tale Heart.† The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 7th ed. vol. B. Ed. Baym, Nina. New York: Norton, 2007. Print. The Motivational Self Fear of a Poe Narrator Essay -- Tell Tale Heart Poe has given his narrator in â€Å"The Tell Tale Heart† multiple currently diagnosable psychological disorders: bipolarity, obsessive compulsive disorder, psychopathy, paranoia. Although he is a psychopath by Hare’s definition, among the disorders, the narrator’s sense of fear is overwhelmingly the most motivating. On a first reading, it might seem that the narrator committed murder because of his unjustified hatred towards the victim, or more specifically, the victim’s â€Å"evil eye.† And later, he confesses to his crime because of the overwhelming guilt he feels which causes him to hear the beating of the dead man’s heart. However, as a psychopath, the narrator is incapable of feeling guilt. I will demonstrate that it is not hatred toward what is outside of the self that drove the narrator to murder and confession but the hatred and the immense fear of the insane side of himself that drove him to such irrational actions. After the burying the corpse beneath the floorboards, the narrator, being proud of his work, states that â€Å"no human eye – not even his – could have detected anything wrong.† To the narrator, the old man is able to see beyond what the average person can see. One might assume that it was the fear of the eye’s judgement that caused the narrator to resort to murder. Although this is true, a stronger motivation was the fear of his own insanity. The fact that he feared the eye made him see the irrational side of himself. In refusal to acknowledge his mental disorder, the narrator gives an alternative name to his paranoia, characterized by an oversensitivity to sound: â€Å"nervousness.† The phrase â€Å"I have nothing to fear† right after the murder as well as in the presence of the police is repeated because he’s trying to convince... ... but the torment of being labelled insane. The eventual anxiety attack, characterized by irrational behaviour such speaking frequently, and later foaming, raving, swearing and violent actions towards his chair, which is, ironically, the typical behaviour of the insane. Works Cited Haycock, Dean. â€Å"Hare Psychopathy Checklist.† Healthonline. 2003. http://www.healthline.com/galecontent/hare-psychopathy-checklist/3 Jerga, Josh. â€Å"Accused Chainsaw Murderer Had 'Shark' Eyes.† News.smh. 11/15/2010. http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/accused-chainsaw-murderer-had-shark -eyes-20101115-17u4c.html. Merriam-Webster. 2010. http://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/antisocial%20personality%20disorder Poe, Edgar Allan. â€Å"The Tell Tale Heart.† The Norton Anthology of American Literature. 7th ed. vol. B. Ed. Baym, Nina. New York: Norton, 2007. Print.