Category: The Fall of the House of Usher

“The Fall of the House of Usher” is one of those novels whose grip on the readers will never get any lighter. It has stood the time test, proving that even a century later, a Gothic novel can stay just as fresh, stylish and breathtaking as it was when the book first came out. In addition, the novel seems to have become a “thing in itself,” which reveals even more to those who often revisit it. Although “The Fall of the House of Usher” is traditionally believed to be a timeless horror story and a representation of the deepest human fears, it can also be viewed both as a product of its time, i.e., the “gruesome engine” of the then jurisdiction (Spitzer 363), and an observation of a gradual descent into madness that “started first in the person of their author” (Robinson 80).

On the surface, it might seem that the famous “The Fall of the House of Usher” is nothing more than just another horror story to entertain the readers and make them feel the chills crawling down their spines. Indeed, the novel is written in Poe’s traditional manner, which was obviously growing popular at the time, and doubtlessly served its purpose, thrilling the readers into getting engaged with the plotline and sympathizing with the leading characters.

Though the plot could hardly be related to an average reader, the blurred border between the traditional Englishness and the nonsensical mystery creates an unusual effect, which makes the novel work. Because of the contrast between the realistic setting and the implications behind the plot, the novel makes one experience a rather weird sensation, which must be similar to observing something out of the ordinary in the broad daylight. Indeed, though rather gloomy, the castle with its dwellers looks as if it was carved out of the XIX century reality; likewise, the discovery that Roderick’s sister was buried alive was tragic, yet not surreal. The atmosphere that “The Fall of the House of Usher” is shot through with is, however, very mysterious, starting with the overall gloominess to Sir Roderick’s strange sensation.

It seems evident that Poem tried to create the world of thriller, thus, making the readers project their own fears onto the leading character. The first and the most evident, the picture of a “haunted house” (Spitzer, 1952, 353) must be mentioned. A common idea for a thriller, a haunted house is a generalized representation of fear; thus, Poe helps the audience relate to the leading character easier. To make the image even closer to his average reader, Poe places a secret inside the house.

From a certain angle, the fact that Sir Roderick keeps his sister’s corpse in the house can be interpreted as an attempt to hide a skeleton in a cupboard, which is typical for most people. Thus, the connection between the readers and the characters is made. The last, but definitely not the least, the scene in which the leading characters discover about the horrible death of Sir Roderick’s sister must be mentioned.

With the help of several words – not even sentences – Poe manages to make the audience feel the shock and horror of Sir Roderick, who makes the dreadful discovery: “Say, rather, the rending of her coffin, and the grating of the iron hinges of her prison, and her struggles with the coppered archway of the vault!” (Poe, 1839). With the help of this scene, Poe evokes every person’s nightmare, i.e., being buried alive. Thus, the “horror for its own sake” (Spitzer, 1952, 351) takes its toll on the audience. Portraying his deepest fears, Poe managed to make the readers stand in the leading character’s shoes and, thus, shared his fears with the audience. Hence, it can be considered that “The Fall of the House of Usher” is a psychological drama that “started first in the person of their author” (Robinson, 1961, 80).

However, the story can also be considered as a child of its era. Paying closer attention to some of the details of the story, one can easily see that Poe tried to cast the light on the “dark times” of the English judicial system, as well as on its deplorable state in general. Stressing that the gloomy settings are supposed to represent the “gruesome engine” of the XIX century jurisdiction (Spitzer, 1952, 363), Spitzer makes it clear that the specific atmosphere in the novel is supposed to represent “milieu and ambiance which were being formulated at his time” (Spitzer, 1952, 359).

However, depression and the problem of rotting moral values are not the only issues of the era touched upon in Poe’s work; the novelist also considered the problem of “sociological-deterministic ideas which were in the air in 1839” (Spitzer, 1952, 360). The idea of determinism can be traced in the novel rather easily, starting from the above-mentioned horrible death, i.e., being doomed to death in pain, to the fact that everything in the story, from the general atmosphere to the gothic look of the castle, indicated that the trouble is ahead.

That said, one must admit that “The Fall of the House of Usher” incorporated both the epitome of people’s personal fears and the XIX-century reality as the writer saw it. Making the fear of isolation in his audience go through the roof, Poe combined the dark, gloomy atmosphere of the epoch, making a witty comment about its moral corruption and decay, with the natural fears that haunt every single living being. Though people have learned to control these fears, Poe, with all his talent, makes these fears come into the open once again and go “far below meaningless horror or the simple dangers of isolation” (Robinson, 1961, 69).

