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Edgar Allan Poe's The Fall of the House of Usher
A faithful friend, Ethan Powell, responds to an urgent summons from a childhood acquaintance. He finds himself a solitary guest in the foreboding, inscrutable Usher mansion. A mysterious ailment has possessed Roderick Usher, lord of the manor, which has resisted all medical treatment and threatens to extinguish the line of Usher forever. Yet a darker enigma faces Powell, and the further he probes the more obscure and horrifying seems the truth. Building to its heart-stopping climax this classic tale of the macabre by the great American author Edgar Allan Poe has been faithfully adapted for the stage preserving much of the beloved text in the script. It is sure to delight all Poe fans and to convert the uninitiated.
50 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1839
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August 22, 2016
Edgar Allan Poe takes a canvas and paints it black; he takes a story and makes it dark and shadowy; he takes a normal world and twists it to the point of corruption. The man describes the gothic in such a sublime way that I find myself drifting in a dream like world. His writing is fantastical and sordidly beautiful. This story, here, is the perfect gothic horror.
It has all the classic elements of the genre. The tale begins with the narrator visiting a haunted house; it is old, grand and evil. It is a reflection of the surrounding area that the narrator has travelled through. He witnesses decay, ruin and spreading bleakness. The house is at the centre, and appears to have absorbed the darkness or, perhaps, it is the heart of the darkness that has spread outwards. Either way, the whole scene has an air of creepiness and depravation. Even the master of the house has begun to embody the setting.
“He suffered much from a morbid acuteness of the senses; the most insipid food was alone endurable; he could wear only garments of certain texture; the odours of all flowers were oppressive; his eyes were tortured by even a faint light; and there were but peculiar sounds, and these from stringed instruments, which did not inspire him with horror.”
The narrator doesn’t recognise his friend. He is not how he remembered him to be; he has become cadaverous and worn. He has become one with the darkness, his home and his bleak existence. The light has gone from him; he has become an embodiment of the gothic landscape. He lives with his sister, his twin. They are the last surviving members of their line and oddly, when considering the narrator’s claim of close friendship with Usher, he is surprised to learn of the existence of Usher’s ailing sister. This makes the situation uncanny and perverse. Here is Usher, but he is not Usher as he was meant to be in the eyes of the narrator. As Freud would say, there is something familiar at the heart of the unfamiliar. This makes the strange situation nothing short of nightmarish for our narrator because it is a twisted version of reality.
But, this is Poe, it could only get worse. I don’t want to give the ending away, though let’s just say that the physical house (the actual home) and the ancestral house (the bloodline) are irrevocably linked by a mystical power of the binding darkness. It is no wonder they mirror each other in their eerie resemblance. The narrator flees in horror as the situation becomes even more horrifying, the dead begin to walk, the house begins to crack and the fears become real. This is superb story. It’s my second favourite Poe work so far, the first being the outstanding Ligiea.
It has all the classic elements of the genre. The tale begins with the narrator visiting a haunted house; it is old, grand and evil. It is a reflection of the surrounding area that the narrator has travelled through. He witnesses decay, ruin and spreading bleakness. The house is at the centre, and appears to have absorbed the darkness or, perhaps, it is the heart of the darkness that has spread outwards. Either way, the whole scene has an air of creepiness and depravation. Even the master of the house has begun to embody the setting.
“He suffered much from a morbid acuteness of the senses; the most insipid food was alone endurable; he could wear only garments of certain texture; the odours of all flowers were oppressive; his eyes were tortured by even a faint light; and there were but peculiar sounds, and these from stringed instruments, which did not inspire him with horror.”
The narrator doesn’t recognise his friend. He is not how he remembered him to be; he has become cadaverous and worn. He has become one with the darkness, his home and his bleak existence. The light has gone from him; he has become an embodiment of the gothic landscape. He lives with his sister, his twin. They are the last surviving members of their line and oddly, when considering the narrator’s claim of close friendship with Usher, he is surprised to learn of the existence of Usher’s ailing sister. This makes the situation uncanny and perverse. Here is Usher, but he is not Usher as he was meant to be in the eyes of the narrator. As Freud would say, there is something familiar at the heart of the unfamiliar. This makes the strange situation nothing short of nightmarish for our narrator because it is a twisted version of reality.
But, this is Poe, it could only get worse. I don’t want to give the ending away, though let’s just say that the physical house (the actual home) and the ancestral house (the bloodline) are irrevocably linked by a mystical power of the binding darkness. It is no wonder they mirror each other in their eerie resemblance. The narrator flees in horror as the situation becomes even more horrifying, the dead begin to walk, the house begins to crack and the fears become real. This is superb story. It’s my second favourite Poe work so far, the first being the outstanding Ligiea.
