Edgar Allan Poe Research Paper

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.

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.

Edgar Allan Poe was a unique man that most people could not understand. Many recognize that he is a talented writer with a very strange and dark style. One of his most well known short stories is “The Fall Of The House Of Usher.” Many argue the different meanings of this story and how it is symbolic to his life. Poe was a very confused individual who needed to express himself, he accomplished this through the short story of “The Fall Of The House Of Usher.” Through this story, Edgar was trying to show the fear he had for him self, he did not understand him self so therefore Poe ran from his own personality and mind. This story enables the reader to take a look at Poe’s mind and

The setting of this story takes place in the Usher manor a creepy place located in a “dreary tract of country.” When the narrator first sees the estate he feels “an insufferable gloom” because of the manors horrible state. With its “eye-like windows” and “decayed trees...I can compare to no earthly sensation more properly than to the afterdream of the reveler upon opium.” Poe establishes a Gothic setting through the narrator's point of view just like in “Young Goodman Brown.”

In the story “ The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe, has an American romanticism with its characters. Edgar Allan Poe is considered a Dark Romanticism because of the way he writes his poems and short stories centered around the concept of evil human nature, darkness, and death. Roderick and Madeline Usher were said to be related during the middle of the story; they were twins. It explained how they were sick, Roderick had a mental disorder and Madeline was physically sick. As the narrator enters the desolate house, he finds both Roderick and his sister in a severe state of depression and they both appear sick like. The narrator tries to make Roderick feel better, but Roderick wouldn’t budge. Roderick thinks that the house is making him sick and making him to appear crazy.

After evaluating the work of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher, he utilizes with imagery to build up the feeling of terror. First of all, the passage is about an ill man, Roderick Usher, who invites his old friend of his to come meet him. In this passage both him and his sister, Madeline Usher, are the last remaining of the Usher race and is diagnosed with an unnatural illness. The narrator begins to feel terror with the supernatural things going on in the house of Usher and the illness of the Ushers. Although the narrator feels the sense of terror from the moment he entered the house, through the use of imagery, Poe is able to bring emotion to the reader. Throughout the passage, the author continues to build up the sense of terror by asserting the image and setting of both the passage and the atmosphere. For instance, he starts the passage by stating “a dull, dark, and a soundless day...clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens” (Poe 194). In relation to the previous quote, the quote illustrates the image of the atmosphere and the setting of the story. In particular, because Poe expresses the sense of terror by describing the atmosphere as dark, quiet, and gloomy, the reader can get an image of the surroundings and get the feeling of the darkness and horror. In addition, according to Poe, during the first glimpse of the house of Usher, the narrator describes it as gloomy and unpleasant. In particular, Poe states “the shades of the evening drew on… a sense of insufferable gloom” (Poe 194). Additionally, the description of the house adds on to the sense of terror that Poe established in the beginning of the story. Based on the past two quotes stated by the author, the reader can begin to picture a dark and dull day with a gloomy house adding on to the darkness. Lastly, in regards to Edgar Allan Poe, the house of Usher is

Edgar Allan Poe once wrote, “I became insane with long, horrible moments of sanity.” Furthermore, some believe that he struggled with lifelong depression and mental health issues. Typically, gothic literature portrays dark, melancholy narratives, his work, “The Fall of the House of Usher” is far more than just a tale. Edgar Allan Poe uses symbolism, imagery, and diction to explore his own mental illness in “The Fall of the House of Usher”.

    Edgar Allan Poe once said, “With me, poetry has not been a purpose, but a passion.” When stressed, writing was his coping mechanism, and through observation, many grasp how much death encompassed Poe. Although not appreciated during his era, he revolutionized mystery with mesmerizing story plots that yield suspense, but also makes readers question his stability. Most importantly, unlike those famous during his lifetime who are now forgotten, Poe’s legacy will live on forever. Moreover, throughout life, Poe experienced catastrophe, and because of this, writing became his creative outlet.