Therefore, it can be considered that “The Fall of the House of Usher” is both Poe’s attempt to help the readers view the world with its ugliness through his own lens and at the same time reveal the readers his own psychological drama. Hence the thrilling duality of the “The Fall of the House of Usher” comes. On the one hand, it seems a satire of the political or, rather, judicial system of the time; on the other hand, Poe introduces the audience to the darkest corners of the narrator’s psychics, which bears a frightening resemblance with the fears of the readers.

With the help of the two new ways to view Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher,” one can discover a new layer of implied meanings in Poe’s novel. Still mysterious and uncharted fifteen decades after it was first published, “The Fall of the House of Usher” enthralls the readers, giving them an opportunity to escape into Poe’s world of triumphant madness.

Reference List

Robinson, Arthur. “Order and Sentience in ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’.” PMLA 56.1 (1961): 68–81. Web.

Spitzer, Leo. A Reinterpretation of “The Fall of the House of Usher.” Comparative Literature 4.4 (1952): 351–363. Web.

The role of the narrator is usually considerable and crucial for any literary work and reader’s perception of the content. With the help of the narrator, the reader gets a wonderful opportunity to become involved into the events, to evaluate the conditions from the narrator’s perspective, and to realize why the idea of the story is developed in this very way.

The Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe is one of the best and most captivating works, where much attention is paid to the role of the narrator and his participation in the events. In this short story, the narrator is an old friend of the main character, Roderick Usher, who decides to come to Usher’s house in order to support him and help to overcome his and his sister’s illness.

The role of the narrator of the story The Fall of the House of Usher is great indeed; his rationality and his ability to represent the events from the side of an immediate participant of the story and from the side of an observer, who notice changes in the house but still cannot comprehend the reasons of why these changes bother other characters.

As a participant. Without any doubts, Edgar Poe was one of those writers, who could create a story and make each reader being involved into its events. His narrators are unique and unpredictable, because they are able to notice each detail and pay special attention to each trifle.

From the very beginning, the narrator of The Fall of the House of Usher introduces the reader “soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens” (Poe 109), where such a dark description aims to warn the reader and hint that the events will hardly cause laugh or tears.

The narrator performs the role of the participant of the story and suggests the reader to follow him and be involved into each step, breath, and look. This Poe’s decision makes this short story interesting to deal with for any reader and really remarkable in the world literature.

As a survivor and rationalist. Another significant role of the narrator in this horrific story is connected to his survival and the ability to describe the events in the Usher’s house rationally. “From that chamber, and from that mansion, I fled aghast” (Poe 128), the narrator tells. Such a fast decision of his proves that these events touch not only the body or mind, not perception of this world and own position in it.

In spite of the fact, that from the very beginning, the narrator seems to be a pure rationalist, who tries to present only rational explanations and see only rational events, and a person, who will never believe or accept some irrational things, he considerable changes his mind and tries to escape from everything, he has already got involved. Some time passes, and the narrator loses own voice of reason and admits that his fears and superstitions increase considerable.

However, the fact that the narrator is the only survivor tells that his life is not ended on this note, and he has to face many other challenges in his life; or, vice versa, he becomes trapped into the mystery of this house and his life would never be similar to the one before the event with the Usher’s house. The end of the story proves that narrator’s rationality has been lost in the madness of that house, and now, he faces numerous irrational challenges, which may influence his life considerably.

As a person, who can make mistakes. I truly believe that one more significant role of the narrators is directed to each reader in order to explain that even pure rational and smart people can make mistakes or think wrong because of numerous external factors.

From the very beginning, the reader observes the narrator as a rational, smart, and organized person, who is ready to present logical explanations to each even in his life. However, he makes a terrible mistake, when he agrees to Roderick Usher about the death of his sister and the decision to bury her alive.

Within a short period of time, the destiny of these two characters knocks to their door; it was “the lofty and enshrouded figure of the lady Madeline of Usher” (Poe 128). Such development of the events can be easily foreseen by the reader, but the narrator tries to postpone this climax as far as possible because of own rationality, and he perfectly does his job. However, the narrator is crushed by the madness of his old friend and cannot cope with all around irrationality.

All people make mistakes and suffer because of the consequences they cannot avoid; many writers try to describe this theme in their works in order to teach the reader and help him/her to improve this life. Edgar Poe’s narrator in The Fall of the House of Usher is one few characters, who may perform several roles simultaneously and do it very well that allows readers to accept this story as a significant and educative piece of writing.