November 10, 2022
Well, THAT was more frightening than I thought it would be. No doubt in my mind that I'm sleeping with the lights on tonight.
January 19, 2018
كيف يمكنك أن تشعر ببيت يئن يحتضر؟
هذه القصة يصحبنا فيها الراوي بحنكة عجيبة لروي قصة قصيرة مقبضة مؤلمة.. منذ دخوله ساحة بيت أشر
هذه القصة مثال كئيب مرعب مقبض للوصف القوطي، هذه القصة مثال لكيف يخدم كل سطر وجملة القصة القصيرة
هذه القصة إحتوت علي الكثير من مخاوف البشر.. بالاخص مخاوف المدعو، إدجار آلان بو شخصيا، وفي وقت مبكر جدا
فهذه القصة عن المرض البشع الذي يجعلك شاحبا متخشبا كالموتي والذي استخدمه بو بقصص اخري
وعن المرض البشع النفسي الذي يجعلك مرهفا الحس والسمع بشكل قاتل للأعصاب، واستخدمه ايضا لاحقا
وعن خوف الدفن حيا...أسوأ مخاوف بو والذي أيضا استخدمه في قصص اخري
والأهم
عن خوف انقطاع نسل عائلة عريقة ينتاب أخر فروع شجرتها المرض
العائلة العريقة تلك هنا مصورة بشكل البيت الذي يضم أخر فروعها...البيت المريض بكل ماسبق
البيت الذي يحتضر
بيت آل آشر
حتي أنه اضاف قصيدة ملعونة عن البيت من خلال الاحداث..مليئة بالمرض والحزن والكآبة
ثم يحكي لنا الراوي الذي يزور هذا البيت حكاية رودريك آشر وأخته ، أخر أفراد تلك العائلة ولكنهما للاسف يعانا من أمراض عجيبة، بل أن مرض أخته (التوأم) العويص الذي يجعلها تسقط في غيبوبات كالميتة زاد من تحطيم نفسية وأعصاب رودريك
خوفا من أن يدفنها حية عن طريق الخطأ إذا سقطت في غيبوبة طويلة كتلك
ولكنها تسقط بالفعل كالميتة...بل ربما هي ماتت فعلا
فيدفنها في مدفن العائلة، القبو النحاسي ذو الباب الحديدي
وبعد أسبوعان .. تهب ليلا علي منزل آشر عاصفة مهتاجة
تهيج معها أعصاب رودريك آشر الملتاعة
يحاول الراوي تهدئته بقص عليه قصة خيالية صاخبة
لتتداخل أصوات القصة مع أصوات في الحقيقة مروعة
لتنتهي التراجيديا نهاية مأساوية فاجعة
وكما وصف الراوي منزل آشر المحتضر بالبداية يصف سقوطه بالنهاية
التداخل العجيب بين مرض فردريك ومرض أخته ومرض البيت نفسه كما يصفه الراوي كان بديعا
كما أن التداخل في جزء الذروة بين العاصفة المهتاجة وأهتياج رودريك
وتداخل اصوات القصة الصاخبة التي يحكيها الراوي له بأصوات حقيقية يسمعها رودريك -نظرا لظروف مرضه
كل هذا التداخل يجعل القصة في صفحاتها القليلة متكاملة وكل نقطة وكل تفصيلة لها أهمية في الصورة الكاملة لتداعي/إحتضار ، وسقوط/موت بيت آشر
أظن هذا واضح حتي من سرد بو لوصف البيت واسمه من البداية
كما أن تصدر هذه القصة في 1939 ، قبل قصص جائت بعدها ببضعة سنوات كل واحدة تحمل جزءا من هذه القصة -كما قلت عن انواع المخاوف ببداية الريفيو- ، يجعلك تشعر أن هذه المخاوف كانت لدي بو منذ وقت طويل
وهذا يجعل بيت آل أشر هي بيت مخاوف بو الكبير، والذي لم يسقط بنهاية هذه القصة
بل بدا
محمد العربي
في 18 أبريل 2017
سيتم أضافة المراجعات للقصص اللاحقة التي تناولت نفس النقطة
هذه القصة يصحبنا فيها الراوي بحنكة عجيبة لروي قصة قصيرة مقبضة مؤلمة.. منذ دخوله ساحة بيت أشر
هذه القصة مثال كئيب مرعب مقبض للوصف القوطي، هذه القصة مثال لكيف يخدم كل سطر وجملة القصة القصيرة
هذه القصة إحتوت علي الكثير من مخاوف البشر.. بالاخص مخاوف المدعو، إدجار آلان بو شخصيا، وفي وقت مبكر جدا
فهذه القصة عن المرض البشع الذي يجعلك شاحبا متخشبا كالموتي والذي استخدمه بو بقصص اخري
وعن المرض البشع النفسي الذي يجعلك مرهفا الحس والسمع بشكل قاتل للأعصاب، واستخدمه ايضا لاحقا
وعن خوف الدفن حيا...أسوأ مخاوف بو والذي أيضا استخدمه في قصص اخري
والأهم
عن خوف انقطاع نسل عائلة عريقة ينتاب أخر فروع شجرتها المرض
العائلة العريقة تلك هنا مصورة بشكل البيت الذي يضم أخر فروعها...البيت المريض بكل ماسبق
البيت الذي يحتضر
بيت آل آشر
منذ السطور الأولي للقصة ستشعر أن بو يتلذذ في الوصف القوطي الكئيب المقبض لبيت آل آشر ، بكل تفصيلة دقيقة به، حتي ذلك الشق الكبير، كل هذا بشكل شعري عجيب، كأنه يتغزل في كل هذه الكآبة الثقيلة علي النفس
