Comparative Essay: The Fall of the House of Usher by: Edgar Allan Poe and The Yellow Wall-Paper by Mary Gilman) Coming to terms with ones fears is a constant and ongoing struggle which people face all throughout their lives. This is something Roderick Usher and the wife in "The Fall of the House of Usher"ÃÂ and "The Yellow Wall Paper"ÃÂ could not do. Roderick Usher was afraid the fall of the house of Usher was about to occur because he was the last remaining male descendant, and the wife was afraid her husband who treated her like a child. Roderick and the wife where two characters who were not able to deal with their fears in life, and this lead them down a path of unhappiness and struggles. Through the experiences of these characters the reader learns that the inability for people to recognize their innermost fears, initiates their descent from depression, to self-torture then ultimately, madness.
"The Fall of the House of Usher" was published wid...
The Fall of the House of Usher
wisdom del RoderickOne of Roderick Usher's fears is death. He is from a wealthy family and he has a fear that the Usher lines will not be passed on with only two descendants left. Roderick can see the grim future of the Usher family. He cannot seem to come to terms with his fear and he knows that the future is inevitable so he becomes depressed. His depression is symbolized by the setting of the story. A depressive atmosphere is first seen as the narrator travels to the house of Usher "a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn."à(Poe, pg210) As the narrator gets closer to Roderick the setting becomes duller, darker and more depressive. The house is described as melancholy with vacant eye-like windows. The inside of the house has "Gothic archways"ædark and intricate passages."à(Poe, p.211) Probably the most...