the-fall-of-the-house-of-usher

1、The Fall of the House of UsherWeek 9Edgar Allan Poe(18091849) Famous American poet, short-story writer and critic Controversial and misunderstood in America, but well received in Europe, esp. in France Father ofModern short storyDetective story Psychoanalyticcriticism The Fall of the House of Usher

2、is one of the most popular short stories written by the great American writer Edgar Allan Poe, and its also regarded as the early and supreme example of the Gothic horror story. The whole story is written in first-person point of view.Main Characters“I”The narratorRoderick Usher罗德里克*厄舍The boyhood fr

3、iend of “me”Madeline Usher玛德琳*厄舍Rodericks twin sisterNarrator, a friend of the master of the House of Usher. When he visits his friend, he witnesses terrifying events.Roderick Usher, the master of the house. He suffers from a depressing malaise characterized by strange behavior.Madeline Usher, twin

4、sister of Roderick. She also suffers from a strange illness. After apparently dying she rises from her coffin.Plot SummaryNarrator arrives at the House of Usher.Enter the mansion and talk with Usher.Over the next few days, he does his best to cheer up Usher. They paint and read books.One evening, Us

5、her told him Madeline has died. They put the corpse into the coffin, which was placed in the vault(地下拱顶室地下拱顶室).In the following days, Usher takes on an even paler hue. Narrator is unable to sleep because of nervousness.One night, Madeline rises from her coffin. Usher was scared to death. The narrato

6、r flees the falling mansion.哥特式（Goth）最早是文艺复兴时期被用来区分中世纪时期（公元5-15世纪）的艺术风格，以恐怖、超自然、死亡、颓废、巫术、古堡、深渊、黑夜、诅咒、吸血鬼等为标志性元素。哥特式风格用黑暗、恐惧、孤独、绝望的艺术主题，来往于内心世界神圣与邪恶的边缘，描绘在爱与绝望之间的挣扎，嘶叫的痛苦和清醒。哥特小说属于英语文学派别，是西方通俗文学中惊险神秘小说的一种。一般被认为随着贺瑞斯华尔波尔的奥特朗图堡而产生。哥特小说可以说是恐怖电影的鼻祖，更重要的是，它使我们今天习惯地将哥特式与黑暗、恐怖联系在一起。 显著的哥特小说元素包括恐怖，神秘，超自然，厄运，

7、死亡，颓废，住着幽灵的老房子，癫狂，家族诅咒等。哥特式小说哥特式小说的结构模式表现为故事场景、人物范式、主题意识等方面的一系列创新。其中最大亮点，除了“哥特式古堡”外，还有“超现实恐怖”。所谓“超现实恐怖”，乃是指作品中的人物受到某种形式的鬼魂、幽灵、怪兽或“不可知物”的侵扰而表现出来的害怕死亡或疯狂的高度焦虑状况。由于作品的极度夸张和渲染，读者对作品人物的这种“恐惧”感受既是“迫在眉睫”，又是“身置其中”。然而实际上，这种“恐惧”是由虚拟的“非常世界”带来的，不但不会有实际危害，反倒能让读者产生若即若离的特殊快感。“一个恐怖的场景，描写得越是荒唐、离奇、不可思议，我们就越能获得乐趣；而描写过于接近普通生活，哪怕是带有很多鲜为人知的冒险经历，我们也由于缺乏出格的痛楚而不能留下记忆或思考”What is Gothic literary?Began in 19th century in EnglandPopular form in British literary journalsImported into American short story in 19th centuryKey ingredient is sensationalismElements of Gothic WritingEmphasis on settingExterior: landscapeInteri