Edgar Allan Poe's Gothic Style in The Fall of the House of Usher

Introduction: Poe as the Master of Gothic Writing

Of all the authors to employ the Gothic style in their poetry or prose, none mastered the craft more than Edgar Allan Poe. The classic American fiction writer specialized in fostering a unique sense of dread and terror by successfully using elements of the Gothic genre such as the grotesque, distorted imagery and setting, mysterious circumstances, and a slowly building, suspenseful pace. The short story which best displays Poe's use of Gothic literary themes is believed by many to be The Fall of the House of Usher — his hauntingly disturbing depiction of a man's descent into madness and the consequences that unbridled fear can ultimately have.

Considered a masterpiece of Gothic prose, The Fall of the House of Usher touches on all of the centerpieces of the genre, including perfectly chosen diction that evokes an atmosphere of gloom, the presence of a crumbling castle setting, supernatural circumstances that cannot be explained, and a secret withheld from the reader until the climax. By examining the literary strategies Poe employs in this story, it is possible to gain a deeper understanding of the Gothic style as a whole.

Evocative Diction and Atmosphere of Gloom

Poe immediately grips the reader with a jarring description of a "dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens," and his choice of descriptive words heightens the sense of fear throughout. Other words and phrases such as "dreary," "melancholy," "insufferable gloom," "bleak," and "utter depression of the soul" all enhance the foreboding feeling that builds as the story proceeds.

When Poe describes the decaying castle, he does so with artfully designed phrases referencing "the sombre tapestries of the walls, the ebon blackness of the floors, and the phantasmagoric armorial trophies which rattled" as the narrator walks the halls in trepidation. The author's descriptions of his characters make further use of this technique, with Roderick Usher depicted as possessing "a cadaverousness of complexion; an eye large, liquid, and luminous beyond comparison; lips somewhat thin and very pallid… and the now ghastly pallor of the skin." Through this deliberate choice of emotional and evocative language, Poe precisely controls the reader's mental imagery and creates a powerful sense of the Gothic.

The Decaying House as a Gothic Character

There are many additional instances of Gothic themes throughout The Fall of the House of Usher, and Poe's decision to position the decrepit, castle-like house as its own character is the most widely recognized. Traditional Gothic literature typically features a large, mysterious castle as the primary setting, and Poe succeeds in maximizing the horrifying effects this device can exert on readers. The house itself becomes a living presence, its decay mirroring the psychological and physical deterioration of its inhabitants.

Conclusion: A Complete Gothic Masterpiece

By eventually concluding with a scene including disease, resurrection, and death, Poe completes his Gothic masterpiece in fitting fashion. The story's sustained use of foreboding diction, its castle setting, its supernatural undercurrents, and its slowly revealed secrets together fulfill every defining convention of the Gothic genre, cementing The Fall of the House of Usher as one of the finest examples of Gothic prose in American literary history.