حتي أنه اضاف قصيدة ملعونة عن البيت من خلال الاحداث..مليئة بالمرض والحزن والكآبة
ثم يحكي لنا الراوي الذي يزور هذا البيت حكاية رودريك آشر وأخته ، أخر أفراد تلك العائلة ولكنهما للاسف يعانا من أمراض عجيبة، بل أن مرض أخته (التوأم) العويص الذي يجعلها تسقط في غيبوبات كالميتة زاد من تحطيم نفسية وأعصاب رودريك
خوفا من أن يدفنها حية عن طريق الخطأ إذا سقطت في غيبوبة طويلة كتلك
ولكنها تسقط بالفعل كالميتة...بل ربما هي ماتت فعلا
فيدفنها في مدفن العائلة، القبو النحاسي ذو الباب الحديدي
وبعد أسبوعان .. تهب ليلا علي منزل آشر عاصفة مهتاجة
تهيج معها أعصاب رودريك آشر الملتاعة
يحاول الراوي تهدئته بقص عليه قصة خيالية صاخبة
لتتداخل أصوات القصة مع أصوات في الحقيقة مروعة
لتنتهي التراجيديا نهاية مأساوية فاجعة
وكما وصف الراوي منزل آشر المحتضر بالبداية يصف سقوطه بالنهاية
التداخل العجيب بين مرض فردريك ومرض أخته ومرض البيت نفسه كما يصفه الراوي كان بديعا
كما أن التداخل في جزء الذروة بين العاصفة المهتاجة وأهتياج رودريك
وتداخل اصوات القصة الصاخبة التي يحكيها الراوي له بأصوات حقيقية يسمعها رودريك -نظرا لظروف مرضه
كل هذا التداخل يجعل القصة في صفحاتها القليلة متكاملة وكل نقطة وكل تفصيلة لها أهمية في الصورة الكاملة لتداعي/إحتضار ، وسقوط/موت بيت آشر
البيت هو العائلة / العائلة هي البيت
أظن هذا واضح حتي من سرد بو لوصف البيت واسمه من البداية
كما أن تصدر هذه القصة في 1939 ، قبل قصص جائت بعدها ببضعة سنوات كل واحدة تحمل جزءا من هذه القصة -كما قلت عن انواع المخاوف ببداية الريفيو- ، يجعلك تشعر أن هذه المخاوف كانت لدي بو منذ وقت طويل
وهذا يجعل بيت آل أشر هي بيت مخاوف بو الكبير، والذي لم يسقط بنهاية هذه القصة
بل بدا
محمد العربي
في 18 أبريل 2017
سيتم أضافة المراجعات للقصص اللاحقة التي تناولت نفس النقطة
December 4, 2013
There are three Edgar Allan Poe books that are included in the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. They are: The Fall of the House of Usher, The Purloined Letter and The Pit and the Pendulum. Yesterday, I started reading The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings as my first Halloween book this year. All these three stories are there. So, reading that book is like shooting three birds with one stone.
The Fall of the House of Usher is the best horror story that I've read for a long time now. Not even its inspiration, the one that started the Gothic genre, The Castle of Otranto (3 stars) by Horace Walpole comes close to this. Every word is used perfectly. The scenery is exceptionally eerie. When the unnamed narrator and Roderick are entering the castle and walking down the corridor, I was holding my breath and I thought that something was watching me while reading that part early this morning. I practically slept only for a couple of hours before waking up at 5:00am this morning. If only I could absent myself today from the office, I would have gone reading all the stories in this seemingly wonderful yet very scary book.
All the elements of scary story is here except those that are ridiculous (for a 48-y/o man like me). I mean there are no zombies here or boogeyman or any headless floating in the air kind of spirit. Rather, it has two demented twins, a decaying castle in an unknown isolated eerie forest, guitar playing in an otherwise totally silent room and in the end a mysterious bright light amidst thunder and lighting. The end-result is a total creepy setting especially highlighted by the taut and well-chosen words and astute dialogues between the boyhood friends. Truly, this story showcases the exceptional prose only Edgar Allan Poe could write.
