Throughout The Fall of the House of Usher, Poe chooses to reveal Lady Madeline’s illness through the perspective of her brother, Roderick, rather than giving readers an unbiased perspective of her illness. Considering that the only description of Madeline’s madness comes from Roderick, who himself had a compromised mental state, one must question the reliability of Roderick’s description of Madeline’s illness. One must closely examine the nature of Roderick’s mental illness in order to fully understand his inability to comprehend the reality of Madeline’s illness. After carefully analyzing Roderick’s hypochondria and Madeline’s escape, one will conclude that the Roderick Usher’s mental state renders his testimony throughout the story an unreliable depiction of reality. Therefore, his discernment of Lady Madeline’s illness cannot be relied upon; putting all of Roderick’s claims throughout the story into question. Reader’s will not get a first hand observation of Lady Madeline’s mental state because they only witnesses examples of her illness through Roderick Usher’s perspective. One is first made aware of Madeline’s mental disorder when Usher explains that his own affliction is an effect of his sister’s illness. “He admitted...that much of the peculiar gloom which thus afflicted him could be traced...to the severe and long continued illness of his beloved sister...A settled apathy, a gradual wasting away of the person …”” (p.7). After Usher reveals his perception of his sister’s suffering, she enters and leaves the room without speaking, and “dies” soon after. The narrator implies that Madeline’s silence may have been a part of the cataleptic character associated with her illness. The reader is never given a chance t... ... middle of paper ... ...uried alive, Madeline did not continue to waste away in her lethargy, but rather made a conscious attempt to escape from the crypt her brother entrapped her in. “ ...did stand Lady Madeline of Usher. There was blood upon her white robes, and the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame.” (19). Madeline’s successful escape after her entombment clearly gives one a very different impression of her mental state than the lethargy described by Usher. Usher’s description of Madeline’s mental estate is disproven by her ability to claw her way out of her grave. Usher’s inability to comprehend reality gave him a very different image of his sister than one would get when analyzing Madeline with a clear mind. The diagnosis of a madman cannot be relied upon, and therefore readers cannot believe Usher’s assertion of Lady Madeline’s illness.
Her family life is depicted with contradictions of order and chaos, love and animosity, conventionality and avant-garde. Although the underlying story of her father’s dark secret was troubling, it lends itself to a better understanding of the family dynamics and what was normal for her family. The author doesn’t seem to suggest that her father’s behavior was acceptable or even tolerable. However, the ending of this excerpt leaves the reader with an undeniable sense that the author felt a connection to her father even if it wasn’t one that was desirable. This is best understood with her reaction to his suicide when she states, “But his absence resonated retroactively, echoing back through all the time I knew him. Maybe it was the converse of the way amputees feel pain in a missing limb.” (pg. 399)
This paper will explore the connection of schizophrenia with Poe’s The Fall of The House of Usher (1839). This paper suggests that the characters of the twins Roderick Usher and Madeline Usher are not two characters, but in fact are one character
Roderick and the fall of the house of usher have a deceiving appearance. Poe introduces “In this was much that reminded me of the specious totality of woodwork which has rotted for long years in some neglected vault with no disturbance from the breath of the external air” (312). After meeting Roderick and going inside the house, which appear to be normal, it is revealed that the interior is deteriorated. This home is void of others existence, excepting Roderick and Lady Madeleine. He has “A cadaverous of complexion, an eye large,liquid and luminous beyond comparison, lips somewhat thin and very pallid.” (363). It appears to the readers that Roderick has lost his soul due to his ghostly appearance. His illness has taken a toll on his outward appearance.”The ‘House Of Usher’ an appellation which seemed to include… both the family and the family mansion” (311). The house of usher reflects what is going on within the family. Craziness and neglection engulf Roderick’s as much the house. Roderick’s mental illness and the house are
Lady Madeline death is Poe's next gothic element because her death is a crime. Lady Madeline is the victim a the incompetents of her twin Roderick and unfortunately suffered a premature burial. Poe dose this the emphasize the extreme emotion of Roderick and the severity of the situation. Poe as well uses the description of the "decaying house...ghastly river.. [and] black and lurid tarn'' to create feelings of darkness, shadows and gloominess and give the story a gothic ambiance.
...ng gust—but then without those doors there did stand the lofty and enshrouded figure of the lady Madeline of Usher. There was blood upon her white robes, and the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame” (14). Poe portrays Madeline to be monstrous by making her appear in the middle of a storm covered in blood. This description of her adds to the story because it makes her seem more dangerous, and more revengeful.
