Integrating Attribution Theory with SDRT in Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart

Overview

This study examines the coherence mechanisms in Edgar Allan Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart, demonstrating that the twelve canonical coherence relationships defined by Segmented Discourse Representation Theory (SDRT) are insufficient to account for narrative coherence driven by emotional states rather than logical sequencing. The research proposes an integrated analytical framework combining SDRT with attribution theory to better explain discourse coherence in unconventional narrative perspectives, particularly monologues structured around emotional and psychological rather than conventional causal or temporal relationships.

Methods and approach

The analysis employs SDRT as the foundational framework for examining discourse coherence relationships within the protagonist's monologue. The researchers identify limitations in the twelve basic coherence relationships when applied to emotionally-driven narrative discourse and propose augmenting SDRT with attribution theory—examining how the protagonist ascribes causal explanations and motivational attributions to events and perceptions. The methodology incorporates detailed textual case studies and diagrammatic representations to demonstrate how attributional patterns establish coherence independently of conventional logical relations.

Key Findings

The investigation confirms that emotional attribution patterns function as primary coherence mechanisms in The Tell-Tale Heart, establishing narrative continuity through the protagonist's psychological interpretations rather than external logical sequences. Attribution theory provides explanatory capacity for transitions and connections that the twelve standard SDRT relationships cannot adequately account for, particularly concerning the protagonist's rationalization of perceptions, motivations, and actions. The integrated framework successfully maps discourse coherence relationships that reflect the psychological rather than logical organization characteristic of the narrator's monologue.

Implications

The proposed integration of attribution theory with SDRT provides a methodological extension applicable to literary texts employing unconventional narrative perspectives, particularly those structured around subjective psychological states. This framework demonstrates utility for analyzing discourse coherence in first-person narratives, unreliable narrators, and monologic forms where emotional and cognitive attribution patterns supersede conventional logical or chronological ordering. The enhanced analytical apparatus enables more precise characterization of coherence mechanisms in texts where narrator psychology fundamentally determines discourse organization.