To become a participant of the terrible events, to evaluate how one action may destroy several lives and the whole house, and to comprehend that some kind of mystery is somewhere near – these are that major purposes, the narrator of the story wants to achieve. The narrator’s role is really significant in The Fall of the House of Usher, and the reader should not only to worry about the destiny of the major characters but also to learn, to think, and to believe in faith and our predestination.

Works Cited

Poe, Edgar, A. The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales. New York: New American Library, Penguin Putman Inc., 1998.

Introduction

Being, perhaps, one of the most famous short stories written by Poe, “The Fall of the House of Usher” is often considered his crowning achievement in creating the realm of horror and insanity. The short story is praised for a number of reasons. However, it is the subtle line between the madness and the mundane of 19^th-century England that creates a surreal environment and builds up the tension that is finally resolved at the end of the short story.

Analysis

A closer look at the narrative shows that a range of literary devices is used to blur the line between what is real and what is unreal. For instance, the symbolism of the short story contributes to the unrealistic experience, whereas the passages that do not contain any symbolic messages create a juxtaposition that sets a very uncomfortable mood (Jones 11). In particular, the scene in which the narrator describes the interior of the house shows the twofold nature of its environment: the “Gothic archway of the hall” (Poe 3) contrasts sharply with the “vivacious warmth” (Poe 3) of the host and his, initially, joyful attitude. The scene mentioned above serves as the gateway to the insanity into which the lead character spirals as the horrendous story of a woman buried alive unfolds in front of him (Bloom 171).

Similarly, the surreal realm of isolation in which the protagonist is trapped in the story contributes to the development of a mysterious environment in which reality is mixed with out-of-this-world elements. For instance, the description of the house interior also renders the feeling of crippling loneliness and isolation from the rest of the world, which becomes especially explicit in the following passage: “immensely long and rectangular vault or tunnel, with low walls, smooth, white, and without interruption or device” (Poe 3). The reference to Madeline being buried alive that shines through the description of the vault seems to serve as a thin barrier between the reality and the irrational emotions that overwhelm the lead character, making him eventually give in to his insanity (James and James 15).

The way in which the author compares past and present can also be viewed as a means of drawing a line between the surreal environment of the house, and the elements of reality that work their way into the dark and gloomy realm of the House of Usher (Jackson 29). The author’s vivacity and curiosity are made explicit at the beginning of the short story, even though he is evidently wary of the house and its mysterious look: “I scanned more narrowly the real aspect of the building. Its principal feature seemed to be that of excessive antiquity” (Poe 2). However, as the story starts to unravel, the protagonist changes, gradually becoming depressed and obsessed with the horrific mystery of the house and its residents: “An intensity of intolerable awe” (Poe 5) both astonishes and frightens him. Thus, the lead character walks the road from sanity to madness throughout the short story (Punter 487).

Conclusion

Poe uses a wide range of tools to create an uncomfortable mood, yet it is his ability to maintain the balance between reality and madness that shines through the whole story. The inability to know for sure how much of the insanity actually occurs, and how much of it takes place in the minds of the protagonists, creates the unsettling feeling that keeps readers on the edge of their seats right till the very end. Thus, the story remains timeless and retains its air of surrealism, making it all the more frightening.

Works Cited

Bloom, Harold, editor. Edgar Allan Poe’s the Tell-tale Heart and Other Stories (Bloom’s Modern Critical Interpretations). Infobase Publishing, 2014.

Jackson, Holly. American Blood: The Ends of the Family in American Literature, 1850-1900. OUP USA, 2014.

James, Bruce, and Elizabeth James. Method to the Madness: A Common Core Guide to Creating Critical Thinkers through the Study of Literature. Rowman & Littlefield, 2016.

Jones, Darryl, editor. Horror Stories: Classic Tales from Hoffmann to Hodgson. OUP Oxford, 2014.

Poe, Edgar Allan. The Fall of the House of Usher. Xist Publishing, 2015.

Punter, David. A New Companion to The Gothic. John Wiley & Sons, 2015.

Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher is a short story which makes the reader feel fear, depression and guilt from the very first page and up to the final scene.

Having read the story up to the end, it seems that Usher and his sister are the most depressive people in the house and a simple guest, Usher’s friend who arrived becomes deeply depressed too because of the general conditions and mood in the house.

However, looking at the situation from another angle, it is possible to see that depressed and gloomy atmosphere in the house is much exaggerated because of the pessimistic vision of life by the narrator personally.

Therefore, having read a story attentively, it is possible to doubt the events which took place there and try to consider the situation from another point of view.

The Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher is a story about Usher and his family. The house is depicted as the symbol of the atmosphere and relations in the family. From the very beginning the house is shown as the place that gives “a sense of insufferable gloom” and “natural images of the desolate or terrible” (Poe, 2000, p. 1264).

The narrator sees “the blank walls… with an utter depression of soul… after-dream of the reveler upon opium” (Poe, 2000, p. 1264).

Describing the house, the protagonist sees “iciness, a sinking, a sickening of the heart”, and “barely perceptible fissure, which, extending from the roof of the building in front, made its way down the wall in a zigzag direction, until it became lost in the sullen waters of the tarn” (Poe, 2000, p. 1265).

All these descriptions create the gloomy mood before the reader gets acquainted with those who live in the house. Therefore, seeing the health problems the inhabitants of the house have, the reader takes it for granted that the atmosphere in the house is depressive.

Reading of the books, listening to the music and even watching the paintings, in a word, everything the inhabitants of the house do puts the reader to consider the whole situation as depressive because of Usher and his sister.

However, if one takes a closer reading and considers the first lines of the story, everything may be changed.

“During the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country; and at length found myself, as the shades of evening drew on” (Poe, 2000, p. 1264) is the first part from the Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher.

Have not seen the house, have not experienced the doom atmosphere there, the protagonist is already depressed. Therefore, this scene makes a reader doubt the events which took place in the story.

Hinzpeter (2012) makes an offer that “the first-person-narrator may have suffered from depression or some other sort of causeless melancholy from the very beginning and was therefore easily influenced by the gothic setting” (p. 10).

So, it may be concluded that the gothic setting makes the narrator discuss simple life of people who do not communicate with the outside world due to their diseases as a depressive and criminal. The events which happened in the story may be an imagination of the narrator.

However, one detail makes the reader doubt this statement, the “perceptible fissure” which is not too big at the beginning, and then the fissures are too big at the end and they cause the house fall.

Reference List

Hinzpeter, K. (2012). Unreliable Narration in Poe’s ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’ – The Narrative Creation of Horror. New York: GRIN Verlag.

Poe, E. (2000). The fall of the house of Usher. In R. Bausch & R.V. Cassill (Eds.), The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction (pp. 1264-1277). New York: W. W. Norton.

The understanding of the American Literary Canon is a fundamental aspect of literature that everybody should embrace. Reading through “the fall of the house of usher” by Edgar Allan Poe, I realized that the classification of artistic content based on the title might be misleading at some point. This article is a masterpiece guided by several aspects of society portraying multiple traits of a good story. Ideally, using the subjective understanding of Poe’s work, it is possible to evaluate some of the qualities of the story. I enjoyed reading the narrative, which seems to be dwelling on family, madness, supernatural powers, and the role of art in society. I think Poe is one the best authors in mysteries, romanticism, and perhaps social realities engulfed in imagery and symbolism.

While reading the story, I connected with much of Poe’s explanation of the setting, splendid environment. Poe sets the mood of the story right from the introduction, and I thought it was real life. In essence, the way he introduces the environment, the weather, and the event succinctly illustrate his prowess in mood-setting, which makes it relevant for all generations. One can vividly visualize the contextual implications of all the events unfolding within the introductory scene as a result of Poe’s diction.

At the same time, the setting of the story creates a lot of suspense for the reader as Poe describes his ordeal. I realized that the article provides a captivating scenario where one would want to know what happens next, from the physical location of the house, the owner- Roderick’s role, and how the two grew up together. This approach conveys a conventional picture of what would transpire in the life of modern youth, enjoying peer moments and enduring various climatic conditions. The mood is an essential aspect of story-telling because it attracts and retains the audience’s attention to detail.

In my view, the thematic choices also play a crucial role in determining whether the story should be in the canon or not. Poe focuses on the context of Usher’s family, where the members, including Roderick, are insane. Poe executes fear in almost every scene as the families go through traumatizing and pain-inflicting challenges within their community. Their belief in some supernatural power and the influence of nature indicates cultural aspects of their community. In my view, such elements of humanity exist in almost every society around the world. Therefore, the story seems to correlate with the real issues which occur in everyone’s life. The narrative triggered my memory of some horror movies I could watch as a young star because of the sufferings and bloodsheds.

The artistic values of the story are overstretching to include both political and moral values in touch with reality. For instance, the narrator talks about oppression and terror dominance as some of the main concerns in his community. He highlights the struggles they had to go through on a daily basis to survive the harsh conditions as a way of exposing how the systems of governance functioned during their era. In my view, such illustrations are pivotal in documenting the history of a country alongside the social ills endured by generations under different regimes. Notably, the allusions to Sir Launcelot’s narrations seem to point at the role of leadership in Poe’s community.

