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the fall of the house of usher edgar allan poe
gothic themes in literature
gothic themes in literature
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Is it possible that two stories in the same genre can have completely different settings, but still end in similar ways? The two stories The Fall of the House of Usher and Where is Here? are both gothic stories. In The Fall of the House of Usher by: Edgar Allen Poe, the story begins with the narrator going to visit his old friend in an isolated house built on a swamp. In Where is Here? by: Joyce Carol Oates, the story is set in a quiet, residential neighborhood, then a stranger comes to visit. Although The Fall of the House of Usher and Where is Here? are both gothic pieces of literature, the settings in both stories have a clear difference, but have ending that are similar.
Even though the two stories The Fall of the House of Usher and Where is Here? are both gothic pieces, they begin in ver different ways. In the beginning of The Fall of the House of Usher the visitor is also the narrator. This gives information that that he has come to meet Roderick Usher in time of distress because he was Roderick's only friend growing up. "During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day... when the cloud hung oppressively low in the heavens... as the shades of evening drew on... and at length found myself... within view of the melancholy House of Usher" (Poe, 293). The narrator (the visitor) explains in this quote the mood of the House of Usher, and the setting around it. He also shows the depression, and isolation that must come from living in a place like this. In the story Where is Here? the setting begins completely differently. It opens up with a normal family, living a normal life, in a normal neighborhood. "...They had lived in their in a quiet, residential neighborhood" (Oates 325). Tis quote really shows that this f...
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...swamp it was built on. The ending of Where is Here? is similar because of the fact that the house went back to its original eerie, depressing ways. "...The lights were flickering..., the pattered wallpaper seemed drained of color..., the robust green of the carpeting looked faded... In the kitchen the lights were dim and an oder of sourish smoke, subtle but unmistakable, made her nostrils pinch." (Oates, 332). From this quote it is easy to tell the depressing mood that comes after the stranger left. Even the same sort of pain that had once occurred in the house, fell upon the new family.
The two stories The Fall of the House of Usher and Where is Here? have obvious differences in setting, but end in similar ways. So is this true with all gothic pieces of literature? The answer is yes, if you count that all gothic literature ends in a depressing, or an eerie way.
The castles and mansions that provide the settings for traditional Gothic tales are full of grandeur, darkness, and decay. These settings are one of the most recognizable elements of traditional Gothic fiction. Setting is equally as important in modern Gothic literature as well. While the settings in the two stories, “Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe and “Where Is Here?” by Joyce Carol Oates, are incredibly different, they are also very similar.
... Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher”, they both can be classified collectively under gothic literature. In other words, although these stories exhibit two completely different plots, it has been found that they have matching frameworks.
My Surbaban Pittsburg, Pa HAunted House. (2014, April 24). Retrieved from Your Ghost Stories: Http://www.yourghoststories.com
The Fall of The House of Usher is an eerie, imaginative story. The reader is captured by the twisted reality. Many things in the story are unclear to the reader; but no less interesting. For instance, even the conclusion of the story lends it self to argument. Did the house of Usher truly "fall"? Or, is this event simply symbolism? In either case, it makes a dramatic conclusion. Also dramatic is the development of the actual house. It seems to take on a life of its own. The house is painted with mystery. The narrator himself comments on the discerning properties of the aged house; "What was it, I paused to think, what was it that so unnerved me in the contemplation of the house of Usher" (54)? The house is further developed in the narrator's references to the house. "...In this mansion of gloom" (55). Even the surroundings serve the purpose. The narrator describes the landscape surrounding as having, "... an atmosphere which had no affinity with the air of heaven, but which had reeked up from the decayed trees, and the gray wall, and the silent tarn a pestilent and mystic vapor, dull, sluggish, faintly discernible, and leaden hued" (55). This fantastic imagery sets the mood of the twisted events. Roderick Usher complements the forbidding surroundings terrifically. His temperament is declining and he seems incessantly agitated and nervous. And, as it turns out, Roderick's fears are valid. For soon enough, before his weakening eyes, stands the Lady Madeline of Usher. This shocking twist in the story is developed through the book that the narrator is reading. The last line that he reads is, "Madman! I tell you that she now stands without the door" (66)! Without suspecting such an event, the reader soon finds Lady Madeline actually standing at the door. She is described as having, "...blood on her white robes, and the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame" (66). This line not only induces terror but invites debate. Upon seeing the woman the reader has to consider the cause of her death.
Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” and Julio Cortazar’s “House Taken Over” the settings are similar because they can both be described as dark in some passages, and ultimately alluring. However in Poe’s “The Fall of the House,” the setting is revolving around the climax, so it is all very dramatic and highly detailed, almost ominous. In contrast, Cortazar’s setting is slightly more laid back, things take place in time and it is all very dreamlike.
Gothic storytelling is a form of writing that usually includes horror, death, and romance. People write gothic style for the thrill of having a little bit of scariness in their story. Gothic style can be shown through the imagery and themes. The Fall of the House of Usher and Crimson Peak are two stories that show gothic writing though the imagery of the houses and supernatural.
Gothic elements are used to show suspense, symbolism, and drama, while also setting dark and twisted tones about the story and its characters. In the passage "The Fall of the House of Usher" the author uses Gothic elements to entice the reader with details of ominous character persona and setting.
