Gothic Elements In The Fall Of The House Of Usher

Throughout American literature and cinema history, the premature burial of someone has been displayed. In the American gothic short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” by Edgar Allan Poe, this is portrayed as well. Roderick Usher buries his twin sister, Madeline Usher, alive because he believes that she has died. In Poe’s, “The Fall of the House of Usher,” it showcases Poe’s troubled past with the death of loved ones due to disease. Thus, it contributes to the theme one can never trust anyone, even one’s own family. The theme in this narrative is supported by various gothic elements, such as the dim and derry setting and the supernatural aspect of this piece of literature. The gothic allusions’ a dark and gloomy setting and supernatural

(Poe 412).” One element of gothic literature is a gloomy or decaying setting. This scene describes the gloomy setting the literature place in. The dark setting foreshadows the dark theme of the story. The houses feature also represent Poe as himself as well. The house is not taken care of well and the weather is very bleak as well. In his life, Poe did not take good care of himself. He was an alcoholic and was described as the town drunk. His life was bleak and at the time of his death, he one of the last members of the Poe family. Another example of gothic allusions in the short story is the supranational characteristics that gothic stories in the 18th century contain. Towards the end of the short story, Poe describes Madeline going to attack Roderick, “Do I not distinguish that heavy and horrible beating of her heart?... Madman! I tell you that she now stands without the door” (Poe 430)! Throughout the story, Roderick constantly hears the heartbeat of his sister, as well as her cries for help

In the “Fall of the House of Usher,” Roderick Usher prematurely buries his sister, Madeline Usher, because he thinks she has died from an unknown illness. Poe describes the burial as, “We replaced and screwed down the lid, and having secured the door of iron, made out the way with the toll…” (Poe 425). When Roderick bolted the iron lid upon his sister’s coffin, all trust that had previously been built between the two had been broken. In Poe’s life, after the burial of his wife and mother, he felt like he could never trust anyone as well. He believed that all people that entered his life were bound to die, and if he got close to them, they would just leave him. In Roderick’s situation, he broke the trust between his sister and himself because he accidentally buried her alive. No matter the prior relationship with someone, no trust could ever be found after a situation like that. Later in the story, Madeline is able to escape from her coffin and seek her revenge upon her brother. Before she can get it though, Roderick dies of fear. The end of Roderick’s life is described as, “... in her violent and how final death-agonies bore him to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had anticipated” (Poe 430). Throughout the story, Roderick anticipated that his sister’s spirit would try to attack him because he had always heard her voice