Very apt for Halloween read! I can't wait to read the other stories now.
The Fall of the House of Usher is the best horror story that I've read for a long time now. Not even its inspiration, the one that started the Gothic genre, The Castle of Otranto (3 stars) by Horace Walpole comes close to this. Every word is used perfectly. The scenery is exceptionally eerie. When the unnamed narrator and Roderick are entering the castle and walking down the corridor, I was holding my breath and I thought that something was watching me while reading that part early this morning. I practically slept only for a couple of hours before waking up at 5:00am this morning. If only I could absent myself today from the office, I would have gone reading all the stories in this seemingly wonderful yet very scary book.
All the elements of scary story is here except those that are ridiculous (for a 48-y/o man like me). I mean there are no zombies here or boogeyman or any headless floating in the air kind of spirit. Rather, it has two demented twins, a decaying castle in an unknown isolated eerie forest, guitar playing in an otherwise totally silent room and in the end a mysterious bright light amidst thunder and lighting. The end-result is a total creepy setting especially highlighted by the taut and well-chosen words and astute dialogues between the boyhood friends. Truly, this story showcases the exceptional prose only Edgar Allan Poe could write.
Very apt for Halloween read! I can't wait to read the other stories now.
October 31, 2014
This is one of Edgar Allan Poe's acclaimed short stories, made unforgettable when it was adapted to film by Roger Corman in 1960, starring Vincent Price.
The Fall of the House of Usher was published in September 1839 and helped build Poe's credibility as a serious writer. It embodied the elements which were fast becoming Poe's macabre signature: "gloomy landscape, crumbling mansion, somber interior, sorrowful atmosphere, terrified narrator, neurasthenic hero, supernatural elements, oppressive secrets, premature burial, tempestuous weather, return from the grave, apocalyptic conclusion."
The Fall of the House of Usher tells the story of a brother and sister, the last members of a dynastic family living out their diseased days in a dilapidated mansion. The unnamed narrator has been urgently summoned to the house by his boyhood friend, Roderick Usher, to cheer him up a little from his constant suffering.
The tone of the opening sentence sets the mood of the story and foretells of the doom of the Usher family:
"During the whole of the dull, dark and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country, and at length found myself as the shades of evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher."
The narrator finds the mansion in disrepair surrounded by trees reeking of decay and the silent tarn -a pestilent and mystic vapor. He's filled with dread when he meets Usher after so long, taken aback by his "cadaverous" appearance. The eccentric Usher dabbles in music dirges and writes an allegorical poem The Haunted Palace in which a "hideous throng" of "evil things" prophesy his doom .
Poe explained that "by the haunted palace I mean to imply a mind haunted by phantoms– a disordered brain."
Usher is fearful and doubly disconsolate when he admits that his dear sister suffers an illness that baffles her physicians. ' "Her decease", he said, with a bitterness... will leave him the last of the ancient race of the Ushers.'
When 'death' finally comes it only marks the beginning of the horrors that befall the House of Usher.
D.H. Lawrence remarked with this heavily allegorical work that "Poe was an adventurer into the vaults and cellars and horrible underground passages of the human soul."
This tale is one of my favorites. It's told in a tormenting and rhythmic pace building up to the chilling climax, giving the fan of Victorian ghost stories the thrill they so seek. As a more mature reader, one can analyze this work to head-aching length. A great one to revisit for the 'creepy' season.
The Fall of the House of Usher was published in September 1839 and helped build Poe's credibility as a serious writer. It embodied the elements which were fast becoming Poe's macabre signature: "gloomy landscape, crumbling mansion, somber interior, sorrowful atmosphere, terrified narrator, neurasthenic hero, supernatural elements, oppressive secrets, premature burial, tempestuous weather, return from the grave, apocalyptic conclusion."
The Fall of the House of Usher tells the story of a brother and sister, the last members of a dynastic family living out their diseased days in a dilapidated mansion. The unnamed narrator has been urgently summoned to the house by his boyhood friend, Roderick Usher, to cheer him up a little from his constant suffering.
The tone of the opening sentence sets the mood of the story and foretells of the doom of the Usher family:
"During the whole of the dull, dark and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country, and at length found myself as the shades of evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher."
The narrator finds the mansion in disrepair surrounded by trees reeking of decay and the silent tarn -a pestilent and mystic vapor. He's filled with dread when he meets Usher after so long, taken aback by his "cadaverous" appearance. The eccentric Usher dabbles in music dirges and writes an allegorical poem The Haunted Palace in which a "hideous throng" of "evil things" prophesy his doom .
