...the house of his boyhood friend, Roderick Usher, having received a letter from him in a distant part of the country complaining of an illness and asking for his help. Although Poe wrote this short story before the invention of modern psychological science, Roderick's symptoms can be described according to it. They include hyperesthesia 感觉过敏(hypersensitivity to light, sounds, smells, and tastes), and acute anxiety.急性焦虑 It is revealed that Roderick's twin sister, Madeline, is also ill。The narrator try every possible method to cheer his friend, and Roderick sings "The Haunted Palace", then tells the narrator that he believes the house he lives in to be sentient有感情的.Roderick later informs the narrator that his sister has died and insists that she be entombed for two weeks in a family tomb in the house before being permanently buried. The narrator helps Roderick put the body in the tomb, and he notice something strange. Then the writer use a storm to introduce the climax of the story. Both the narrator and Roderick notices that the tarn surrounding the house seems to glow in the dark although there is no lightning. The bedroom door is then blown open to reveal Madeline standing there. The narrator then flees the house and roderick is scared to death. At the end, a flash of light cause the narrator to look back upon the House of Usher, in time to watch it break in two, the fragments sinking into the tarn. "The Fall of the House of Usher" was published widely in the September 1839...
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...In my opinion, the setting of Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” is an essential tool to uncover the mood behind the story. Right away Poe jumps into descriptive detail: “During the whole of a dark, dull, soundless day… a singularly dreary tract of country.” The gloomy, overcast of the mist and fog that surround the House of Usher wash over the narrator which, in turn, seem to seep into the very depths of his soul. The narrator’s description of his surrounding as well as of the house itself convey to the reader a sense of danger and impending doom. However, the setting delivers more than just an image of a dreary countryside. I believe, as Poe states within the story, that the atmosphere is actually representative of how the...
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..."The Fall of the House of Usher" is a short story by Edgar Allen Poe, in 1839. In autumn of the year, it was a dull, dark, and soundless day. The unnamed narrator comes across "The House of Usher". The house of his boon companions in boyhood (friend), Roderick Usher. He observes upon the scene; the house is decaying in places. He received a letter from Roderick, requesting his company to come to the house. He spoke of a mental disorder, illness, and his desire to see him which allowed him to come with no hesitation. The unnamed narrator knew little about Roderick, but was unware that the Usher family is ancient and become "the perfect keeping of character of the premises" to confuses the people with their home. Roderick's sister, lady Madeline...
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...Reflections of the fall of the House of Usher In the beginning I thought this story would be very difficult for me, so I read the Chinese translation version first. Actually at that time I couldn’t understand it and the impression that it left with me was vague. I still dwelled on the end part of the story and I found this kind of fiction is much to my appetite, so I read the original edition of it. Now I would like to write down my reflections of this story in three aspects. Firstly, I find the symbolism is adopted in this fiction. The title is the fall of the House of Usher. I think the fall not only refer to the house’s collapse, but also the fall of the Usher family. The house also refers to both the house and the family. Besides, the bridge over the tarn symbolizes “I” who is the narrator in this fiction. It also means the bridge like the narrator is the only connection for Usher family to outside world. The ghastly images inside is a hint of the madness of Roderick and Madeline. Secondly, the description of atmosphere in the fall of the House of Usher is very carefully. Many words are repeated in the description like ghastly, fancy, agitation etc. I think these descriptions and repetitions emphasis the Gothic horror. They help readers to draw a picture of the house in their mind — typical Gothic architecture, ghastly gallery… When I read these description, I connected them with supernatural power. It is plausible that Roderick's sickness is a result of the...
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...“The Fall of the House of Usher” possesses the key features needed in order to create a Gothic tale: a spooky house, a dull landscape, and a mysterious illness. The narrator, in Poe’s eerie short story, upon looking at the Usher house describes it as “an utter depression of soul which I can compare to no earthly sensation” (702). This depression the narrator speaks of is the same type of depression the owner, Roderick Usher, has felt his entire life while living in the house. The romantic element of nature that covers the house has affected Roderick psychologically and physically. The narrator portrays the house with vivid details of imagery: “…bleak walls…,” “…vacant eye-like windows…,” and “…a few rank sedges…” (702). Anyone living in such...
