Elements Of Gothic Style In The Fall Of The House Of Usher

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“Oh, pity me, miserable wretch that I am! - I dared not - I dared not speak! We have put her living in the tomb!” writes Poe (2010, p. 309). He fashions this character where the line between sanity and insanity is obscured. Dark remote settings, maniacal events, mental and physical torment, and robust language containing treacherous meanings are ingredients that encompass the Gothic style. Edgar Allan Poe’s short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, demonstrates how he adopts components of the Gothic style as a way to deliver fear to the narrator and the reader. As the narrator, we are never given his name, views the House of Usher for the first time, he is absorbed with despair as a result of the spectacle before him. “I looked …show more content…

He believes the inside of the house is a living body and his fate is connected to the mansion. He also presupposes the house has the ability to feel and sense phenomenon within. Twice, there is reference to the windows being vacant and eyelike. The house is a mysterious setting, and accordingly, there are objects such as armor, dungeons, and vaults. Deep beneath the creepy house, the vaults are filled with oppressive air. As torches are carried through the passages to the crypt, they eerily almost go out. Poe effectively scripts this tale applying the Gothic …show more content…

Poe creates in this short story achieves a single effect, fear and terror. He carefully chooses his words to describe, with clarity, every character. From the start, he supplies such vivid details of the settings and the tone infuses the reader into an apprehensive mood. The actions of the characters instill a feeling of impending despair. Poe’s use of dialogue unifies the feeling of fear. Dark, remote settings, psychological and physical torment of the characters, and violent events are elements of Gothic style. His use of Gothic style perpetuates terror and fear throughout the short