One of the most important aspects of any Gothic novel is setting. Mary Shelly's Frankenstein is an innovative and disturbing work that weaves a tale of passion, misery, dread, and remorse. Some would argue that Frankenstein is a classic Gothic novel. By a classically Gothic novel it is meant that the story employs a traditionally scary theme. This could include such things as dark and dreary castles set in isolated surroundings replete with dungeons. Supernatural beings such as ghosts and living dead may be included in the twisted, thrilling, unveiling tale. The novel does contain many Gothic characteristics in a sense that it does explore the uses of dark dreary basements, where the monstrous creature is made. Frankenstein is not set in a dull and dreary basement but you could say that where Frankenstein worked on his creation to be a gloomy dreary room. There is a struggle between good and evil throughout the story, an example of this is seen in Victor Frankenstein and his monster. We also get a lot of suspense around the person who is next to be murdered or die. An example of this is before Elizabeth dies when Victor Frankenstein is anticipating his own death.
(1265) along with other disturbing words to stress the mood of horror. Furthermore, the house evokes suspense as it strikes the reader with curiosity as to why the building presents such a dreadful and uneasy feeling. Poe describes the house with further detail emphasizing its ghostly traits: “Dark draperies hung upon the walls. The general furniture was profuse, comfortless, antique, and tattered. Many books and musical instruments lay scattered about, but failed to give any vitality to the scene” (1267). Poe describes the house using very descriptive and daunting words contributing to the story’s depressive mood as well as its suspense.
Edgar Allan Poe applies a variety of examples of this feel in the short story. An example of the feel of the genre is “the haunted mansion, haunted siblings, bewildering corridors, and eerie chambers,”(Fisher 88). The so-called feel of the Gothic genre is so well represented in “The Fall of the House of Usher,” that it makes a great argument that it positively is a representation of the Gothic genre and not for the Gothic parody. An obvious clue that Poe left behind was the death. In which, most Gothic genre ends with a death or some kind of terrible ending ,yet in “The Fall of the House of Usher,” the conclusion of the short story is a basic ending to the story because this type of genre is dark. Therefore, the feel of the genre is heightened when the literary device, Gothic double, is used throughout “The Fall of the House of
Poe sets the setting as dark and gloomy, most likely to give the reader the death is in the air vibe in the beginning of “The Fall of the House of Usher”. “There was an iciness, a sinking, a sickening of the heart - an unredeemed dreariness of thought which no goading of the imagination could torture into aught of the sublime. What was it - I paused to think - what was it that so unnerved me in the contemplation of the House of Usher?” The narrator, who is nameless throughout the whole story, receives a letter from an old childhood friend. According to the letter Roderick, the narrator’s childhood friend, has invited the narrator
In "The Fall of the house of Usher," Edgar Allen Poe creates suspense and fear in the reader. He also tries to convince the reader not to let fear overcome him. Poe tries to evoke suspence in the reader's mind by using several diffenent scenes. These elements include setting, characters, plot, and theme. Poe uses setting primarily in this work to create atmosphere. The crack in the house and the dead trees imply that the house and its surroundings are not sturdy or promising. These elements indicate that a positive outcome is not expected. The thunder, strange light, and mist create a spooky feeling for the reader. The use of character provides action and suspense in the story through the characters' dialogue and actions. Roderick, who is hypochondriac, is very depressed. He has a fearful apperance and his senses are acute. This adds curiosity and anxiety. The narrator was fairly normal until he began to imagine things and become afraid himself. Because of this, the audience gets a sense that evil is lurking. Madeline is in a cataleptic state. She appears to be very weak and pail. Finally, when she dies, she is buried in a vault inside of the mansion. In this story, the plot consists of rising events, conflict, climax, and resolution. The rising events include the parts in the story when the narrator first arrives at the house, meets Roderick, and hears about Roderick's and Madeline's problems. Madeline's death and burial are part of the conflict. At this point, Roderick and the narrator begin to hear sounds throughout the house. The sounds are an omen that an evil action is about to occur. The climax is reached when Madeline comes back from the dead and she and her twin brother both die. Finally, the resolution comes when the narrator escapes from the house and turns around to watch it fall to the ground. The theme that Edgar Allen Poe is trying to convey is do not let fear take over your life because it could eventually destory you.
The Fall Of The House of Usher is a terrifying tale of the demise of the Usher family, whose inevitable doom is mirrored in the diseased and evil aura of the house and grounds. Poe uses elements of the gothic tale to create an atmosphere of terror. The decaying house is a metaphor for Roderick Usher’s mind, as well as his family line. The dreary landscape also reflects his personality. Poe also uses play on words to engage the reader to make predictions, or provide information. Poe has also set the story up to be intentionally ambiguous so that the reader is continually suspended between the real and the fantastic.
The abundance of chilling diction and imagery continues through the rest of the story, often in Poe’s description of the house. Any given sentence ...
Gothic Tradition was said to have started in Europe. Gothicism came from the Romanticism in the early 19th century (Book Rags). Two people who are said to have started the gothic writing movement are Ann Radcliffe and Horace Walpole. They started this style with their stories: “The Mysteries of Udolpho” and “The Castle of Otranto” (Book Rags). The gothic movement also came about because it was related to the art and architecture during the Renaissance era. Edgar Allan Poe three main elements romance, horror, and supernatural events are used in his short stories and poems. A few of his most famous short stories are “The Raven”, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, “The Tell-tale Heart”, “The Black Cat”, “Eleonora”, and “Annabelle Lee” (Book Rags). Some of his writing is dark and gloomy while others have romance and comedy.