Edgar Allan Poe, renowned as the foremost
master of the short-story form of writing, chiefly tales of the mysterious and
macabre, has established his short stories as leading proponents of “Gothic”
literature. Although the term “Gothic” originally referred only to literature
set in the Gothic (or medieval) period, its meaning has since been extended to
include a particular style of writing. In order for literature to be “Gothic,”
it must fulfill some specific requirements. Firstly, it must set a tone that is
dark, somber, and foreboding. Next, throughout the development of the story,
the events that occur must be strange, melodramatic, or often sinister. Poe’s
short stories are considered Gothic literature because of their eerie
atmosphere and atypical plot developments. Consequently, in “The Fall of the
House of Usher,” Poe is distinguished as an author of unique, albeit grotesque
ingenuity in addition to superb plot construction via his frequent use of the
ominous setting to enhance the plot’s progression and his thematic exploration
of science versus superstition.
In the beginning of the story, with an extensive and vivid description of the
house and its vicinity, Poe prepares the scene for a dreadful, bleak, and
distempered tale. The setting not only affects Poe’s narration of the story but
influences the characters and their actions as well. Both the narrator and his
boyhood friend, Roderick Usher, question whether the house and its surroundings
are naturally unhealthy. After all, in much of the Nineteenth Century, many
doctors still affirmed their belief that a marshy or ancient area of land may
have the potential to physically sicken an individual. Hence, Poe appropriates
a setting that seems to contaminate the characters. Just as the atmosphere and
landscape seem translated into the characters, the house, as another primary
feature of setting, functions as a symbol for the Usher family. The narrator
even mentions initially that “House of Usher” had come to represent both family
and home. Therefore, the house itself can be seen as an embodiment of the
family. Poe emphasizes this symbolism by personifying the house, providing it
with the anatomy of humans: “eye-like windows” and clothing: a “veil.”
Moreover, the house is deteriorating just as the family is. The Ushers,
Roderick and his sister Madeline, have no relatives, only themselves, and both
are suffering with unusual illness. Finally, after Roderick and Madeline die,
likewise the house completely breaks apart, characterizing the fate of the
family.
Family is a prevailing theme in this story. The tale essentially documents the
demise of a family name. The Ushers have been a significant and reputable
family: their house is of considerably large size, they are apparently well
educated, and they have servants. On the other hand, they have not produced
enough offspring in order for their lineage to persevere. Furthermore, Roderick
claims that the nervous exhaustion he continually suffers is hereditary.
Therefore, not only is this generation unwell, but other previous generations
have been diseased as well. Poe seems to be suggesting, then, that families
pass on and acquire faulty traits—such as illness and the house—as well as
beneficial ones. Beyond that, families can either deliberately or inadvertently
kill off their own kind. Roderick did not intend to harm his sister, it seems,
but he did so regardless.
The illnesses in this short story, as well as some of the instances of natural phenomenon,
explore the theme of science versus superstition. Poe plays with this
opposition in much of his work, questioning the amount of odd occurrences in
life that can be explained away by science. Generally speaking, the narrator
represents a scientific standpoint: he believes that the house may produce
illness and dismisses his own superstitious thoughts as a “dream.” Contrarily,
Roderick acts as one who believes in the supernatural: he hears noises and is
afraid that he will eventually die as a result of his fearfulness. The two
characters often clash in these beliefs. The narrator merely dismisses Roderick
as a hypochondriac, and he seems to be taking on the position that people are
only sick if they can be proven so scientifically. Yet Roderick ultimately dies
from what he superstitiously believed he always would: fear. And, when Roderick
hastens to the narrator’s room on the night he dies, he is frightened of the
dismal mist surrounding the house, which the narrator rationalizes as just a
natural weather phenomenon. The science-versus-superstition question remains
open-ended because it is difficult to know without a doubt whether Madeline
actually struggled her way from within the tomb alive after several days of
being trapped or whether she is an apparition that both men see. The physical
collapse of the house allows, then, for the reader to ponder the possibility of
the story as being either an unsettling, paranormal phenomenon or a mere tale
of (scientific) coincidence. As a result of short stories such as “The Fall of
the House of Usher,” through his grim yet descriptive imagery and settings and
elaborate plot construction, Poe separates himself as a truly epochal “Gothic”
writer.