The Tale-Tell Heart Backstory

My English Project was to create a back story for the Narrator in 'The Tale-Tell Heart'. Here's what I came up with.


"You sit staring at me. Are you scared? My old cell mate hung himself because his intense fear overcame him. But you have no reason to be so afraid. I wouldn’t bother myself with you. If I did, you’d already be dead. Anyway, I wouldn’t contemplate your murder while we sit around like a bunch of lab rats being studied. I’ll be sitting in my cell alone for most of the day; contemplating my escape from this dungeon of an institute. They think I’m insane. Everyone here looks at me differently. I know I’m different, but it’s because I’m so much smarter. I’ve been born with the gift of knowledge and a heightened sense of hearing. It began once I came to the tenth grade and the children would yell the most horrid insults. My mind would twirl each time I was harassed. You could possibly say that these kids are to thank for the discovery of my powerful gift. I knew they were idiots, but somehow I let they’re mindless banter seep deep under my skin. Tears of frustration crawled out from the back of my eyes and haunted the skin on my cheeks. I tried to tune them out, but it wouldn’t stop. Eventually, being the perceptive student I was, I listened to them to see if I could possibly fix myself in any way in order to stop this torture. Nothing they said had any slice of truth. I concentrated into their voices. They differed from high to low, crackly to smooth, and fast to slow. But underneath all that, I could hear their thoughts. They all had problems with voices of their own that were instructing them to attack me. At that point I knew I had to use this supremacy to my benefit. It was no longer a simple schoolyard matter. I was going to be able to hear into the thoughts of the most powerful people in the world. Unlucky for me, those connections are slightly hard to come by. Yet that wouldn’t stop me. I could gain all of the information I needed within a 3 mile radius. I knew who were the wisest and who had gone through the most experiences. The challenge would be to find a suitable testing subject. Age became a large factor in my inner debate for the perfect candidate. Even if they couldn’t remember anything, I could reach back into their memory for anything I could possibly use. I then began to watch the elderly. Day after day I sat in hospitals, nursing homes, and sidewalks just to concentrate on their behavior. What intrigued them and what pissed them off? I volunteered down at the boarding house and was assigned to many different old women who I immediately rejected. They were complete imbeciles. The intellect of a woman was of no comparison to one of a man. I was then transferred to an old gentleman. His belly plump, hair white and thinning, lips sealed shut as if he had tasted something bitterly sour, and an eye. He was a sweet old man, with a quick wit. I knew he was perfect. Although that eye was so foggy, I wondered if he had walked through a cloud. It made me shudder, but I had no time for my petty phobias. I needed to get over it. Even though I knew for me it would be almost impossible. At this point, school was the least of my worries. I had much more to deal with now. I stayed with the man round the clock. I disguised myself and portrayed to him a completely different personality, since I knew he might report me if I acted like myself. You’ve heard that I murdered him because I couldn’t stand looking at that vulture eye, the one with the glassy layer. I couldn’t help myself. I knew from our first encounter that that eye had set off a ticking clock, waiting for me to bust. That eye was what set my mission off track. That’s why they figured me insane, yet they gave me no time to explain my completely logical explanation. It had threatened me. Clearly he had some sort of power over me. I could hear his thoughts, but he could see right through me. He knew I wasn’t so nice. Now that I had discovered his powers could triumph over mine, I had to destroy him."