Edgar Allen Poe's short story The Tell-Tale Heart is an example of the main characters unreliability. The first person view of the story only allows the reader to know what the main character is thinking. This is what makes the reader infer that not everything the main character says is true. The character is in a situation where he is either presenting the story. He is also very defensive by saying that he is not mad and that he loves the old man.
The actions and thoughts themselves tell us that there is something wrong with this murderer. The old man's vulturous eye is what he says drove him to kill him. Therefore, as long as one's looks haunt him he has to get rid off them. If there is no other reason for his crime then it proves he is crazy. If he did love the old man as much as he confesses he does then that love would be stronger than the uncomfortableness the eye causes. Also when he tried to kill him he said he could not because at those times the eye remained closed and it was not a big enough reason to kill him.
The other part of the story is the super senses that this man or woman seems to have. He says that he is able to hear the beating of a heart. He is able to keep motionless for an hour or so. He tries to explain how much caution he took in order not to get caught.
The ending of the story is what gives away the fact that this murderer is crazy. He had already chopped the old man into pieces and yet he thought or heard the heart beat. There is also guilt that one feels that may cause one to give the secret away. There is explanations for many things of the story but they al sum up to make the reader believe he is a sick man.
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