Preview

The Fall Of The House Of Usher's Fall

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
239 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Fall Of The House Of Usher's Fall
In Edgar Allen Poe’s short story, The Fall of the House of Usher, the house of Usher fell in various ways (genealogically, symbolically, and literally), to effectively illustrate the theme Poe was reaching for. Genealogically the house fell, because the family intermarried for several generations and it is extremely possible Madeline expected Roderick to follow the family tradition. But Roderick did not want to follow through with it, which meant the fall of the House of Usher. Symbolically, the reason why is because of Roderick’s fear. “I feel that... sooner or later... I must abandon life and reason together, in some struggle with the grim phantasm, FEAR.” The fear of his sister because she possessed greater physical and intellectual strength

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Both Edgar Allan Poe's “The Fall of the House of Usher” and Julio Cortazar's “House Taken Over” have similar settings because they both take place in in spooky large houses. However in Poe's story, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” the setting is different because it is a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year. By contrast, in cortazar's “House Taken Over” the setting is it is an old house that is spacious and makes creepy noises.…

    • 479 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The story “The Fall of the House of Usher” tells how two childhood friends the narrator and Roderick Usher after many years Roderick writes to the narrator and ask for help because of his illness that runs through his family. The mansion that Roderick lives in has been there for generations that has been past down. The narrator is freaked out by the house because of the noises from the wind and the appearance of the mansion. Roderick’s illness is making him go insane as well as his sister Madeline Usher. As time went Madeline fainted and Roderick thought she had past away so he made her the burial as every other family member.…

    • 843 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the short story "The Fall of House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe, the narrator is acting like he is going insane or dreaming. In the story he is showing many signs of being insane and dreaming. Throughout the story it shows his experience at the Usher house, and how he was driven insane. The three ways one can assume that the narrnateris insane is he described the house breaking down,the family being insane and they how there was Altamonte destruction. The narrator is insane or dreaming. The entire story is a projection of his mind.…

    • 415 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Most Edgar Allen Poe stories contain a haunting and eerie tone and this short story proves no exception. “The Fall of the House of Usher” revolves around the narrator's childhood friend, Roderick Usher. Roderick suffers from an undisclosed mental illness and Roderick’s sister, Madeline, is near death, when introduced. When Madeline appears to be dead Roderick decides to bury her in an underground vault. The days following this incident Roderick’s normal countenance fades and he goes mad. Afterwards, Madeline escapes from the vault, kills Roderick and the house splits down the middle and sinks into the ground. In Edgar Allen Poe’s, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, various critics argue that the story contains supernatural influences demonstrated…

    • 553 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Death, murder, and depression are a few of Edgar Allan Poe’s favorite areas to write about. This is a vital reason his pieces are considered Gothic Literature. Gothic Literature, also referred to as “brooding romantics,” explored the capacity for evil. These writers arranged their works with emphasis on emotion, nature, and the individual. However, they did not center their matters on positivity as the other romantics did. Instead, they often included elements of fantasy and the supernatural. Poe’s short story, Fall of the House of Usher, contains all of the assets essential to a Gothic Literature piece, including grotesque characters, bizarre situations, and violent events.…

    • 723 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jonathan A. Cook states, “we find the narrator continuing in his attempt to derive more pleasure than pain from the scene of the house before him, for he speculates that "a mere different arrangement of the particulars of the scene, of the details of the picture, would be sufficient to modify, or perhaps to annihilate its capacity for sorrowful impression" (Poe). In other words, the narrator is now seemingly attempting to transform the view of the House of Usher into a...picturesque [scene]” (Cook). Right from the beginning, when he had only had a glance at the house, the narrator felt himself compelled to the “dark side” that Roderick seems to be a part of. He went from seeing the house as dreary and gloomy to seeing it as extravagant and compelling. Roderick has contacted the narrator who was his childhood friend to comfort him because his sisters health is deteriorating. However, this may not be Roderick’s true reason for calling upon the narrator. There can be a possible darker background on why Roderick is so set on having him come to the house which can be his mission to bury his sister alive with the help of the…

