Symbolism In Edgar Allen Poe's The Fall Of The House Of Usher

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Recommended: Short analysis of the story the fall of house of usher by edgar allan poe

Symbolism is a literary device authors use to give objects a deeper and hidden meaning in their stories or literary works. At first glance, one object may seem unimportant. Then you look deeper into this object and find that this object is very important and has a deep hidden meaning. Edgar Allen Poe is very well known for his use of symbolism in his stories. The Fall of the House of Usher is a great example of Poe’s use of symbolism. The very first sign of symbolism is in the title. The title alludes chaos that lurks in the mansion. This “broken” house is “falling” in every way. In the end of the story, the house does indeed fall; throughout the story, however, the narrator describes the different characteristics of the house. The Ushers’ …show more content…

The house, as well its residents, is described: with an utter depression of soul which I can compare to no earthly sensation more properly than to the after-dream of the reveler upon opium—the bitter lapse into everyday life--- the hideous dropping off of the veil (397).
All of this is symbolic of the mental, spiritual, and physical state of this rare family, which (as it is debated) could even represent a fragment of the narrator’s own state of mind. As “a house”, the “house of Usher” really encompasses the entire generation of Ushers. In the story, the narrator informs the readers that the Usher race laid in a direct line of descent. This means that the entire family are products of inbreeding. They are a dying family; they are dying off and the house is also breaking apart from its …show more content…

Many examples like when Roderick decides to paint an underground tomb then Madeline is entombed alive underground. He begins to play the guitar and sing about the decline of the Usher family. Then while this is happening, the actual house begins to fall apart. He mourns for his sister’s death. All of a sudden, his “dead” sister is standing in his doorway. This frightens Roderick and the narrator will cause the collapse of the family and the house. While the house and the family are collapsing, a storm draws closer. In literature, storms usually describe a climatic action. Such as the final scene, the house crumbles into a lake storm comes

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