Unfortunately, the article fails to point out the historical moments within which the story would fall. Nonetheless, it is important to understand that much of what Poe writes relates to what America was facing during colonialism and provides a clear mimic of the scenarios which many citizens endured during the era.

The other aspect of the story standing out is its design of conclusion, which seems to showcase a symbolic ending. In my view, short stories should be readable within a single moment and indicate the climax of what authors would wish to achieve among the audiences. Notably, there appears critical use of symbolism in showing how Poe chooses to highlight the theme of family ties and social units. I would opine that the story ends in a satisfying state whereby the mansion is destroyed, and the characters die together as a household.

I like the way Poe makes the narration lively, bringing in the characters’ role in an enjoyable pattern. While reading the story, one can vividly imagine how Roderick faced the challenges, losing touch with reality at some point while another segment of the community continued with their life as usual. Nonetheless, I wouldn’t say I disliked the way the author portrays his role in the story as the villain, whose presence is articulated in the manners his people faced challenges throughout the story. There are multiple instances prompt to help the reader comprehend some of the major societal themes which affected ancient communities.

Succinctly, I feel this tale represents my notion of America, where life has a mixed taste. Although everyone would wish to live the American dream, a considerable number of people endured sufferings and difficulties, which would then be alluded to nature and supernatural beings. The use of blood and terror instance, in my view, would implicate the reigning challenges faced by minority groups because of the dominance of native colonial masters and Native Americans. Such forces still exist in modern society, which is marred by conspiracies and racial challenges.

Work Cited

Poe, Edgar Allan. The fall of the house of usher. Web.

Madeline Usher is quite a mysterious character in Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher”. We know her as a sick girl in the story. Her personality seems perplexing because she appears only three times: toward the middle of the story she passes “through a remote portion of the apartment”; some days after her supposed death she is seen in her coffin, with “the mockery of a faint blush upon the bosom and the face, and that suspiciously lingering smile upon the lip which is so terrible in death”; in the final paragraph but one she reappears to die again, falling “heavily inward upon the person of her brother.”

It is revealed in the story that her brother Roderick is not merely a sibling but a twin. Inside the Usher house, the unnamed narrator encounters the Usher twins, Roderick and Madeline, whose complexions are cadaverous and who both suffer from “excessive nervous agitation”. Roderick’s condition is worsened by the fact that his sister appears to be dying slowly of an unknown disease. After Madeline died, Roderick appears even more distracted and disconnected; he loses all interest in his artistic endeavors and spends his waking hours wandering through the mansion aimlessly. On a particularly stormy night, the narrator tries to alleviate Roderick’s condition by reading to him. The story is interrupted by Madeline’s sudden appearance, as Roderick announces, “We have put her living in the tomb!”

When analyzed carefully, readers could delineate that Roderick and Madeline are not separate individuals, but they are one. Roderick represents the “mental” senses and Madeline represents the “physical” senses. This is why Roderick is extremely affected when Madeline is debilitated physically by her illness. Roderick cannot concentrate on his endeavors and suffers greatly after her death. In the end, his Roderick falls into madness precipitated by his guilt over the premature burial of his sister Madeline, and equally as significant, his refusal to aid in releasing her, despite his knowledge of her struggles within the coffin.

Works Cited

Poe, Edgar Allan. “The Fall of the House of Usher”.

Introduction

Over the years, writers have continuously used literary elements to put across their messages. These literal elements differ from writer to writer depending on the type of story under question. Poe in his work, The Fall of the House of Usher and Hawthorne in his work’ The Birthmark; they have employed different literary elements. They include foreshadowing, analogy, tone, setting, personification, and paradox. Foreshadowing is giving advance indications of what may happen.

The analogy is the illation that things may mean the same if they are similar in some aspects. The setting means the environment and context in which an event is set, and it may include time, characters, or circumstances, especially in fiction. Personification is giving non-human objects human nature.

Tone, on the other side states the quality of someone’s voice. It also talks of the pitch of one’s voice. Finally, paradox means a statement that negates itself. These two stories employ literary elements like foreshadowing, analogy, tone, personification, setting, and paradox.

Use of different literary elements

The first literary element used here is a paradox. Hawthorne posits, “It was the sad confession and continual exemplification of the shortcomings of the composite man, the spirit burdened with clay and working in matter, and of the despair that assails the higher nature at finding itself so miserably thwarted by the earthly part” (Lauter 1368).

