The Fall Of The House Of Usher Essay

822 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Edgar allan poe writing analysis literary devices

The Fall of the House of Usher by Roderick Usher is a horror novel that engages and thrills the reader throughout the whole story. The story is told through a narrator. Poe however did not use the typical faceless, nameless narrator that readers are accustomed too. In a magnificent way of writing Poe made his narrator into a critical character of the story. To understand how Poe accomplished making the narrator an actual character of the story a bystander must understand what happened in the book. The story begins with an unnamed narrator traveling to his friends house. He has not seen his friend since they where children, but he had unexpectedly received a letter from his friend Roderick asking for help. Roderick had fallen sick, burdened …show more content…

Roderick true to his word appears very sick. He is suffering specifically from an “acuteness of senses”, and he thinks it is going to kill him. Roderick partially blames part of his illness on his sister having catalepsy which he thinks will soon result in her death. He also thinks that his eerie mansion has a power over him, he has not left the mansion in years and even though he is worried does not plan on leaving. The narrator seeing his friend in need tried to take Roderick’s mind off of all the negative things happening in his life but it was to no avail. Just like Roderick feared Madeline soon dies or at least she seemed to have died. Either way Roderick fazed by the death proceeds to beg the narrator help him bury his sister underneath theHouse of Usher. The narrator agreed and helped bury her in one of the many vaults that were underneath the House of Usher. A few days later on a dark rainy stormy night, the narrator and Usher are wide awake even late into the night. They can not seem to fall asleep so they decided they where going to pass the time by reading books to each other. Of all books the narrator and Usher decide on reading a scary fictional story. While reading the story aloud, any sound that the narrator read from the story was heard coming from below the vaults below the mansion. After hearing the noises continue for a little while Usher starts to freak out. He begins jumping up

Show More
Related

  • Theme Of Transformation In The Fall Of The House Of Usher

    965 Words  | 2 Pages

    When writing a story that is meant to scare the reader, authors use a variety of different literary elements to intensify fear. This is apparent in the stories “The Fall of the House of Usher,” “beware: do not read this poem,” and “House Taken Over”. It is shown through transformation in the character, setting, and sometimes even the story or poem itself, adding to the scariness that the reader feels when reading it. While there are some examples of transformation not being scary or not playing a role in stories meant to scare us, transformation plays a crucial role in making the reader of these stories scared.

    Read More

  • Anti-Transcendentalist Themes in Poe's The Fall of the House of Usher

    1664 Words  | 4 Pages

    Poe, Edgar A. "The Fall of the House of Usher." The Heath Anthology of American Literature. 6th

    Read More

  • Comparing The Fall Of The House Of Usher And The House Taken Over

    680 Words  | 2 Pages

    described it less violently than Poe."The Fall of the House of Usher" shows Poe's ability to create an emotional tone in his work, specifically feelings of fear, doom, and guilt These emotions center on Roderick Usher, who, like many Poe characters, suffers from an unnamed disease. Like the narrator in “The Tall Tale Heart, his disease inflames his hyperactive senses. The illness manifests physically but is based in Roderick's mental or even moral state. He is sick, it is suggested, because he expects to be sick based on his family's history of illness and is, therefore, essentially a hypochromic. Then in the other story the author explains differently

    Read More

  • Symbolism and analysis of "The Fall of the House of Usher"

    837 Words  | 2 Pages

    Edgar Allan Poe is undoubtedly one of American Literature's legendary and prolific writers, and it is normal to say that his works touched on many aspects of the human psyche and personality. While he was no psychologist, he wrote about things that could evoke the reasons behind every person's character, whether flawed or not. Some would say his works are of the horror genre, succeeding in frightening his audience into trying to finish reading the book in one sitting, but making them think beyond the story and analyze it through imagery. The "Fall of the House of Usher" is one such tale that uses such frightening imagery that one can only sigh in relief that it is just a work of fiction. However, based on the biography of Poe, events that surrounded his life while he was working on his tales were enough to show the emotions he undoubtedly was experiencing during that time.

    Read More

  • Human Condition In The Fall Of The House Of Usher

    723 Words  | 2 Pages

    The human condition, a concept prevalent in several pieces of literature, encompasses the emotional, moral, questioning, and observant nature of humans. This concept is often used by authors to emphasize the characteristics that set humans apart from other living creature. Edgar Allan Poe’s dark fantasy piece “The Fall of the House of Usher” perfectly depicts the human condition as it conveys how fear and over-thinking can control one’s actions and life.

    Read More

  • The Fall of the House of Usher: Imagery of Decay

    872 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...k and escape of the narrator throughout the story with images of neglect such as the “fissure” or “‘crack of doom’” in the House, the “peculiar physical conformation ” of Roderick, and the tremor sitting “upon [the narrators] … heart [like] and incubus”. These are among the many images Poe provides to spark the readers imagination in the way of foreshadowing the ultimate ending of the two characters stories.

    Read More

  • Figures of speech in The Fall of the House of Usher

    654 Words  | 2 Pages

    Edgar Allen Poe’s short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, sets a tone that is dark, gloomy, and threatening. His inclusion of highly descriptive words and various forms of figurative language enhance the story’s evil nature, giving the house and its inhabitants eerie and “supernatural” qualities. Poe’s effective use of personification, symbolism, foreshadowing, and doubling create a morbid tale leading to, and ultimately causing, the fall of (the house of) Usher.

