Grotesque

The Use of Setting in “The Masque of the Red Death” and “The Fall of the House of Usher” Edgar Allan Poe is an American author who is known for his use of romantic and gothic style of writing. “The Masque of the Red Death” and “The Fall of the House of Usher” are two famous pieces of literature written by Poe that are still red and studied today. Known for his intriguing plots and characters, Poe’s use of detail in his writing always has a deeper meaning and provides the reader with extra…

According to Webster Merriam, embodiment is defined as “someone or something that is a perfect representative or example of a quality, idea, etc.” In many ways Roderick Usher embodies his own house because of his unstable foundation, isolated nature, and morbid personality. Poe continues to point out similarities of the narrator to his house as he focuses on Roderick himself, the estate’s atmosphere which Roderick’s personality creates, and the peculiar events which take place within the…

In the Fall of the House of Usher, by Edgar Allen Poe, the narrator was visiting his childhood friend, Roderick Usher. This visit took place at the Usher’s estate where Roderick’s sister Madeline was ill with a mysterious disease. The whole story is about the narrator describing the gloomy Usher’s estate and the depressed condition of his friend Roderick. One of the themes in this story is about madness because Roderick Usher is overwhelmed with depression which caused him to go insane. His…

The Real Story of the "Fall of the House of Usher" "The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe is a story about the narrator visiting his dear friend, Roderick Usher and Roderick's twin sister, Madeline, who are both very ill. Through the book Madeline passes away and the narrator and Roderick bury her under the house to keep her safe from doctors from stealing her body for an autopsy. Yet, Roderick keeps hearing voices and believes that they have buried her alive and she is trying to…

The short story, The Fall of the House of Usher, is gothic fiction and is written by Edgar Allan Poe. Certain elements in the story and the actions of Madeline causes Usher to go completely insane and almost brings the narrator to the brink of insanity. Through specific gothic elements such as emotions and the eerie, mysterious setting, and the supernatural, Poe successfully achieves a suspenseful mood within his short story. At the end of The Fall of the House of Usher, when the house sinks and…

The Fall of the House of Usher is a short story by the famous American author, Edgar Allan Poe. This short story encompases themes of death, incestry, illness, and physical destruction. However, an observation will show that with some of Poe’s other pieces of literature, it can also show a prominent link between the storyline of The Fall of the House of Usher and Poe’s theories and beliefs of the creation and destruction of the universe. Poe has a strong concept of unity in the human perception…

The story “Fall of the House of Usher” the narrator is insane. Reading the story he gives reason to make the assumption that he is insane. He thinks him and his house has a bond or connection. That’s why he never leaves. He also keeps the house dark and lifeless looking. The narrator is depressed about losing his wife. He has a mental condition. He is afraid of his condition. He thinks that his fear of his condition will be the death of him. He soon dies. He and Madeline are sister and brother.…

Even though Poe’s death remains a mystery today it is fact that “The Fall of the House of Usher” has been, throughout time, a reader’s favorite story, both casual and school forced. I personally think it has been such a famous and favorite book of readers because the short story is very dark, cruel, creepy and mysterious. Since it is so dark and mysterious it constantly keeps the attention of the readers such as college students like myself. If the story doesn’t keep my attention then I really…

Mistakes, accidental incidents, the hard truth; all come together to create a larger picture of one truth. The picture tells the truth about a subject that seems to be made out of pieces of a puzzle rather than a whole; being the pieces may be oddly shaped or misshaped. Though this sounds unreasonable, the undesirable occurs to people in any situation; some being dealt with positively while others in an hyperbolic way. In “The Fall of the House of Usher,” Edgar Allan Poe creates a metaphor of…

This character can relate to Poe himself. Poe may be referring to himself, he may be thinking about what he could have done to save his wife. He may be thinking he could have locked Virginia up to keep her away from death. Poe may also be alluding to how he is trying to run from coping with her death or he is trying to run from death himself. In the story Prince Prospero has gone as far as to building a maze to keep himself away from the “Red Death”. Bettina L. Knapp describes the abbey as…