Hawthorne uses this kind of paradox to remark on humanity issues like perfection and imperfection. There is also the use of paradox to comment on spiritual and earthly matters. For instance, Hawthorne points, “In his grasp, the veriest clod of earth assumed a soul” (Lauter 1368). He contradicts these two issues. While he admits that man is imperfect, he expects his wife to be perfect void of the birthmark.

On the other side, Poe employs paradox widely. For instance, Poe states that “there was iciness, a sinking, and a sickening of the heart – an unredeemed dreariness of thought which no goading of the imagination could torture into aught of the sublime” (Lauter 1216). Poe contradicts himself in the sentence; hence, it is a paradox. The iciness and the sinking heart cannot be boring; rather, this environment should be tense not ‘dreary’ as Poe puts across.

Personification comes out clearly in these two stories. Poe starts by looking to the “mere house, and the simple landscape features of the domain-upon the bleak walls-upon the vacant eye-like windows, upon a few rag edges-and upon a few white trunks of decayed trees…” (Lauter 1218). Here, Poe personifies the house and makes it appear as death itself for it had “eye-like windows”. Hawthorne also uses personification in his work.

He posits, “Had she been less beautiful-if Envy’s self could have found aught else to sneer at-he might have felt his affection heightened” (Lauter 1370). Here he personifies envy stating that ‘he’ (envy), could have ‘felt his affection heightened’. He also says, “Sleep, the all-involving, cannot confine her specters within the dim region of her sway… (Lauter 1369). Again, in this example, Hawthorne calls sleep ‘her’.

Poe uses a lot of foreshadowing in The Fall of the House of Usher. For instance, he says, “white trunks of decayed trees,” the “black and lurid tarn,” and the “vacant, eyelike windows” Lauter 1218-1219). These words used mainly to describe the house that was to fall later foreshadows how things will turn out to be. These words create a dismal environment and the reader cannot fail to sense that something will go wrong in this short story. Additionally, Poe says, Ushers mansion had, “barely perceptible fissure” (Lauter 1236).

These perceptible fissures foreshadow the inevitable fall of Usher’s mansion. Immediately after Hawthorne marries, the birthmark on his wife’s face starts to foreshadow his dissatisfaction. He says their sexual life was, “now vaguely portrayed, now lost, now stealing forth again, and glimmering to-and-fro with every pulse of emotion” (Lauter 1365). These only foreshadow the fall out that these two couples had in the end.

Hawthorne uses analogy widely as he tries to draw similarities between the birthmark on his wife’s face and other objects or occurrences. To Hawthorne, this birthmark had become “the spectral Hand that wrote mortality, where he would fain have worshipped” (Lauter 1325). He equated this mark to mortality and sorrow, and this is an analogy.

Because his wife had this birthmark, he was doomed to, “haunting awareness of his wife’s liability to sin, sorrow, decay, and death” (Lauter 1328). On the other hand, Poe uses an analogy when he, “feels a depression somewhat like the after-dream of opium, like the hideous dropping off of the veil” (Lauter 1256). He also uses Usher’s mansion to represent Usher’s life and the fall of the former signifies the fall of the latter.

Tone comes out strongly in these two stories. Poe chooses clear-cut words that bring out clearly the tone of the story. For instance, in describing the violent storm Poe says, it was “singular in its terror and beauty” (Lauter 1268). He also posits that from the roof came “sullen waters of the tarn” (Lauter 1270).

The tone here also sounds the impending danger. Hawthorne says, “The birthmark in question is a tiny strawberry mark in the shape of a “singular mark” that “bore not a little similarity to a human hand” (Lauter 1392). This tone indicates the attitude that Hawthorne had towards his wife’s birthmark.

Finally, the setting of these two stories stands out vividly. The setting in The Fall of the House of Usher projects the theme of the story. To reach the house, Poe had to walk through “singularly dreary tract of country” (Lauter 1203). From this setting, the reader can conclude that the Usher’s house is located in a dangerous place; therefore, doomed to crumble.

On the other hand, Hawthorne places Aylmer, the main character, “in the latter part of the last century” (Lauter 1321). Given that Hawthorne questions a lot about nature and creation, this setting, which is probably at the end of the 1700s, coincides with the rising of positivism in early 1800s. Positivism idealists argued that man could learn everything formally, scientifically or physically

Conclusion

Both Poe and Hawthorne employ a rich variety of literary elements. These include foreshadowing, paradox, tone, setting, personification, and analogy. These literary elements are meant to spice up the stories and help in passing the message that the writers intended to put across. Each of these literary elements is used precisely to bring out specific meaning in the discussed stories. The two stories, The Birthmark and The Fall of the House of Usher are epitomes of well-crafted works that appreciates literary composition.