    • 657 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    "The Fall of the House of Usher," is one of the popular horror stories written by Poe. And it's remarkable plot, is lost in the production of the House of Usher . In the short story the plot is rather simple, Roderick and Madeline Usher are the last of the Ushers who are suffering from incurable diseases. Roderick suffers from "a morbid acuteness of the senses," while Madeline suffers from "..a settled apathy, a gradual wasting away of the person, or frequent although transient affections of a partly cataleptical character.." This disease gives her a deathlike look, making her body lose its feeling, and loses consciousness. Madeline falls into her deathlike symptoms and is thought of as being dead. Roderick and his friend, carry her into the dungeon and keep her there in her coffin. Where she then awakens and frees herself. Covered in her own blood, she kills Roderick by being too frightened by the sight, and the unnamed narrator flees the house. Whereas in the House of Usher there are only a few of these events that take place.…

    • 470 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The interpretation of the book, "The Fall of the House of Usher," by Edgar Allan…

    • 428 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Romanticism moves away from the ideas of realism and has a habit of focusing on the individual more than anything else. The environment in most romantic pieces reflect the feelings of a character that the writing hopes to reflect upon. In the story “The Fall of the House of Usher” written by Edgar Allen Poe embodies the romantic theme through a very dark matter. The story starts of by describing an extremely gloomy setting where many of the trees are dead and isn’t a very pleasant area to live in. Poe goes on and introduces us to Roderick Usher who seems to suffer a mental illness which ends up leading to his sister’s death. Poe utilizes the themes of a very dark romanticism through focusing on the one Roderick Usher and the somber past that the Usher family possess and expresses this by using thorough details of the narrator’s surroundings. The surplus amount…

    • 416 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Let’s go back in time, when scary movies weren’t going to the theaters, but they were playing in your mind while writing a short story. Edgar Allen Poe, the author of Fall of the House of the Usher, which expresses a devious sort of plot throughout the short story. Poe’s short story is strong in the tone for terror as illustrated when analyzing the word choice, and figurative language.…

    • 421 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In conclusion, in The Fall of the House of Usher, Roderick Usher’s fear caused him to go crazy, bury his sister alive, and dying. The act of being scared influences one’s actions when taken upon. Usher is driven into insanity over his house, he then buries Madeline after being worried, and the fear of fear then kills him. Usher’s take on fear relates to the real world, because anyone’s fears can get the best of them. “Courage is not the absence of fear, but the mastery of it.” Fear can either build one’s courage, or fear can bring one’s courage…

    • 571 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The theme of vampirism occurs several times throughout “The Fall of the House of Usher” written by Edgar Allen Poe. He shows this theme through many actions of the characters and his use of diction. The three main paths of discovering the vampire theme is to closely examine three important instruments within the story. The three instruments used include Roderick Usher, Madeline Usher, and the House that the two live in.…

    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The world is nothing but a canvas to the imagination. Your point of view of seeing life is related to your imagination. Imagination is related to your experience. For example, when a sneak tries to attack you, you’ll get afraid of sneaks and so on. Imagination can be affected by happy, sad, terrifying, or even funny moments. You’re imagination can get in every little detail you have to experience in your everyday life. Scientists generally define fear as a negative emotional state triggered by the presence of a stimulus (the snake, for our example). Fear is in the brain because it helped our ancestors cope with life’s challenges, so fear have to exist. Imagination can overcome reasoning when affected by fear.…

    • 640 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In both stories the author portrays a sense of horror to the reader. “The Fall of the House of Usher”, presents a creepier mood and is in the Gothic Literature genre. Gothic Literature is a genre that is represented by dark and gloomy mood. It is characterized by elements such as tortured characters, dramatic language, remote settings, and violence. “House Taken Over”, on the other hand presents a calmer mood through the actions of the characters and is in the genre of Magical Realism. Magical Realism is a genre that has more to do with fantasy than it does with fear. The differences between the two genres can explain the different attempts from the authors to portray fear to the reader.…

    • 604 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Reason is something everyone has, but in different amounts. Some people are more reasonable than others. Imagination is another thing that everyone has in one shape or another. However, what is the point where imagination takes over reason? “Fall of the House of Usher”, “House Taken Over” and many psychologists provide much insight as to why and when imagination overcomes reason. It seems that the point where logic and reason are gone, is due to the unknown being in question.…

    • 1190 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays