The House Of Usher

Most immediately, Roderick’s hair is described as “wild” and of “Arabesque expression,” which the narrator is unable to connect “with any simple idea of humanity” (Poe 2003).  Similarly, Roderick’s manner strikes the narrator with “an incoherence – an inconsistency,” and his voice is compared to that of “the lost drunkard, or the irreclaimable eater of opium” (Poe 2003), all of which mark his social difference as not understandable.  After the entombment of his sister, Roderick’s external madness intensifies: he roams with “unequal, and objectless step,” has a “more ghastly hue” of face, a “species of mad hilarity in his eyes,” a “restrained hysteria in his whole demeanor,” and speaks in a “gibbering murmur” (Poe 2003).  But all of these are, as the narrator puts it, “the mere inexplicable vagaries of madness” (Poe 2003).  When it comes to representing the internal process of mental breakdown, Poe (at least in this story) still only describes Roderick’s irrationality from an external and stereotypical position.  Roderick describes his condition as a “deplorable folly” that will force him to “abandon life and reason,” he is “enchained by certain superstitious impressions,” and suffers from “melancholy” and “hypochondria” (two terms associated with earlier misunderstandings of madness) (Poe 2003).  The only time we see the irrational thought process represented is in Roderick’s monologue about entombing his

The narrator goes into the house and notices how creepy it is. He sees Roderick looking very sick. Roderick explains that he thinks something is wrong with the house. Roderick’s sister, who the narrator never knew about, has died and Roderick buries her in the tombs of the house. The both begin hearing noises one night. Roderick believes they buried his sister alive and she’s trying to escape. His sister appears behind the door and the narrator realizes that they are twins. She goes after him and Roderick dies from fear. The narrator runs from the house and watches it crumble to the ground. “I have before spoken as extending from the roof of the building, in a zigzag direction, from the base,” (Poe 1127).

When writing “The Fall of the House of Usher,” Poe used the setting outside of the mansion to illustrate the theme of the fear of death. From the outset, the Rodrick Usher’s home is portrayed in a way that gives the reader a feeling of alarm. For example, the narrator mentions the house gives him a feeling of “insufferable gloom” (Usher 1). By pointing this out, the reader begins to feel on edge as the connotation of “gloom” is unwelcoming and distressing. The home is also said to have “vacant eye like windows” (Usher 1) which make the narrator

One of Roderick's fears was death. He was from a well-known and honored family, and he and his sister were the last of the long line of Usher descendants. His sister, Madeline, had been fighting a severe and long-continued illness for quite some time, which had added to much of Roderick's gloom. " Her decease, would leave him the last of the ancient race of the Ushers." Roderick seemed not only to fear the death of his sister and ultimately of himself, but also the uncertainty of the future. "I dread the events of the future, not only in themselves, but in their results. I shudder at the thought of any, even the most trivial incident, which may operate upon this intolerable agitation of soul."

A concern of Roderick Usher is the waning health of his twin sister, Lady Madeline. Usher explains to his dear friend, the narrator, that she is the only surviving relative he has. He further explains that his sister’s health condition baffles any physician that has come to the house. After a few days of the narrator’s visit, Lady Madeline dies. Usher explains to the narrator that he wishes to preserve her body by placing her into the underground crypt of the house. I believe that Poe is trying to use symbolism in Lady Madeline’s death in relation to Roderick’s faltering mental stability. For example, Lady Madeline represents a part of Usher that he has lost; a part of him that has become so strange and frightening to him. When he and the narrator place Lady Madeline’s body into the crypt, it is a desperate act to help preserve a part of himself.

In The Fall Of The House of Usher, Poe explores challenging themes, the most prominent of which is the theme of identity. Throughout the story, the narrator tells us of his experiences with what is left of the Usher family at their estate. The theme of identity is clearly stated right at

All these things put together and a few others help to connect the house to Roderick and Lady Madeline. When the narrator first sees Roderick after a long period of time, he thinks that he resembles that of a corpse. Then Roderick tells him the reason for his appearance, why he looks so bad. He said he had an illness that was a “morbid acuteness of the senses.” The word morbid, when used anywhere, has very strong meaning and it is of the negative type. He uses the word tortured when he is describing his eyesight and says that even the slightest sound is almost unbearable. Thinking about having all of these symptoms put together is a very bad picture to paint in your mind. His condition, in this case, is very comparable to that of the condition of the house.

