The Fall of the House of Usher Essay

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Edgar Allan Poe is known to bring out the potency of emotions through his writings. One
of his works that is reflected of this is “The Fall of the House of Usher”. Poe uses details to
create vivid imagery while compelling the reader to feel what the characters feel. The
various themes follow a pattern to which connections can be easily made. Theoretically the
reason why Poe was able to do this so well was because he was a stern believer of
empiricism. He believed that only way to attain true knowledge is to experience it with the
senses. Only then can perception can be manipulated and appear valid. That is what Poe
was trying to get through in his writing. He was attempting to reach out from his own
knowledge and impose it on to the reader, thus giving a memorable and insightful effect on
the reader.
The climax of “The Fall of the House of Usher” is a prime example of Poe’s techniques.
He builds upon his details to create scenery, suspense, and emotion. In the story, he begins
to describe the appalling house. His description emphasizes the grimy, repulsive nature of
the home. The dark, dreaded, and diminished structure is characterized to leave the reader
unsettled about where the story is taking place. It leaves an ominous feeling of anxiety and
fear seeing the protagonist enter a foreign place for an almost complete stranger. The poor
condition of the house foreshadows the impending doom of the home and its residents. It
also interprets the health of the individuals who reside within it. The house and the
residents are both in an unpleasant state and are falling apart physically and mentally. As
the story progresses, the dilapidated house begins to crumble indefinitely during and after
the climax.
In addition, to impact the readers, Poe introduces characters that appear to be distraught in
nature. The line between the sane and the deranged are blurred as readers witness
Roderick’s madness and paranoia. The audience is repeatedly made clear of Roderick’s
condition as he paces wildly. He also receives hyper sensitivity from all of his senses,
especially sight and sound. It is made clear that Roderick is a hypochondriac and that he
believes his is physically ill, but in reality he is in fact mentally ill. He confesses that he
believes the house controls his fate, and that the house conspires against his will and taints
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