Gothicism in the Fall of the House of Usher

Gothic fiction is a literary genre that involves a combination of mystery, terror, the supernatural, romantic tales and spooky characters and settings to convey a sense of profound fear to the reader. Some of the defining features of Gothicism include abandoned and haunted castles, powerful romantic stories, decay and death, vampires, ghosts, and family curses. Edgar Allen Poe, an American writer exhibited great mastery in telling Gothic stories. In most of his literary works, Poe excelled in creating the ominous, dark mood that is usually associated with gothic literature.

This is clearly evidenced in The Fall of the House of Usher, where the author incorporates a number of gothic elements. This paper presents an analysis of gothic elements in Poe’s work.

Depiction of the Atmosphere

Presentation of the atmosphere is an important aspect of gothic fiction because it reinforces the foreboding features that define Gothicism (Pattillo 82). Traditionally, the gothic atmosphere is associated with ruined abbeys and castles, uninviting dark stairways filled with groans and howls, and houses that exhibit an exclusively gothic architecture.

This presentation of the atmosphere is evident in The Fall of The House of Usher. In the short story, the author incorporates gothic atmosphere to accomplish a variety of objectives. These include the conveyance of images, ideas, and effects. Additionally, the author uses atmosphere to foreshadow eminent events and also to establish mood.

It can be noted that at the beginning of the story, the two opening paragraphs are riddled with a spooky description that introduces the setting.

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The story’s unidentified narrator describes how when he visited the House of Usher, it was a soundless, dull and dark day. This description gives a foreshadowing that everything in the story is somewhat embedded in mystery. The narrator then explains his first impression of the house. It does not look like an ordinary house but one that is filled with strange realities that set the reader back in both time and space.

Another important role that gothic atmosphere serves in Poe’s story is that it tells about the character’s thoughts and intentions. Apparently, each word the author uses is chosen carefully to stir up an atmosphere that leads to a depressed mood. For instance, in the house occupied by Ushers, its walls, windows, and chamber are described in a manner that illuminates a dark atmosphere (Pattillo 81). Such descriptions as ‘vacant eye-like windows’ and ‘trunks of decayed trees’ contribute significantly to the atmosphere of hopelessness, distress, and sorrow. Description of the house as being vacant and consisting of decayed trees gives the story a spooky tone, which is a common feature in Gothic tales.

The author has also described Usher’s house as having an atmosphere that lacked affinity with heavenly air. This implies that the mansion was nowhere close to being perfect, beautiful or holy. Moreover, the author uses such descriptive words as sluggish, peculiar, strange and dull to describe the house and its environs. This choice of words creates a frightening atmosphere that adds a great sense of mystery to the story. Through the atmosphere, the author is able to foretell important future events besides revealing important character traits.

Presentation of Characters

Unlike other literary genres, gothic fiction has a unique way of presenting characters, which adds to the eerie and spookiness vibe. In The Fall of The House of Usher, the characters are presented as a highly intelligent and unique community. However, the depiction of the characters in intertwined with the theme of death and sinister events (Pattillo 82). For example, there is always somebody who is either mad or wants to stay out of harm’s way as is the case with Roderick who is keen to avoid becoming mad. This manner of presenting the audience makes the authors think that the entire scene is placed in an ominous setting, where fear and anxiety are the order of the day.

Even worse is the fact that some characters are struggling to come back from the grave. This is the case with Madeline. Unlike the conventional depiction of hero-villains in the majority of gothic tales, the characters in Poe’s work are always victimized. The cause of victimization is either a gloomy psycho that directs them to engage in wrongdoing for no justifiable reason or an inexplicable terror rooted in the fear of unknown. Apparently, Roderick is the most victimized character in the story. The author describes him as a man of strange complexion and eyes that are beyond complexion.

Roderick’s twin sister is also victimized and has to pay a heavy price for no apparent reason. Towards the end of the story, Madeline (the twin sister) dies from a disease that no one knew about. To add onto this strangeness, Roderick decides to inter the remains of her late sister in the tomb situated under his house. This means that Madeline is not accorded an actual funeral, an indication that the Ushers did not have many friends. Roderick’s action leads to the conclusion that the Ushers were strange characters that did not want much of their private lives to be known to the outside world. In an ideal situation, Roderick could have given his sister a befitting sendoff by inviting friends and other relatives to the funeral.

A few days after the questionable burial, the narrator is seen reading an unknown story to Roderick. As the narrator reads out what was happening, real-life sounds and echoes are heard at the same time. Suddenly, a strong blast of wind forces the door open to reveal Madeline standing behind. This is a rather strange turn of events especially because Madeline and died earlier on and even got buried. What is even more worrying is the fact that she proceeds to assault Roderick, leading to her death after being in the tomb for several days. Similarly, Roderick also dies although his cause of death is fear. This entire sequence of nerve-wrenching events is overly creepy and unusually strange. The two siblings’ death heralds a dark and uncomfortable feeling (Pattillo 82).

Gothic Elements in Symbolic Presentation

In The Fall of the House of Usher, the author makes creative use of symbolism to reinforce Gothicism, especially in the presentation of the terrifying Usher house. As used in literature, symbolism refers to the use of ordinary objects that take on a meaning beyond the conventional one. In other words, symbols suggest a further meaning in addition to what is obvious about them (Horner and Sue 38). The most important symbol in Poe’s story is the Usher mansion. At a first glance, the reader is made to believe that the story is about the physical structure of the house as the narrator describes it in great details. But as the story unfolds, it becomes clear that the story is about Roderick and the expression of grief on the demise of his family. The entire family vanishes upon Roderick’s death, which is obviously ominous.

The tragic end of the Usher family is symbolic of the fact that members of this family are a symbol of a final product of a highly intelligent and sensitive civilization. This civilization is destined to be interred under the ground in a horror. Other important symbolic elements in the story are the canvas and tarn. The two objects symbolize evil and are closely associated with the demise of the usher family. The appearance of malaria in the story is symbolic of the supernatural powers. The disease brings madness and evil as evidenced by the fact that life and all goodness are finally defeated by death. Essentially, everything vanishes in stealth death, which has all along been foreshowed by a series of spooky events.

Given that virtually everything described in the story is symbolic, it is clear that the house of Usher can be regarded as Roderick’s human body (Wright 65). The house’s gloomy inside is symbolic of the illusion in Roderick’s mind, which is apparently detached from the reality. In effect, the entire story can be regarded as a metaphysical journey to the breadth and depth of the self, and Roderick symbolic of the hypnosis of the mind. The ingenious combination of symbols with creepy descriptions invites readers into the terrifying world of the mystery and supernatural and leaves a lot of space for creative imagination.

Conclusion

The Fall of The House of Usher has a mystic and gothic feeling embedded throughout the story. Right from the beginning of the story until its end, the author uses a variety of shady and dark expressions and words that add to the supernatural undertones of the main story. The depictions of the atmosphere, as well as, the presentation of characters are all riddled with gothic elements that make the story unusually strange. The Ushers and the family’s eventual demise are vague and quite mystical, which helps in grabbing the reader’s emotions. By using an ominous vocabulary to create a gothic story, the author captures the reader’s creative imaginations and immerses them into the center of the story.