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

Most times, anything abnormal or odd tend to be pushed under the rug. Edgar Allan Poe subtly brings attention to topics the are typically ignored. E. A. Poe had far from a perfect childhood. His father left when he was young and his mother died when he was three. Poe also seemed to have a lonely childhood after his parents were gone. He was separated from his relatives and didn’t appear to have many friends. He attended the army and after went into West Point. His academics there were well but he was eventually kicked out because of poor handlings of his duties. Before Poe died, he struggled with depression and a drinking problem. Some believe Poe’s tragic lifetime was the inspiration for some of his stories. Such as, “The Fall of the House of Usher”. A possible theory about this story is that Roderick and the Narrator were one in the same. This essay will discuss the possibility of them being the same through plot, characterization, and personification.

“Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dreamed before” (Edgar Allan Poe). Darkness and sadness are strong characteristics of Edgar Allan Poe’s writing. The tragedies during his life, such as the death of his biological and adoptive moms, followed by the death of his young wife Virginia were important factors which formed his gothic style. Poe is known for his drinking problems and use of drugs. Those habits had a big influence in his life and in his works.

Edgar Allan Poe used fear to attract his readers into his gothic world. Poe realized that fear intrigues as well as frightens, and sew it as a perfect motif for many of his stories, particularly The Fall of the House of Usher. Poe emphasized the mysterious, desolate, and gloomy surroundings throughout the story to set up the fear that got the reader involved. Then he extended the fear to the characters in order to reveal the importance of facing and overcoming fear. Poe suggested in the story that the denial of fears can lead to madness and insanity. This has clearly shown through the weakening of Roderick Usher's mind and the resulting impact on the narrator of the story.

The house seems to be absorbing Usher’s mental health and physical health. Evidence of this is shown by the faltering health and growing fears of Roderick Usher in relation to the growing scariness of the house.

The Fall Of the House Of Usher is a short story written by Edgar Allen Poe in 1839. The short story is complexly written, with challenging themes such as identity and fear. Poe utilises many elements of the Gothic Tradition such as setting and supernatural elements to create a more mysterious story, and uses language to his advantage, employing adjective filled descriptions of literal elements that also serve as metaphors for other parts of the story.

Edgar Allan Poe was a sick man that went through a troubling life full of tragedies. For Poe to deal with this he drank and poured his feelings into his works. Honestly as horrible it is that he had to go through all of that we should be grateful because without his suffering these masterpieces wouldn’t have been fabricated. While intensifying his philosophy for short stories Edgar Allan Poe wrote “The Fall of the House of Usher” reflecting the characteristics of Dark Romantic Movement.

As with many of Edgar Allan Poe's pieces, "The Fall of the House of Usher" falls within the definition of American Gothic Literature. According to Prentice Hall Literature, American Gothic Literature is characterized by a bleak or remote setting, macabre or violent incidents, characters being in psychological or physical torment, or a supernatural or otherworldly involvement (311). A story containing these attributes can result in a very frightening or morbid read. In all probability, the reason Poe's stories were written in this fashion is that his personal life was fraught with depression, internal agony, and despair. Evidently this is reflected in "The Fall of the House of Usher." Conjointly, Edgar Allan Poe's "The

In the story, “The Fall of The House of Usher”, there are many mysterious happenings that go on throughout the story between the characters Roderick Usher and the narrator. Throughout the story, Edgar Allan Poe uses themes such as madness and insanity to connect the house back to Roderick Usher. In the “Fall of The House of Usher”, the narrator goes through many different experiences when arriving to the house. The narrator’s experiences start out as almost unnoticeable in the beginning, turn into bigger ones right before his eyes, and end up becoming problems that cause deterioration of the mind and the house before the narrator even decides to do anything helpful for Roderick and his mental illness. In “The Fall of The

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.

“Mr. Poe could not possibly send forth a book without some marks of his genius, and mixed up with the dross we find much sterling ore.” — (From a review of Poe’s Tales, September 6, 1845.) In 1845, Poe, 27, and Virginia, 13, married, and were happy for a time. In 1842, Virginia ruptured a blood vessel; the first sign of the ill health that plagued her short life. Poe turned to alcohol to cope with her illness and the stress of his dying wife. Two years later, Virginia died of tuberculosis, and Poe’s own death would follow shortly two years after that.

Bipolar disorder affects many people today as well as in the time of Edgar Allen Poe when it was then called melancholia. Poe was diagnosed with this disorder and it plays an integral role in his story, “The Fall of the House of Usher” (1839). This story is heavily influenced by this disorder or its presently associated symptoms and also describes one way that bipolar disorder can genetically affect an entire family.

Poe reveals the severity of mental illness by describing the nature of mental illness as occult and deadly. In the story, Poe describes a man who has become death-like due to a mental illness and eventually dies to that mental illness. As Poe writes, “bore him to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had not anticipated.” (19). Therefore, Poe writes that the end of the story that Roderick Usher dies despite not having any disease or any life threatening symptoms, and suggests that mental illness is capable of killing its victim. Moreover, Poe furthers this idea because Usher is able to foresee his eventual death and fear his doom, as the victim of a disease would. This expectation to die from mental illness suggests that there is no recourse and that he expects to die because mental disorders were not considered treatable. Therefore, Poe suggests that the nature of this unnamed illness is deadly and creates a sense of finality due to the expectation of death. Furthermore, this anticipation of death is what allows our story to begin because if it were not for this mental illness, then Roderick Usher would not seek the help of the narrator. As Poe writes, “of an earnest desire to see me … with the hope that my company would improve his

In “The Fall of the house of Usher” Edgar Allan Poe creates a setting that

“The Fall of the House of Usher” is a short story written by Edger Allan Poe in 1839. Almost everything about the story is very gloomy, dark and depressing. For example, the house is described by the narrator as “the melancholy House of Usher” and the description of Roderick Usher himself makes you think of a corpse. This theme of dreariness and sorrow pervades the story and is done to a very chilling effect, which really draws in the reader. “The Fall of the House of Usher” has lots of necessary elements of a traditional Gothic tale: a dreary landscape, a haunted house, mysterious characters, etc., but for all of these elements, the vagueness of the story is a large part of the

As, well... cliché, as clichés can be, there are a lot of very important life lessons can that be learned from those short phrases we hear every day. “Put your money where your mouth is”, saying if so sure prove what you know to express the need to stand firm in truth as well as, don’t tell anyone they’re wrong unless it can be proven for a fact. “Time will tell”, expressing patience and diligence. Stories are usually laden with clichés, such as myths and folklore that discuss lessons while providing entertainment so learning is fun. Rip Van Winkle is a story of a man who showed that “attitude is everything”. Despite the nagging of his wife, he remained positive and it paid off for him later in life. In the story The Fall of the House of Usher, a man is overcome with chilling feelings when he arrives at a certain house and it exudes that we should “follow our first mind, it’ll never steer wrong”. Clichés are everywhere, and if paid the right attention there can be a lot to gain from them.