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...the story. In the short stories “The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving and “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe the setting affects the characters and storyline. The setting in the two short stories have many similarities throughout the settings. In “The Fall of the House of Usher” and “The Devil and Tom Walker” both talk about nature in their settings. Examples are, "Tom had long been picking his way cautiously through this treacherous forest; stepping from tuft to tuft of rushes and roots, which afforded precarious footholds among deep sloughs; or pacing carefully, like a cat, along the prostrate trunks of trees; startled now and then by the sudden screaming of the...
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...“The Fall of the House of Usher” is a short story of Gothic horror written in first person point of view. The Narrator was a friend with Roderick, which they both met at camp many years ago. The Narrator came to a house alone with his horse where he got invited by his friend Roderick. Roderick was in a situation where he would be a different person from before and would be acting strange, since the narrator saw him. Roderick had a twin sister named Madeline. Madeline never knew the narrator as much as Roderick. A death is involved with Madeline which is supposed that Roderick probably killed her. Madeline was buried alive in a tomb. The narrator had changed over the days and would act the same as Roderick, but Roderick was getting worse and worse for the death of his twin sister Madeline. The narrator would see Roderick acting and would do such the same as Roderick for being there for him. Madeline was dead, but her spirit was still in the house just like Roderick. “Roderick has on the external world at all is his twin sister, who is less...
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...In the short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” the narrator who is unnamed in the story, tells a tale of an old childhood friend by the name of Roderick Usher, who admits he has a mental disorder. The narrator does not really know much about his friend because they have not spoken in many years. Usher had reached out to the narrator in the form of a letter in request of help. From the beginning of the story, the narrator continuously signals as though the residence had been haunted or something unnatural was happening. The narrator only gives us an outlook through his eyes rather than the entire picture of what is going on. As soon as the narrator arrive at the House of Usher, he senses this icy feeling, a feeling that he could not...
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...“The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe is a prime example of American gothic literature. Poe is known for his great gothic works and “The Fall of the House of Usher is no exception. Poe’s work retells an unnamed narrator’s experience inside the House of Usher when he goes to visit his sick friend, Roderick Usher. “The Fall of the House of Usher” excellently shows the gothic elements of sin and guilt, mysterious/violent events, and madness and death. Along with Roderick there is another Usher, Madeline, in the house of Usher through which Poe conveys sin and guilt. Soon after we are introduced to the character of Madeline she dies and is buried in the basement in the House of Usher. At the end it is revealed that Madeline was alive the whole time and Roderick says: I now tell you that I heard her first feeble movements in the hollow coffin. I heard them – many, many, days ago – yet I dared not – I dared not speak!... Is she not hurrying to upbraid me for my...
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...symbolism and Gothic elements. In "The Fall of the House of Usher" Poe utilizes suspense in order to bring forth fear in his writing. In the story the narrator states "Vigilae Mortuorum secundum Chorum Ecclesiae Maguntinae...the wild ritual of this work...of preserving[Lady Madeline's] corpse"(Poe 304). Now this embeds suspense into the readers thoughts because they in turn understand that the narrator is also in fear of the insanity his friend is experiencing due to the death of his beloved sister. Later in the story the narrator explains a meeting with Roderick Usher stating "his countenance was...wan...a species of mad hilarity in his eyes... evidently[restraining]hysteria"(306). Suspense is yet again brought into the picture with the narrators explanation of Usher. Roderick is described as...
