PART A: In the story, what causes the conflict between the narrator and the old man?
A. The narrator and the old man recent having to live together because of the narrator’s
disease, and so the narrator decides to murder the old man.
B. The narrator is driven mad by the sound of a heart beating beneath the floorboards,
and this causes him to kill the old man.
C. The narrator watches the old man sleep, and when the terrified old man discovers this,
the narrator kills him to keep his madness hidden.
D. The narrator is terrified of the old man’s blue eye and overwhelmed by the sound of
his heartbeat, so the narrator kills the old man.
3. PART B: Which of the following quotes best supports the answer to Part A?
A. “The disease had sharpened my senses – not destroyed – not dulled them. Above all
was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things is the heaven and in the earth. I
heard many things in hell.”
B. “I knew that he had been lying awake ever since the first slight noise, when he had
turned in the bed. His fears had been ever since growing upon him.”
C. “But the beating grew louder, louder! I thought the heart must burst. And now a new
anxiety seized me – the sound would be heard by a neighbor! The old man’s hour had
come!”
D. “’Villains!’ I shrieked, ‘dissemble no more! I admit the deed! – tear up the planks! –
here, here! – it is the beating of his hideous heart!”
The correct answer for Part A is B. The narrator is driven mad by the sound of a heart beating beneath the floorboards, and this causes him to kill the old man.
The correct answer for Part B is D. “’Villains!’ I shrieked, ‘dissemble no more! I admit the deed! – tear up the planks! – here, here! – it is the beating of his hideous heart!”
A. The correct answer to Part A is B. The narrator is driven mad by the sound of a heart beating beneath the floorboards, and this causes him to kill the old man.
For Part B, the quote that best supports this is D. “’Villains!’ I shrieked, ‘dissemble no more! I admit the deed! – tear up the planks! – here, here! – it is the beating of his hideous heart!” This quote shows the narrator's confession, indicating that he killed the old man because of the sound of his heartbeat.
To determine the answer to Part A, let's analyze the given options:
A. The narrator and the old man recently had to live together because of the narrator's disease, and so the narrator decides to murder the old man.
B. The narrator is driven mad by the sound of a heart beating beneath the floorboards, and this causes him to kill the old man.
C. The narrator watches the old man sleep, and when the terrified old man discovers this, the narrator kills him to keep his madness hidden.
D. The narrator is terrified of the old man’s blue eye and overwhelmed by the sound of his heartbeat, so the narrator kills the old man.
Based on the given options, we can see that option B is the most suitable answer. The conflict between the narrator and the old man is caused by the narrator being driven mad by the sound of a heart beating beneath the floorboards, which ultimately leads to the narrator killing the old man.
Moving on to Part B, let's examine the provided quotes:
A. “The disease had sharpened my senses – not destroyed – not dulled them. Above all, was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell.”
B. “I knew that he had been lying awake ever since the first slight noise, when he had turned in the bed. His fears had been ever since growing upon him.”
C. “But the beating grew louder, louder! I thought the heart must burst. And now a new anxiety seized me – the sound would be heard by a neighbor! The old man’s hour had come!”
D. “’Villains!’ I shrieked, ‘dissemble no more! I admit the deed! – tear up the planks! – here, here! – it is the beating of his hideous heart!”
Among the provided quotes, option D best supports the answer to Part A. The quote shows the narrator's confession, stating, "‘Villains!’ I shrieked, ‘dissemble no more! I admit the deed! – tear up the planks! – here, here! – it is the beating of his hideous heart!” This quote directly reveals that the narrator killed the old man due to the audible sound of the old man's heartbeat.