“The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe, published in 1839, can be compared to Poe’s later work “The Tell-Tale Heart”, published in 1843. In both gothic stories, there are physical deformities, mental illness, and despicable crimes. In “The Fall of the House of Usher”, Roderick Usher, the main character, and one of the last of the Usher blood line, had a twin sister, Madeline, who suffered from a mysterious illness. After believing she had died, Roderick learned that was not the case --Madeline was still alive-- yet he buried her anyway. In “The Tell-Tale Heart”, an unnamed narrator lived with an old man, whom he was plotting to murder because he wanted to help rid the world of the old man’s evil eye. In both Poe’s stories death is a very prominent theme (Davis).

`Picture an eerie, yet intriguing house on a hill set beside a dark and scary lake. In the story, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, that’s exactly where our story takes place. Poe’s short story is strong in a mysterious tone; thus leading to the themes of fear and madness. “The Fall of the House of Usher” tells a terrifying story, and the narrator is present for the most intense parts. The way the author feels throughout the story is described very well when Poe writes, “There was an iciness, a sinking, a sickening of the heart.

Poe skillfully uses transitions that deepen the dark mood in “The Fall of the House of Usher”. This story begins blithe with the innocence of reconnecting with old friendships and reminiscing the past of the narrator and Roderick Usher, this soon spirals into confusion and death. Throughout the story, the mood is set by the house of Usher, ranging from the narrator’s initial arrival to his stay with Roderick. When the narrator arrives, he observes the day as “dull, dark, and soundless” (p. 555). He then observes the house and its appearance animates the emotion that the

Romantic Era literature can be, quite frankly, confusing and endlessly nuanced. Edgar Allan Poe's story, The Fall Of The House Of Usher, is no exception to this near- universal Romantic rule. This story was published in 1839 and follows the then-popular (and dreary) Gothic themes, exploring different (and new) ways to incorporate themes of chaos and order into a coherent, tragically dark message. Written from the first-person perspective of the narrator, The Fall Of The House Of Usher explores the interesting condition of the Usher house; more specifically it relates the tale of Roderick Usher and how he buried his sister, Madeline, and how she came back from the grave.

Edgar Allan Poe became an author that has grasped the importance of language in his short stories to form the perfect mood and the ability to affect his readers emotionally. In the short story, The Fall of the House of Usher, a man decides to go on a trip to reunite with a friend from his childhood, who suffers from an unknown illness. During the visit, bizarre events occur while staying in his friend’s home. This short story allows Poe to use hints of horror and gothic prose to drive the protagonists into constant mental distress and eventually driving them to madness. Poe incorporates horror and gothic prose such as the unsettling description of the setting, demise, and the fear of paranormal slowly will creep fear upon his characters

Many friends try to help one another out sometime in each others lives. But tough decisions may arise up along the way, causing an individual to abandon what they believe and try to reason with the sinister nightmare of madness. In the short story by Edgar Allan Poe named The Fall of the House of Usher, these delusions consume Roderick Usher.Causing other characters to question if they ever really new there friend at all. The two main characters in this short story the first being the narrator who is an unnamed man, that has a long term friendship with Roderick Usher. The second character is Roderick Usher, who has a disease that causes him to be in a constant state of fear and madness. The story begins as the narrator arrives at Rodericks deteriorating mansion. He quickly realizes that his friends constant fear is paralyzing him to the point where he cannot understand what is real. As the days go by Roderick has brief moments of happiness due to his friend being there. The narrator learns that Roderick has a twin sister who has a rare disease and Roderick cannot live without her. But the story ends short with the tragic death of Roderick Usher, his sister and many questions left unanswered for the rest of the narrator's life. Overall the short story ,The Fall of the House of Usher, by Edgar Allan Poe uses the literary elements of symbolism and situational irony to help illustrate the theme of fear and madness.

The Fall of the House of Usher is a story “of sickness, madness, incest, and the danger of unrestrained creativity. This is among Poe's most popular and critically-examined horror stories” (Gordon). For example if you were to close your eyes while someone was reading the story you would see the house “decaying” in your imagination (Poe). From the start of the story the narrator’s strange “insufferable gloom” is introduced. He notes the darkness of his surrounding (Gordon). The stories are very deeply described and felt.