Poe explained that "by the haunted palace I mean to imply a mind haunted by phantoms– a disordered brain."
Usher is fearful and doubly disconsolate when he admits that his dear sister suffers an illness that baffles her physicians. ' "Her decease", he said, with a bitterness... will leave him the last of the ancient race of the Ushers.'
When 'death' finally comes it only marks the beginning of the horrors that befall the House of Usher.
D.H. Lawrence remarked with this heavily allegorical work that "Poe was an adventurer into the vaults and cellars and horrible underground passages of the human soul."
This tale is one of my favorites. It's told in a tormenting and rhythmic pace building up to the chilling climax, giving the fan of Victorian ghost stories the thrill they so seek. As a more mature reader, one can analyze this work to head-aching length. A great one to revisit for the 'creepy' season.
October 17, 2017
how could he write a story like this ?!!!
December 19, 2015
E sumbru, e aproape strigător la cer cât de mult te poate influenţa o operă. Aceste proze scurte, aceste scrieri ale groazei şi ale grotescului nu-mi trezesc interesul direct într-un mod deosebit, dat fiind că relaţia mea cu supranaturalul e una şubredă, însă citirea lor inundă sufletul cititorului cu melancolie neagră.
Mă gândesc adesea dacă nu cumva stările oamenilor, cele negative adică, nu sunt nimic altceva decât o rană care sângerează latent. Ştiu eu?! Ceea ce citim, ceea ce vedem, ceea ce auzim (şi nu dăm importantă)... Cred că toate acestea sunt o sămânţa în sufletul nostru, o sămânţa plantată la voia ei şi care încolţeşte în timp. Nu mă pasionează problema fatalismului de ordin supranatural (nu cel în stilul lui Poe), însă citind seria asta de scrieri mă simt că un om în alb-negru, iar tot ce este în jurul meu deprinde aceeaşi culoare.
Problema noastră -sau, mă rog!, a unui cerc relativ restrâns de oameni, dar răsfirat- este, cred eu, aceea că, oricât ar nega-o cugetul nostru, noi simţim o voluptate de a suferi. Iar Poe, pe drept cuvânt, este un maestru în arta de a-i face pe alţii să sufere. Şi cel mai interesant fapt e că opera lui dăinuie tocmai prin asta...
Cât despre scrierea în cauza, ea prezintă, sub un văl obscur, sensibilitatea lui Roderick Usher, ilustrată prin motto-ul lucrării astfel: "Mi-e inima o lira aninată,/ Când te-ai atins de ea răsună-ndată."
Andrei Tamas,
19 decembrie 2015
Mă gândesc adesea dacă nu cumva stările oamenilor, cele negative adică, nu sunt nimic altceva decât o rană care sângerează latent. Ştiu eu?! Ceea ce citim, ceea ce vedem, ceea ce auzim (şi nu dăm importantă)... Cred că toate acestea sunt o sămânţa în sufletul nostru, o sămânţa plantată la voia ei şi care încolţeşte în timp. Nu mă pasionează problema fatalismului de ordin supranatural (nu cel în stilul lui Poe), însă citind seria asta de scrieri mă simt că un om în alb-negru, iar tot ce este în jurul meu deprinde aceeaşi culoare.
Problema noastră -sau, mă rog!, a unui cerc relativ restrâns de oameni, dar răsfirat- este, cred eu, aceea că, oricât ar nega-o cugetul nostru, noi simţim o voluptate de a suferi. Iar Poe, pe drept cuvânt, este un maestru în arta de a-i face pe alţii să sufere. Şi cel mai interesant fapt e că opera lui dăinuie tocmai prin asta...
Cât despre scrierea în cauza, ea prezintă, sub un văl obscur, sensibilitatea lui Roderick Usher, ilustrată prin motto-ul lucrării astfel: "Mi-e inima o lira aninată,/ Când te-ai atins de ea răsună-ndată."
Andrei Tamas,
19 decembrie 2015
August 27, 2025
That tarn... hm no good. Yeah, it's wonderful to read Poe's writing but it sucks when you can identify with it. Seeing a space, a setting, a house, and each image making you feel worse. Like there's something wrong. The atmosphere of The House of Usher. Unearthly. Even worse in the tarn, all upside down and impairing. And then poor, poor Rodrick. This isn't a horror story, this is a tragedy. The death of his sister, his twin no less. And she was good looking... and so wasn't he. There was no malice about him or her, in fact the family was very giving, even participating in munificence, wasn't that the word? Anyway, they loved music and wrote music so immediately I like 'em. But living in that atmosphere -despite the sounds of "his speaking guitar"- under the long lineage of the family Usher. Ugh. If there's any horror about it, it's the horror of mental illness.
February 3, 2017
This was a re-read and it reminded me how much I love Poe's stories.
