Characteristics of a Gothic Horror
Whenever someone thinks of something that is gothic, the common thing they think of something that is very dark and often reflecting death. Gothic Arquitecture was a movement of a style of houses that was often included very large room and was commonly a very dark area. Through these very vague ideas of what something that is Gothic is, someone could read ”The Fall of the House of Usher” written by Poe, and see it as Gothic literature. After viewing the details as to what characterizes a Gothic literature, “The Fall of the House of Usher” is a striking example of a Gothic horror.
The first characteristic of a gothic horror that we see in just the first couple pages, is the sense that the “House of Usher” could be seen as a castle or castle like. When describing his first venture into the house, he described the entrance as a “Gothic archway” (740) into a hall. In a castle there are secret passages, trap doors, secret rooms, and hidden staircases all throughout it. Roderick says that the hallways that go throughout the house are “dark and intricate passages” (740), sending the reader that it is very difficult to maneuver through the house and filled with surprises.
A key characteristic to a gothic horror is woman who is constantly in distress. She was often suffering even more because they would often be abandoned and left alone. In Poe’s story Madeline has a terrible disease leaving her to suffer throughout the story. Her disease is also very contagious and is left alone throughout the story. Roderick wasn’t to “be seen by me no more” (742); “I learned that the glimpse I had obtained of her person would thus probably be the last I should obtain” (742).
The Term Paper on Bronte's "Wuthering Heights" And Shelly's "Frankenstein": A Comparison Of Gothic Films
The Gothic genre is a very fascinating one because it is one of mystery, suspense, and high emotion. With intriguing elements and its out of the ordinary style, the gothic genre has captivated readers for centuries. Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” is a classic gothic novel which has been adapted into a film directed by Kenneth Branagh. This film can be perceived as a typical gothic ...
Madeline had become “a gradual wasting away of the person” (742).
This reflects a woman that would be in distress.
There are themes and vocabulary that are distinctive to a gothic horror. Most of the vocabulary helps to give a mysterious and eerie feeling to the story. A theme that is given in “The Fall of the House of Usher” is ruins of a building. When looking at the house from the outside Roderick sees “extraordinary dilapidation” (740), “old wood-work which has rotted for long years” (740), and an “indication of extensive decay” (740).
This gives the reader and image of an older building see to be falling apart a bit. The vocab that is given, as examples of gothic literature vocab are prevalent all through the story. One of these that is repeated upon several occasions is when speaking of the “vast of a distance” (740) it is across the house and through it.
There is a sense of mystery and eeriness that is present throughout the story. That is keeping the reader very questioning throughout the story. “The Fall of the House of Usher” has many characteristics very similar to that of a Gothic Horror. When compared directly to the Elements of Gothic Literature. It has nearly all these elements and would easily seen by anyone to be an example of a Gothic Horror.
