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Loading... The Fall of the House of Usher (original 1839; edition 2004)by Edgar Allan Poe (Author)
Work InformationThe Fall of the House of Usher [short story] by Edgar Allan Poe (1839)
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. I can't rate this because I don't like horror and therefore didn't enjoy this. I read it in preparation for What Moves the Dead. Had to read this for an online class I am taking. I'm glad I didn't read it as a teenager, as it probably would have freaked me out somewhat. Now for some reason* all I can see is how campy it is...the possibilities for parody are endless. It truly has ALLLL the Gothic elements, and also, some random guitar playing and spontaneous songwriting. *Ok, the reason is, my main knowledge of Poe comes from Shipwrecked's video series on YouTube: Edgar Allen Poe's Murder Mystery Dinner Party. This is why I giggled through The Fall of the House of Usher. Oh come on, how is this not fun. Read on a dark night, one when the lights are out because there is a furious storm beating on your rooftop and windows, it would make you shudder indeed. It is not my first reading, but it might be my most appreciative one. I reveled in the description, the careful choice of words, the building agitation of our narrator. I picked up on one tidbit I might have missed before. Very early on in the narrator's description of Roderick Usher (who doesn't love that name?), we are told his "family had been noted, time our of mind, for a peculiar sensibility of temperament, displaying itself, through long ages, in many works of exalted art..." As an artist who seriously teetered on the edge of madness himself, I wonder how completely Poe connected art and insanity; how much he feared that the very sensitive and artist personality might succumb to it. Having just finished a historical (biographical) novel of Poe, [b:Mrs. Poe|16130398|Mrs. Poe|Lynn Cullen|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1420462099s/16130398.jpg|21955711], I had an itch to revisit some of his tales. I was tickled that this one was picked for a group read. Now, off to see what others are saying about it. There's not really a story here. There's a setup and an abrupt ending. Also, the location and the ending were based on real events (creepy) rather than something Poe came up with himself. He seemed more focused on building atmosphere and tension - which he definitely succeeds at - and maybe a little character exploration. It was pretty tedious for such a short read but I found his gothic fascination with the macabre charmingly campy, especially when expressed with self awareness and a sense of humor. Update: I'm currently reading [b:Darkly: Black History and America's Gothic Soul|53001279|Darkly Black History and America's Gothic Soul|Leila Taylor|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1571296958l/53001279._SX50_SY75_.jpg|69982124] by Leila Taylor and she connects Poe's recurring ruminations on guilt with slavery. I found her exploration of that to be an eye-opening window into Poe's work and American history and culture at large. no reviews | add a review
Is contained inStories to Remember {complete} by Thomas B. Costain (indirect) A Descent into the Maelstrom / The Fall of the House of Usher / The Pit and the Pendulum by Edgar Allan Poe Great Classic Hauntings: Six Unabridged Stories (Audio Editions Mystery Masters) by Geraint Wyn Davies The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Writings: Poems, Tales, Essays, and Reviews (Penguin Classics) by Edgar Allan Poe The Fall of the House of Usher, and Other Tales and Prose Writings of Edgar Poe (The Camelot Series) by Edgar Allan Poe The Fall of the House of Usher. Ligeia. The Black Cat. The Pit and the Pendulum. The Cask of Amontillado. The Assignation. The Gold-Bug. MS. found in a Bottle by Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe: Collected Stories and Poems (Collector's Library Editions) by Edgar Allan Poe (indirect) The Works of Edgar Allen Poe in One Volume: Poems, Tales, Essays, Criticisms with New Notes by Edgar Allan Poe The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe with Selections from His Critical Writings by Edgar Allan Poe The Best Short Stories of Edgar Allan Poe (The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Tales) by Edgar Allan Poe Tales of Terror and Fantasy: Ten Stories from "Tales of Mystery and Imagination (Children's Illustrated Classics) by Edgar Allan Poe Great Tales of Horror and Suspense; Weird Tales of Edgar Allan Poe: the Ghost Ship and Other Ghostly Stories, Dracula by Edgar Allan Poe The annotated tales of Edgar Allan Poe edited with an introduction, notes, and a bibliography by Edgar Allan Poe The American Short Story: A Collection of the Best Known and Most Memorable Stories by the Great American Authors by Thomas K. Parkes The Raven and the Monkey's Paw: Classics of Horror and Suspense from the Modern Library by Uncredited Is retold inHas the adaptationInspiredHas as a commentary on the textHas as a student's study guide
Dive into this classic from the singular mind of Edgar Allan Poe, who is widely regarded as the master of short horror fiction. The Fall of the House of Usher recounts the terrible events that befall the last remaining members of the once-illustrious Usher clan before it is "quite literally" rent asunder. With amazing economy, Poe plunges the reader into a state of deliciously agonizing suspense. It's a must-read for fans of the golden era of horror writing. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.3Literature English (North America) American fiction Middle 19th Century 1830-1861LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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