In the story “The Fall of the House of Usher” the narrator is the main character who mainly speaks throughout the story, in the first sentence of the story he describes the day being “dull, dark, and soundless” as he is on his way to the House of Usher (McMichael). This could symbolize, and foreshadow, the dark secrets and doom he will soon face when he arrives to the house. As the narrator also describes the day being “dark as the clouds are hanging oppressively low in the sky” (McMichael), in the first sentence of the story I analyze this as a psychological allusion of him feeling depression and perhaps even anxious as he approaches the House of Usher not knowing of the things he will learn about Roderick Usher and the things he will soon experience. Throughout the story we begin to learn that Roderick Usher is suffering from some type of mental illness. The story “The Fall of the House of Usher” has many psychological and symbolic allusions that lead the reader to finding out about the mental illness or bipolar
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 ability of women to carry children gives them an aspect of control over the continuation of humanity in gothic stories which is explored throughout Edgar Allen Poe’s, The Fall of the House of Usher. Roderick Usher’s deteriorating mental health can be considered a result of his twin sister, Lady Madeline’s, impending death. Due to their inferred incestuous relationship, Usher’s family lineage is dependent upon a child conceived by himself and Lady Madeline which is pointed out by Roderick himself that her death “would leave him the last of the ancient race of the Usher’s” (Poe 4). The power of Lady Madeline’s death in the cessation of the Usher house is reflected in the immediate decline of Usher’s mental condition, as it is recognised that immediately after her decease “the luminousness of his eye had utterly gone out” (Poe 8). A woman’s role in humanity as the carrier of children and birth giver is a significant power that underlines many tales of gothic fiction and is seen as a force that must be controlled. The fear of loss, not only of Lady Madeline but of the Usher house in its entirety, reflects the substantial power of the feminine. The consequent entombment of Usher’s sister can be seen as a result of Roderick’s angst and attempt to ignore the repercussions of her death. The oppression of women in gothic stories is in the
In the story “The Fall of the House of Usher”, Poe presents the history of the end of an illustrious family. As with many of Poe’s stories, setting and mood contribute greatly to the overall tale. Poe’s descriptions of the house itself as well as the inhabitants thereof invoke in the reader a feeling of gloom and terror. This can best be seen first by considering Poe’s description of the house and then comparing it to his description of its inhabitants, Roderick and Madeline Usher.
It is safe to say that Roderick is disturbed, which is foreshadowed in the narrator's ride to House of Usher. Roderick’s sickness could be fear itself, he is afraid of the images and ideas that he creates in his mind. Although there is no definitive answer to the source of Roderick’s illness, it is a result of, “Poe as [a] craftsman[,] intended the story...to arouse a sense of unearthly terror that springs from a vague source, hinted and mysterious” (Bailey 445). Roderick's twin sister Madeline shares many similar traits to that of her other half. They both seem dead to begin with, Roderick being as pale and ghostly as he is and his sister being a doppelganger herself. The descriptions of the duo, reminds the reader of a vampire who cannot see sunlight causing his pale complexion and lack of outside attendance. Because Madeline is described as something of a doppelganger, it gives her a supernatural shade. As far as the reader knows, Madeline may not be alive to begin with which could explain the ending how she is able to comeback from the dead and, in turn, end up killing her
Beside his illness and his sister dieing, Roderick believes his condition is being controlled by the house. He call on the narrator a boyhood friend to in a last ditch effort to cheer his life up and give him someone to communicate with. The narrator arrives to a house of gloom, darkness and decaying furniture. He immediately is afraid for his life and how his friend can live a house of darkness. Several days past and it is filled with art discussions, guitar playing, and literature reading, all to keep Roderick's mind busy from the reality that he is losing his mind. The narrator and Roderick prematurely enconffined Madeline in a vault in a hope to alleviate his metal condition. She is either dead, in a coma, or a vampire. You don't know but Poe allows the reader to make there own assumptions.
By giving insight into Roderick Usher’s life, Poe reveals how individuals can make themselves believe they are mentally ill. From the start of story, it is revealed that the narrator has been requested by Usher to help him through his “acute bodily illness” (18). The narrator immediately leaves
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.
The character Roderick Usher is extremely sick in the story. This change from human expectations of a healthy man is scary. Even a sick human is never described to be in as bad of a condition as Usher. Expectations are also broken with his sister, Madeline Usher. She shatters the expectation by going from dead to alive and being drastically different when she becomes undead. She is not how we think of a human when she comes back in both looks and attitude. She perfectly fits the description of a zombie, besides the eating flesh characteristic. One final and wonderful example of transformation scaring us in this story is the narrator’s sanity. As he is influenced by Roderick Usher, he slowly starts acting like his mentally ill friend. Not only does this change the narrator’s attitude, but the reader’s experience as well. This is because this is the only point of view a reader will get from this story. This is scary because the truth is hard to decipher. Is the narrator telling the truth, or has his madness wiped that aspect
The beliefs of transcendentalists are continuously filled with bright colors and ideas, and heavenly-like tones. The character Roderick Usher suffered much from a morbid acuteness of the senses" which refers to his transcendental beliefs (Poe 1465). Usher finds his transcendental connection with the oversoul but instead of brightness he finds gloom with black, white and gray colors. Madeline Usher suffers from "a gradual wasting away of the person, and frequent although transient affections of a partially cataleptical character" (Poe 1465). This results from a loss of contact with the physical world, again a characteristic of a transcendentalist, yet negative instead of positive. According to Voloshin "Madeline matches her bother's pallor, but her special mark is red-a faint blush when she is interred and blood on her garments when she emerges" (22). Both characters differ from transcendentalists with their disintegration of the body and mind instead of a rebirth of the body and mind of a transcendentalist.