These are must-read stories because they are rich in style, informative, and fun. Even though they were written many years ago, they remain to be masterpieces in the literature world.

Works cited

Lauter, Paul. “The Heath Anthology of American Literature.” Concise Edition. 1936 ISBN: 0-618-25663-6

Introduction

The American renaissance refers to the American literature in the 17th century era from 1840s through the Civil War period. The renaissance was characterized by efforts by American writers to develop literary works that reflect native issues such as American history, local dialect and geography. As such, the themes revolved around scientific progress, abolitionism, interreligious dialogue and the situation of the Native Americans.

During the American Renaissance, short fiction stories covered a wide range of subjects including Gothic romance, sea tales, and horror and detective stories, among others. The short stories by Herman Melville and Edgar Allan Poe are representative of the American Renaissance that explored the political and literary concerns of the time.

Poe’s Gothic work, “The Fall of the House of Usher” and Melville’s sea tale “Benito Cereno” reflect the situation of Native Americans in the 18th century era. In particular, their cultural, socio-political and religious practices and beliefs are the overriding themes in these fiction stories. Both authors explore love and tragedy in their fiction stories in the context of the Native Americans.

While Poe employs reincarnation as a literary theme that involves rising the dead back to life to explore love/family relationships, Melville explores conspiracy and mistrust as the causes of tragedy in his fiction story. While the two fiction stories involve different symbols, themes and motifs, the plot development is similar and has a tragic ending.

The Fall of the House of Usher

The narrator, whose identity is not revealed to readers, enters a house of the Usher on invitation in a “dull, dark, and soundless day” (Poe 1). The house itself belongs to Roderick Usher, his boyhood friend. The house, according to the narrator, appears mysterious and gloomy with decaying trees and ponds surrounding it. The narrator observes that, though the house is disintegrating in certain places, the entire structure remains stable.

Only small cracks appear in front of the building. He visits his friend after an invitation; a letter sent by his friend Roderick requesting his company (Poe 13). In this regard, Poe shows how mutual trust embodied in friendships and social concern in Native American context.

In fact, the main purpose of the narrator’s visit is to assist his ailing friend. The narrator mentions that Usher had fewer relatives as only one descendant of Usher’s family survived from one generation to another. As such, the family had a direct lineage with not many relatives.

The narrator appears surprised of the status of his friend’s house, with the inside appearing as spooky as the compound of the house. He notes that his friend is frailer and less energetic than before. Roderick reveals to the narrator that he suffers from fear and nerves.

By confiding in the narrator, Poe shows that Roderick trusted and relied on his friend for emotional support. The narrator also observes that Roderick appeared afraid of the status of the house. Additionally, Roderick’s sister, Madeline, is suffering from a mysterious illness, “the loss of coordination of one’s limbs, which the doctors cannot reverse” (Poe 9).

Roderick spends several days playing guitar and singing. The narrator tries to cheer up Roderick by reading him stories to no avail. Soon Madeline succumbs to sickness, and Roderick buries her in the tombs in the basement of the house. He does this to avoid doctors exhuming her body for scientific investigations, as the disease was uncommon.

Here, Poe shows the beliefs that shaped the 18th century cultural practices regarding the dead where prior preparation of tombs was common. Additionally, Poe points out to the status of health research during this period; majority of the diseases were not well understood and their medicines largely lacking.

The narrator realizes that Madeline and Roderick were fraternal twins. For the next few days following Madeline’s death, Roderick becomes even more uncomfortable and weary. One night, Roderick knocks on the narrator’s door, appearing shaken and hysterical.

The two proceed to a window, from where they observe a bright gas emission around the house. The narrator explains to Roderick that the gas emission is a common natural phenomenon, not a strange thing. The narrator then reads Roderick a medieval romance story, “Mad Trist” by Sir Launcelot Canning to die the night (Poe 11).

However, as he reads, eerie noises, which correspond to the story’s description, fill the house. Here, Poe shows the superstitions regarding the dead spirits and reincarnation in the 18th century period. Roderick reveals to the narrator that the sounds have been there for many days since Madeline’s death, and he believes that Madeline was buried alive and is trying to escape from the tomb.

The door opens and there stands Madeline wearing white bloodied robes. She attacks her brother forcing the narrator to flee the house. As he flees, the house cracks along the central frame and crumbles down.