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...The Fall of the House of Usher “In the Fall of the House of Usher, a sense of insufferable gloom pervaded my spirit.”(Poe). This story is Gothic Literature using grotesque characters, bizarre situations, and violent events. The narrator describes the grotesque or Roderick Usher Madeline Usher, the strange sounds, and the crashing of the house and the violent event of Madeline being buried alive. Inside the House of Usher there are two grotesque characters. Roderick Usher is a man with a corpse-like appearance. He has pale skin, thin lips, and bright eyes. He suffered from sensitive skin to certain textures, odors to flowers, his eyes were sensitive to light, only certain sounds sooth him and insipid foods. Madeline, Roderick’s sister...
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...of Terror in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher In his Philosophy of Composition, Edgar Allan Poe informs us that he begins writing with “the consideration of an effect” (430). Most of Poe’s poetry and fiction exemplifies his assertion that a preconceived effect upon a reader is undoubtedly fundamental to his creative work. Poe’s tales of terror in particular epitomize the supremacy of his craft in that each component of his narrative strategy functions to achieve the final effect of generating unmitigated terror in his readers. Focusing primarily on The Fall of the House of Usher, I argue that Poe employs a preconceived narrative strategy that ultimately functions to evoke terror; I assert that Poe elicits fear to challenge us to reexamine out perceptions of ostensibly impossible circumstances and recognize the limits of our intellect. I will first examine the aspects of Poe’s narrative style that culminate to achieve his desired effect of the evocation of terror. I will then analyze the narrator’s response to this evocation of terror and how this emergent response elicits fear in the reader. Last, I will illustrate how the narrator’s evolving response is emulated in the style through which the tale is narrated. In The Fall of the House of Usher, Poe tactically exploits a first person narrator, setting, imagery, and tone to achieve a “unity of effect,” the aforethought effect of which is terror. The narrator in Usher acts as the primary medium through which...
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...I prefer reading tales of horror and Mystery. I however did not enjoy Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher.” I found most of the first few paragraphs lengthy with descriptions of the castle. This made it really hard for me to immerse myself in the story. The vocabulary was complicated at times and I found myself pausing to look up their meanings. This interruption furthered my confusion. I had to write the definitions in my text book and then re-read the passages. Once I did, I was able to grasp what Poe was actual trying to convey. The story is set in a gloomy deserted country side. The outside of the house was dark, and gloomy. As I read further I wanted to take refuge inside the home of Roderick. I was quick to find that...
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...The stories “House Taken Over” by Julio Cortázar and “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe are both examples of Gothic Literature. Although there both are examples of Gothic Literature, “House Taken Over” is an example of Magical Realism and “The Fall of the House of Usher” is Gothic style. Both have very strong settings and the setting helps the reader get a good understanding of of the characters, time period and events taking place. However, in Poe’s story, the setting is especially important because the story is focused on an old broken house and the setting shows that. “I looked upon the scene before me... the bleak walls-upon the vacant eyelike windows-upon a few rank sedges-and upon a few white trunks of ecayed trees-with an utter depression of soul... I can compare to no earthly...
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...Briana Eng 201 Final Paper 20 April 2015 Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher: Literary Elements Exemplify Gothic Style As the Romantic Movement swept through nineteenth century American literature, Edgar Allan Poe emerged as one of the central literary figures of the Romantic era. Along with other authors like Nathaniel Hawthorne, Poe’s Romantic style of writings often introduced his readers to the dark side of literature present during the time. As Poe sets out to explore and expose different elements of darkness within humanity, he familiarizes his readers with the experience of fear and horror that are so commonly present throughout his works. As a result of the recurrent themes of fear, horror and mystery that he elicits through his writings, Poe is often credited as one of the most important writers of Gothic fiction, an extension of the romantic style of writing. While most of his works of fiction are told from the perspective of a first person narrator, in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher he implores the use of the peripheral narrator to introduce his readers to the many elements in the story that exemplify his distinctly gothic style. By allowing readers into the mind of the narrator, Poe gives his audience the opportunity to discover, analyze and interpret different key literary devices used to highlight important characteristics that classify the gothic style of writing. Utilizing the peripheral narrators experience with mystery and suspense allows...
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