November 1, 2015
In the greenest of our valleys
By good angels tenanted,
Once a fair and stately palace —
Radiant palace — reared its head.
In the monarch Thought’s dominion —
It stood there!
Never seraph spread a pinion
Over fabric half so fair!
Banners yellow, glorious, golden,
On its roof did float and flow,
(This — all this — was in the olden
Time long ago,)
And every gentle air that dallied,
In that sweet day,
Along the ramparts plumed and pallid,
A winged odor went away.
Wanderers in that happy valley,
Through two luminous windows, saw
Spirits moving musically,
To a lute’s well-tuned law,
Round about a throne where, sitting
(Porphyrogene!)
In state his glory well-befitting,
The ruler of the realm was seen.
And all with pearl and ruby glowing
Was the fair palace door,
Through which came flowing, flowing, flowing,
And sparkling evermore,
A troop of Echoes, whose sweet duty
Was but to sing,
In voices of surpassing beauty,
The wit and wisdom of their king.
But evil things, in robes of sorrow,
Assailed the monarch’s high estate.
(Ah, let us mourn! — for never morrow
Shall dawn upon him desolate!)
And round about his home the glory
That blushed and bloomed,
Is but a dim-remembered story
Of the old time entombed.
And travellers, now, within that valley,
Through the red-litten windows see
Vast forms, that move fantastically
To a discordant melody,
While, like a ghastly rapid river,
Through the pale door
A hideous throng rush out forever
And laugh — but smile no more.
By good angels tenanted,
Once a fair and stately palace —
Radiant palace — reared its head.
In the monarch Thought’s dominion —
It stood there!
Never seraph spread a pinion
Over fabric half so fair!
Banners yellow, glorious, golden,
On its roof did float and flow,
(This — all this — was in the olden
Time long ago,)
And every gentle air that dallied,
In that sweet day,
Along the ramparts plumed and pallid,
A winged odor went away.
Wanderers in that happy valley,
Through two luminous windows, saw
Spirits moving musically,
To a lute’s well-tuned law,
Round about a throne where, sitting
(Porphyrogene!)
In state his glory well-befitting,
The ruler of the realm was seen.
And all with pearl and ruby glowing
Was the fair palace door,
Through which came flowing, flowing, flowing,
And sparkling evermore,
A troop of Echoes, whose sweet duty
Was but to sing,
In voices of surpassing beauty,
The wit and wisdom of their king.
But evil things, in robes of sorrow,
Assailed the monarch’s high estate.
(Ah, let us mourn! — for never morrow
Shall dawn upon him desolate!)
And round about his home the glory
That blushed and bloomed,
Is but a dim-remembered story
Of the old time entombed.
And travellers, now, within that valley,
Through the red-litten windows see
Vast forms, that move fantastically
To a discordant melody,
While, like a ghastly rapid river,
Through the pale door
A hideous throng rush out forever
And laugh — but smile no more.
October 3, 2017
what a depressing...... adventure.
mysteriously ill lady and weirdly pale dude in a big gothic mansion on the verge of death, just in time for the beginning of halloween month? yes
random poetry mixed in with prose and a dose of storytelling not really relevant to the plot? no
potentially living houses is also very weird and not my thing
finally, my copy had random numbers in the middle of sentences?? what was up with that
mysteriously ill lady and weirdly pale dude in a big gothic mansion on the verge of death, just in time for the beginning of halloween month? yes
random poetry mixed in with prose and a dose of storytelling not really relevant to the plot? no
potentially living houses is also very weird and not my thing
finally, my copy had random numbers in the middle of sentences?? what was up with that
October 27, 2015
I was a little disappointed by this offering of Poe's. Perhaps because I remember The Pit and the Pendulum and The Tell-Tale Heart being so morbid and creepy. It's probably my own fault for going in with such high expectations, but The Fall of the House of Usher fell flat for me.
It is a quick read. I polished it off in less than an hour, but I was never deliciously scared or frighteningly titillated in that time. Poe, of course, manages to create morbidly curious surroundings for his characters, but the action which takes place within the decrepit House of Usher does't quite live up to its macabre aesthetic promise.
I hate to give this two stars, because Poe is one of my favorite writers, but alas, I have no choice.
It is a quick read. I polished it off in less than an hour, but I was never deliciously scared or frighteningly titillated in that time. Poe, of course, manages to create morbidly curious surroundings for his characters, but the action which takes place within the decrepit House of Usher does't quite live up to its macabre aesthetic promise.
I hate to give this two stars, because Poe is one of my favorite writers, but alas, I have no choice.
October 12, 2023
If I had read this before T Kingfisher maybe my rating would be lower? I loved her rendition so much that this read had a slightly endearing lens🤷♀️
March 4, 2015
The fall of the House of Usher is more literal than I thought it would be.
