Poe Use Mood And Atmosphere To Convey The Single Effect Of Eeriness
Poe uses mood and atmosphere to portray the single effect of eeriness. The mood is most firmly established when the narrator arrives at the Usher mansion. Approaching the mansion on his horse, the narrator uses descriptive words such as “an iciness”, “a sinking, a sickening of the heart”, and “an unredeemed dreariness” to describe the atmosphere (Poe 1). These descriptions set the mood for the story and evoke fear in the reader. The most eye-catching description,“an unredeemed dreariness”, highlights that the dreary atmosphere cannot be vanquished or overlooked by the narrator. Although the mansion itself may look creepy, the sense of gloom does not come from the appearance of the mansion, but its aura. The negative outlook the narrator has
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When the narrator meets Roderick and his sister Madeline, he discovers that Roderick has “a mental disorder” and “his only personal friend” is the narrator himself (Poe 2). These character traits are especially concerning because people with a mental disorder can occasionally be considered insane. The fact that the narrator is in the company of a potentially insane man is extremely frightening because of the unpredictability of Roderick’s behavior. In addition, Roderick’s only person friend is the narrator. This is concerning because as stated earlier in the story, the narrator and Roderick weren’t close friends as “many years had elapsed since [their] last meeting” (Poe 2). Therefore, Roderick truly doesn’t have any friends. A man with no peers must have a reason for being repulsive to people, and it is inferred that Roderick’s downfall lies in his strange and unpredictable behavior. Isolation and potential insanity leads the reader to believe that Roderick is possibly a dangerous person, who can put the narrator’s safety at risk. Roderick’s sister, Madeline, also has some curious character traits. She is described as having a disease of “cataleptical character” which “baffled the skill of her physicians” (Poe 6). Since Madeleine's disease baffles her skilled physicians, it is concluded that her disease must be rare if trained doctors don’t recognize it. Having a character with a rare and
When the narrator meets Roderick and his sister Madeline, he discovers that Roderick has “a mental disorder” and “his only personal friend” is the narrator himself (Poe 2). These character traits are especially concerning because people with a mental disorder can occasionally be considered insane. The fact that the narrator is in the company of a potentially insane man is extremely frightening because of the unpredictability of Roderick’s behavior. In addition, Roderick’s only person friend is the narrator. This is concerning because as stated earlier in the story, the narrator and Roderick weren’t close friends as “many years had elapsed since [their] last meeting” (Poe 2). Therefore, Roderick truly doesn’t have any friends. A man with no peers must have a reason for being repulsive to people, and it is inferred that Roderick’s downfall lies in his strange and unpredictable behavior. Isolation and potential insanity leads the reader to believe that Roderick is possibly a dangerous person, who can put the narrator’s safety at risk. Roderick’s sister, Madeline, also has some curious character traits. She is described as having a disease of “cataleptical character” which “baffled the skill of her physicians” (Poe 6). Since Madeleine's disease baffles her skilled physicians, it is concluded that her disease must be rare if trained doctors don’t recognize it. Having a character with a rare and