Familial relationships enhance unity and trust and other important values that we may use in our daily lives. Within society, family is highly important, which may be the reason why Edgar Allan Poe decided to symbolize it through the aspect of the House. One could say; the passage depicts the idea that looks can be deceiving, especially when it comes to family. In regard to the hidden depths in Poe’s story, The Fall of the House of Usher, it is evident that in theory the house of Usher is in fact a visual representation of the family. The passage appears near the beginning of the story. It also in detail describes the appearance of the House of Usher. The narrator first saw the masonry through what he thought was antiquity, but in closely evaluating

Edgar Allan Poe was a unique man that most people could not understand. Many recognize that he is a talented writer with a very strange and dark style. One of his most well known short stories is “The Fall Of The House Of Usher.” Many argue the different meanings of this story and how it is symbolic to his life. Poe was a very confused individual who needed to express himself, he accomplished this through the short story of “The Fall Of The House Of Usher.” Through this story, Edgar was trying to show the fear he had for him self, he did not understand him self so therefore Poe ran from his own personality and mind. This story enables the reader to take a look at Poe’s mind and

In the story “ The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe, has an American romanticism with its characters. Edgar Allan Poe is considered a Dark Romanticism because of the way he writes his poems and short stories centered around the concept of evil human nature, darkness, and death. Roderick and Madeline Usher were said to be related during the middle of the story; they were twins. It explained how they were sick, Roderick had a mental disorder and Madeline was physically sick. As the narrator enters the desolate house, he finds both Roderick and his sister in a severe state of depression and they both appear sick like. The narrator tries to make Roderick feel better, but Roderick wouldn’t budge. Roderick thinks that the house is making him sick and making him to appear crazy.

While staying with his friend, the narrator seems to develop some strange symptoms. As the narrator spends more time in the house, he has strange thoughts which make us question his sanity. After Roderick’s sister dies, Madeline, the two men put her in a tomb. We later discover that Madeline is still alive after, a few days later, she attacks her brother. Throughout the progression of the story, the narrator seems to become insane.

The narrator was the best person aid Roderick in his attempt to kill Madeline. The narrator trusts Roderick since they have been friends since they were boys, this is important because the narrator will not believe that Roderick is not purposefully manipulating him. In the end, Roderick came into the narrator’s room during the storm and the narrator offered to comfort im by reading “One of your favorite romances. I will read, and you will listen: - and so we will pass this terrible storm together”(Poe 490). This shows that the narrator still believes that Roderick is only sick and not considering that fact that he is manipulating him. Since the narrator will find any logical explanation for the situation, he is oblivious to what is actually

Roderick’s old friend, the narrator, had come to spend some time with him. The narrator finds out that Roderick had been suffering from a mental illness. This and the knowledge that the narrator was Roderick’s only friend prompted him to go visit. This shows that the narrator is a loyal friend to Roderick. The narrator feels fear. This fear stems from all of the terrifying things seen in the House of Usher. When the narrator enters the studio, the room, Roderick was in, Roderick gets up and greets him warmly. Roderick’s warmness first gives the narrator a feeling of overdone cordiality, but later sees that Roderick’s

The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe is a very dark and eerie story. This gothic tale is very complexly written, as many of Poe’s works are. In this story, there were two main themes that stood out: fear and friendship. The fear of Roderick Usher as well as the narrator’s fear and the friendship of the two. And although there are many elements of this story that are noteworthy, most importantly though is the authors vagueness throughout.

Doctors are unable to give a definite diagnosis. They suspect that it might be catalepsy. During the narrator's visit Madeline dies and he helps Roderick bury her corpse. The speaker notices her rosy cheeks and it suddenly dawns on him that Madeline and Roderick were twins. One night the visitor is raised from his sleep by Roderick who is in a fit of frenzy. In order to placate his friend, he reads him a story- "Mad Trist" by Sir Launcelot Canning. As he reads it, he hears sounds that correlate with the events from the story. At first he treats them as a figment of his imagination but they become more and more distinct and believable. Roderick becomes pale and starts to talk something under his breath, as if hypnotised. As the speaker listens to the mutterings, he gets to know that the eponymous hero is afraid that they have buried Madeline alive and that she rose from the grave and is standing behind the door. At this point the door is opened and Madeline comes in: "There was blood upon her white robes[...] then, with a low moaning cry, fell heavily inward upon the person of her brother, and in her horrible and now final death-agonies, bore him to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had dreaded."