Notesale: Turn your study into money

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Name of Student
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Based on the modern, popular conception of the psychopathic killer in entertainment or
media, how does “The Tell-Tale Heart” meet and or fail to meet modern expectations?
The modern expectations of a psychopathic killer are much closer to the true medical
definition than the mid-19th century concept of psychotic, or mad, behaviour when “The TellTale Heart” was written; this is primarily due to the fact that we now recognise psychotic
actions as a psychological issue, as opposed to demonic or evil intent
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“The Tell-Tale Heart”, despite its age, exhibits a few
of these contemporary expectations but there are exceptions throughout
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The
protagonist of “The Tell-Tale Heart” demonstrates a mixture of this indifference but also
sporadic bouts of regret and remorse
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There are however many examples in which the
character does display these behaviours
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Passion there was none
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He had never
wronged me
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For his gold I had no desire
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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
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There is
also the derision and contempt he holds for the constabulary when they find no evidence of
his crime as well as the false persona he presents when they investigate his house
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Finally there is the sadistic pleasure he finds in
controlling the fate of the old man: “I knew what the old man felt, and pitied him, although I
chuckled at heart”
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Another trait of the modern psychopath is the obsessive and methodical way in which
they conduct themselves and their business, often willing to talk in express detail despite the
morbidity of the act
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The night waned, and I worked hastily,
but in silence
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I cut off the head and the arms and the
legs”
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Whilst it may be the case
that an individual is self-aware of their capabilities it is not as common for the psychopath to
openly gloat to the reader as he does here:

If still you think me mad, you will think so no longer when I describe the wise
precautions I took for the concealment of the body
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First of all I dismembered the corpse
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I then took up three planks from the flooring of the chamber, and
deposited all between the scantlings
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There was nothing to wash out --no stain of any kind --no blood-spot whatever
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A tub had caught all --ha! ha!
In conclusion, Edgar Allen Poe’s portrayal of a psychopath holds up to some modern
expectations; he is initially apathetic to his crimes, enjoys the power of controlling a man’s
fate, conducts himself in a methodical fashion and displays sociopathic tendencies as well as
the ability to fake emotions and present himself in a manner that belays his actions
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Considering the age of the piece it is clear that the
concept of a psychopath still has some of the same aspects as it once did almost one-hundredand-sixty years ago; there are some nuances that have come of the modern psychopath due to
the influence of contemporary media and the medical understanding of what causes psychosis
and what it generally entails in terms of behaviour
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