I'm shocked at myself for the rating I'm giving here, because I have heard so many great things about this story. So many people talk about it. So many classes almost demand that you read it, and for some reason I kept putting it off.
There's not a lot by Poe that I do not like.
The premise is fantastic, the setting is deliciously spooky and dark and absolutely ideal for what was in mind here.
But there is so much wasted build up for an ending that happened so quickly I had to do a double take to make sure I had not missed it.
I'm shocked at myself for the rating I'm giving here, because I have heard so many great things about this story. So many people talk about it. So many classes almost demand that you read it, and for some reason I kept putting it off.
There's not a lot by Poe that I do not like.
The premise is fantastic, the setting is deliciously spooky and dark and absolutely ideal for what was in mind here.
But there is so much wasted build up for an ending that happened so quickly I had to do a double take to make sure I had not missed it.
February 25, 2022
To be honest, I've always found this one a little boring. The second half is much better though, from the point when the sister dies and the guy starts losing his mind. The climax itself is quite scary as well.
January 18, 2016
Loved the imagery!
September 13, 2022
When it comes to Sir Edgar Allan Poe, he never fails to surprise us with his writing. One always knows the story will hold a tragic, scary, gore ending and yet when you reach climax you're stunt about it.
August 3, 2025
Very creepy and suspenseful. I didn’t remember Poe with his flowery language. I tripped over some of it in the beginning but forgot about it by the end. I love how he builds his stories with tension one brick at a time.
June 11, 2016
The Fall of the House of Usher is a short story, full of horror and, even better, full of beautiful descriptions of Gothic elements.
After a message from his childhood friend Roderick Usher, the concerned (and nameless) narrator stays at the House of Usher for some weeks. Roderick suffers from some mysterious illness affecting his mental health. Thus the narrator tries to cheer up his friend by spending a lot of time with him reading books, painting, playing and listening to music, and talking to him. However, not only Roderick is ill, but also his twin sister, Lady Madeline, who is on the verge of dying.
While the house seems uncanny from the beginning, the story gets more and more eerie. Even Roderick’s appearance and behavior are strange – the narrator hardly knows his childhood friend anymore.
I still agree with my former review: This is an awesome short story, and it’s typically Poe! Oh, it’s terrible… terribly good!
(review May 29, 2016)
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("review" October 21, 2015)
Absolutely great short story, typically Poe and typically Gothic fiction. I personally very much enjoy the descriptions of the house and the landscape, and would definitely recommend reading the story.
After a message from his childhood friend Roderick Usher, the concerned (and nameless) narrator stays at the House of Usher for some weeks. Roderick suffers from some mysterious illness affecting his mental health. Thus the narrator tries to cheer up his friend by spending a lot of time with him reading books, painting, playing and listening to music, and talking to him. However, not only Roderick is ill, but also his twin sister, Lady Madeline, who is on the verge of dying.
While the house seems uncanny from the beginning, the story gets more and more eerie. Even Roderick’s appearance and behavior are strange – the narrator hardly knows his childhood friend anymore.
I still agree with my former review: This is an awesome short story, and it’s typically Poe! Oh, it’s terrible… terribly good!
(review May 29, 2016)
--------------------
("review" October 21, 2015)
Absolutely great short story, typically Poe and typically Gothic fiction. I personally very much enjoy the descriptions of the house and the landscape, and would definitely recommend reading the story.
January 7, 2015
I read the first few pages of describing the house of Usher more than ten times in the past two years before deciding to read the whole story . For me it is the most beautiful prose I ever read in English . I had difficulties in understanding even though I translated many words but it was the first pages of the story what I liked very much .Describing the melancholy ,depression , and sadness feelings in the first pages is genius and strangely beautiful .
February 10, 2014
28 de pagini impecabile. Un nou scenariu de cosmar, cum numai Poe stie.
October 7, 2023
macabre asf
Read
June 28, 2025I have trouble rating stories on 1-5 scale here sometimes! I admit, I didn't enjoy this nearly as much as I did when I originally read it back in high school. I appreciate the ambiance and enjoyed the themes of how the unknown and isolation can lead to madness. I love the symbolism and wonder if this may be one of the first pieces I read where a haunted home serves as a metaphor for our trauma-ridden psyches. But looking back, I wonder if I appreciated discussing this in class more than I appreciated actually reading it? Honestly, I enjoyed reading the Spark Notes and others' analyses more than I enjoyed reading the original text this time around!
But it was really cool reading more about the history of how Poe paved the way for gothic horror, short stories, and the broader inclusion of ambiguity and symbolism for future authors. Overall, I realize I enjoyed The Tell-Tale Heart and other Poe works more than this one. But I wanted to reread this to refresh myself to read the creative retelling of What Moves the Dead!
