Grote, Griffin Mr. Shipp English 1 Honors 8/30/24 Comparing & Contrasting Two Eerie Stories The authors Julio Cortazar and Edgar Allan Poe have each written a haunting story, “The Fall of the House of Usher”, by Poe, and the “House Taken Over” by Cortazar. Although similar in many ways, there are differences to take note of. An initial similarity is that both stories involve grand, antique houses. In "The House Taken Over," the residence is described as “old and spacious” by Cortazar. Even going as far as to say six more people could fit comfortably there. Likewise, in The Fall of the House of Usher, Poe used the word “mansion” in reference to the Usher house. The narrator in Poe’s story also claims, “Its principal feature seemed to be that of excessive antiquity.” Both references imply the house featured …show more content…
The Usher house has Lady Madeline banging on the walls of the chamber, plus, Roderick mentions the sentience fused into the residence from the surrounding vegetation. Comparably, the House Taken Over has an unknown force that it slowly succumbs to. Beyond that, both the family in House Taken Over and the Usher family are ending their generation. Cortazar writes, from the perspective of the brother that, “We were easing into our forties with the unvoiced concept that the quiet simple marriage of sister and brother was the indispensable end to a line established in this house by our grandparents.” Likewise, Poe writes “Her decease, he said.would leave him.the last of the ancient race of the Ushers.” Finally, the mood in both stories is depressing and gloomy. Poe uses the words dreary and melancholy, and, in similar fashion, Cortazar’s character speaks about him and his sister wasting away in their mansion. Although similar, these factors take a part in the different meanings of each piece. Poe’s goal was to disturb the reader, while Cortazar’s goal was mainly to make a