Benito Cereno

In “Benito Cereno,” Amasa Delano is the narrator and the captain of a ship. The story begins with the ship, Bachelor’s Delight, anchored off Chile. The narrator and the other sailors spot another ship headed towards the direction of the island. Captain Delano decides to sail over with a small boat and investigate.

When he and the crew arrive at the other ship, the San Dominick, they are accosted by black slaves hungry for water and food supplies. Captain Delano sends his men back to the Bachelor’s Delight to fetch the supplies and tries to investigate the misfortune.

He meets Benito Cereno, the captain of the San Dominick who appears nervous and somewhat strange. Cereno has frequent fainting spells and subsequently under constant care of Babo, a black servant.

Cereno reveals to Delano that they left Buenos Aires and have been sailing for the past six months. Heavy winds near Cape Horn forced them to throw their supplies into the sea to lighten up the ship. Delano notes that Cereno had many coughing fits as he told this: a condition Delano attributes to mental sickness.

Cereno also reveals that most of his crew had died of scurvy after spending many months on the sea and applauds Babo for his loyalty to him throughout this period. Delano offers to assist Cereno reach the next port, briefly cheering him up. As Delano examines the ship further, he develops mixed feelings about the purpose of the sail.

He observes a young black slave beat a white cabin boy of which Cereno does not intervene (Melville 8). Subsequently, Delano seeks to know the owner of the slaves. Cereno tells him that they belonged to Cereno’s friend Alexander Aranda, who had died earlier of fever.

Delano questions Cereno again about their ill-fated sail mentioning Cape of Horn. Nevertheless, Cereno responds, “Who talked of Cape Horn?” (Melville 16). At this point, Delano becomes suspicious. They later take lunch together in the presence of Babo.

Later it emerges that Babo and the black slaves revolted, killing many of the Spanish crew and redirected the ship to Senegal where they planned to escape. However, before the journey is over, they ran out of supplies. Delano sends his men to recover the ship and holds a trial of the slaves led by Babo.

The trial ends with the execution of Babo over his role in the killing of Alexander Aranda. Subsequently, Cereno becomes depressed. A few months later, he dies.

Plot Development

Although the stories revolve around different central themes, the plot development in the two literary works is similar. The stories start with mischief that is not apparent to the narrator; evolve into misdeeds perpetrated by one party and end with a tragic death of the perpetrator.

Poe starts out by describing the narrator’s visit to his boyhood friend, who, as it turns out was suffering from nerves and had become so frail. The Usher had a sister, who, the narrator came to learn, was a twin sister to Usher.

Here, it implies that the narrator bore different expectations and knew less of his friend including the consistent sounds that that haunted his friend following the death of his sister. Similarly, Melville starts out with Captain Delano visiting a ship, San Dominick, which apparently had been taken over.

In fact, Captain Cereno’s earlier explanation involving unexpected heavy winds that forced them to throw away their supplies seemed to convince Captain Delano. However, as it turns out, a revolt led by Babo left the ship’s control in the hands of the slaves.

In both stories, the narrator is the main character around whom the story revolves. In both stories, the intervention of the narrator to rescue the situation defines the ending of the story. Captain Delano, on learning the truth behind San Dominick’s misfortune instructs his men to take the ship back from the slaves.

He holds a trial of the mutiny leader, Babo, resulting to his execution with his head being placed at the top of a pole. Thus, in Melville’s story, the narrator is portrayed as a just and noble person with a goal to assist the oppressed and disadvantaged in society. Similarly, in Poe’s story, the main character, the narrator, visits his friend who suffered emotional and physical conditions and tries to help him.

Even after the death of Usher’s sister, the narrator consoles his friend and helps him overcome his fears over the house’s invasion by ghosts. As such, Poe portrays the narrator as an understanding person who offers emotional support to his friend during the difficult time.

Conclusion

The plot in Poe’s story and Melville’s fiction work is similar. In particular, the ending in both stories is tragic. In Poe’s story, the narrator hears the sounds that his friend, Usher, had been referring to, and just then, a door opens where he sees Usher’s “dead” sister enter.

Madeline then proceeds to attack his brother. The narrator flees just in time before the house, which was in a bad state, crumbles down. Usher and his sister die giving the story a tragic ending. Similarly, in Melville’s story, after the trial and the subsequent execution of Babo, Captain Cereno falls into severe depression and dies afterwards giving the story a tragic ending too.

Works Cited

Melville, Herman. Benito Cereno, 2011. Web.

Poe, Edgar. The Fall of the House of Usher, 2011.Web.