But it was really cool reading more about the history of how Poe paved the way for gothic horror, short stories, and the broader inclusion of ambiguity and symbolism for future authors. Overall, I realize I enjoyed The Tell-Tale Heart and other Poe works more than this one. But I wanted to reread this to refresh myself to read the creative retelling of What Moves the Dead!
February 13, 2024
A short story from a classical horror writer. I did like the story and could see the fear it probably instilled in readers of that era.
But alas i find that the language and prose of pre 20th century is not for me. Will probably come back to some of these stories one day.
But alas i find that the language and prose of pre 20th century is not for me. Will probably come back to some of these stories one day.
September 5, 2024
Edgar Allen Poe always manages to write fantastic suspense / horror. This short story was no different
January 9, 2021
Edgar Allan Poe has a way to make you feel nervous and anticipate the story even though they are rather short horror stories. I throughly enjoyed this book. A great creepy gothic horror book I would recommend to any one wanting to start with reading gothic horror.
November 15, 2024
Gruselig ist untertrieben- wenn ich an die Szenen im Schloß denke… läuft es mir kalt den Rücken herunter
November 7, 2022
I read this story from the Canterbury leather bound classics Edgar Allan Poe book. Yes I am counting these stories as separate because there’s no way I’ll ever read every single story and poem in the book since I’m not interested in all of them (I made the mistake of reading all 13 of the short stories in the little clothbound classics edition of the Lottery by Shirley Jackson and didn’t enjoy some of them to the point where I wished that I hadn’t read them).
This is the second Edgar Allan Poe story I have read recently, but actually the third one in my life. The first one was The Tell-Tale Heart, which we had to read in school in grade 7 or 8. I’m trying to read as many as I can this month and will also reread The Tell-Tale Heart and see how I feel about it as an adult and if my feelings have changed over the years.
This being my third Poe work, I have noticed bizarre endings, which I like. They don’t feel too out of left field but they are also not predictable either.
The reasons I wanted to read this story is because I heard there’s a good 1930s or 40s movie (although I don’t know how much of the story it follows), and there’s a retelling of this story that has been posted about on Instagram a lot lately (I forgot the title😅) and I’m curious about it since the synopsis made it sound interesting.
There’s one thing that the narrator mentions that Mr. Usher was saying about the house and it kind of reminded me of Mexican Gothic, I wonder if she got any ideas from this story🤔 The house was symbolic and practically a character on it’s own.
Overall, this story was dark, mysterious, had subtle creepiness and had an unexpected ending like his other stories I’ve read and there was a bit of a gothic atmosphere. It’s a little mysterious because you’re wondering what’s going on with Usher and the house. After a few paragraphs, I couldn’t stop reading, I had to finish this right away, although it was a little hard to do because of the tiny font in the edition I was reading. I read books with big fonts faster than small fonts.
Blog: nazishreads.net/TravelandBookBlog
Twitter: Naz_readsanime
Instagram: nazreads01, nazcosplay, nradesigns, charmedanimegirl01
This is the second Edgar Allan Poe story I have read recently, but actually the third one in my life. The first one was The Tell-Tale Heart, which we had to read in school in grade 7 or 8. I’m trying to read as many as I can this month and will also reread The Tell-Tale Heart and see how I feel about it as an adult and if my feelings have changed over the years.
This being my third Poe work, I have noticed bizarre endings, which I like. They don’t feel too out of left field but they are also not predictable either.
The reasons I wanted to read this story is because I heard there’s a good 1930s or 40s movie (although I don’t know how much of the story it follows), and there’s a retelling of this story that has been posted about on Instagram a lot lately (I forgot the title😅) and I’m curious about it since the synopsis made it sound interesting.
There’s one thing that the narrator mentions that Mr. Usher was saying about the house and it kind of reminded me of Mexican Gothic, I wonder if she got any ideas from this story🤔 The house was symbolic and practically a character on it’s own.
Overall, this story was dark, mysterious, had subtle creepiness and had an unexpected ending like his other stories I’ve read and there was a bit of a gothic atmosphere. It’s a little mysterious because you’re wondering what’s going on with Usher and the house. After a few paragraphs, I couldn’t stop reading, I had to finish this right away, although it was a little hard to do because of the tiny font in the edition I was reading. I read books with big fonts faster than small fonts.
Blog: nazishreads.net/TravelandBookBlog
Twitter: Naz_readsanime
Instagram: nazreads01, nazcosplay, nradesigns, charmedanimegirl01
January 8, 2015
This is one my all time favorite horror stories and perhaps my favorite of Edgar Allan Poe. There are no spooky ghosts or skin walkers in this tale, but the manner Poe has written this could shake the very core of your soul with terror. Its pure genius of story telling convinced me again and again why he's the undisputed king of horror story writing...
July 16, 2023
Quick reread before I jump into What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher.
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