    Read More

  • Poe's Fall of The House of Usher Essays: Suspense

    418 Words  | 1 Pages

    In "The Fall of the house of Usher," Edgar Allen Poe creates suspense and fear in the reader. He also tries to convince the reader not to let fear overcome him. Poe tries to evoke suspence in the reader's mind by using several diffenent scenes. These elements include setting, characters, plot, and theme.  Poe uses setting primarily in this work to create atmosphere. The crack in the house and the dead trees imply that the house and its surroundings are not sturdy or promising. These elements indicate that a positive outcome is not expected. The thunder, strange light, and mist create a spooky feeling for the reader. The use of character provides action and suspense in the story through the characters' dialogue and actions. Roderick, who is hypochondriac, is very depressed. He has a fearful apperance and his senses are acute. This adds curiosity and anxiety. The narrator was fairly normal until he began to imagine things and become afraid himself. Because of this, the audience gets a sense that evil is lurking. Madeline is in a cataleptic state. She appears to be very weak and pail. Finally, when she dies, she is buried in a vault inside of the mansion. In this story, the plot consists of rising events, conflict, climax, and resolution. The rising events include the parts in the story when the narrator first arrives at the house, meets Roderick, and hears about Roderick's and Madeline's problems. Madeline's death and burial are part of the conflict. At this point, Roderick and the narrator begin to hear sounds throughout the house. The sounds are an omen that an evil action is about to occur. The climax is reached when Madeline comes back from the dead and she and her twin brother both die. Finally, the resolution comes when the narrator escapes from the house and turns around to watch it fall to the ground. The theme that Edgar Allen Poe is trying to convey is do not let fear take over your life because it could eventually destory you.

    Read More

  • Edgar Allan Poe Point Of View Essay

    1147 Words  | 3 Pages

    “The Fall of the House of Usher” is a story does not use the typical, first person point of view where the protagonist tells a personal account of a crime that he or she has committed. Instead, the narrator is a character of whom we know very little, who acts like an observer. The friend of Roderick invites the reader into the madness of the mind of fantasy and reality.

    Read More

  • The House Of Usher Response

    633 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Fall Of The House of Usher is a terrifying tale of the demise of the Usher family, whose inevitable doom is mirrored in the diseased and evil aura of the house and grounds. Poe uses elements of the gothic tale to create an atmosphere of terror. The decaying house is a metaphor for Roderick Usher’s mind, as well as his family line. The dreary landscape also reflects his personality. Poe also uses play on words to engage the reader to make predictions, or provide information. Poe has also set the story up to be intentionally ambiguous so that the reader is continually suspended between the real and the fantastic.

    Read More

  • Poe's Fall of The House of Usher - The House and its Inhabitants

    915 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the story “The Fall of the House of Usher”, Poe presents the history of the end of an illustrious family.  As with many of Poe’s stories, setting and mood contribute greatly to the overall tale.  Poe’s descriptions of the house itself as well as the inhabitants thereof invoke in the reader a feeling of gloom and terror.  This can best be seen first by considering Poe’s description of the house and then comparing it to his description of its inhabitants, Roderick and Madeline Usher.

    Read More

  • The Depiction of Fear in The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe

    2174 Words  | 5 Pages

    In conclusion Poe excellent use of characterization and imagery to depict fear and darkness, truly make The Fall of the House of Usher a story of the battles the we must face our fears in order to free our mind.

    Read More

  • Character Analysis: The Fall Of The House Of Usher

    1168 Words  | 3 Pages

    An unnamed narrator approaches the house of Usher on a dark and dull day. The house in which the narrator is approaching is Roderick Usher his childhood friend’s house but the house is mysterious when he walks in. When the narrator walks into the house, the narrator can feel an evil energy. He could tell that the house is decaying in all sorts of places. There is a small crack from the roof to the ground in front on the building. The narrator came to Roderick’s house because his friend Roderick sent for him through a letter. In the letter Roderick said he is very ill and the narrator is rushing to his assistance. The narrator mentions that the Usher

    Read More

  • Double Meaning in The Fall Of The House Of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe

    1545 Words  | 4 Pages

    No matter what your interpretation of “The Fall of the House of Usher” may be, it is almost impossible to deny it as one of the greatest short stories ever written. It stands as one of the many great testaments to the literary genius of Edgar Allan Poe and helps affirm his high ranking of American history.

    Read More

  • The Fall Of The House Of Usher

    276 Words  | 1 Pages

    In The Fall of the House of Usher, by Edgar Allen Poe, setting is the one of the main factors of the story’s theme. From the beginning, the narrator gives a clear idea of what the story is about. The narrator remembers, “During the whole of the dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year” (3). Poe shows what season it is and what it feels like. He uses multiple descriptive words to help readers identify what he is writing. Poe records, “There was an icinesss, a sinking, a sickening of the heart” (3). On page 6, he while observing, the narrator comments, “A pestilent and mystic vapor, dull, sluggish, faintly discernible, and leaden hued. Poe uses his words to create a vibe of what the setting of his story is. If he does not give

    Read More

More about The Fall Of The House Of Usher Essay

Open Document