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84th out of 331 books
—
793 voters
The Fall of the House of Usher
THIS 32 PAGE ARTICLE WAS EXTRACTED FROM THE BOOK: Little Classics Stories of Intellect, by Edgar Allan Poe. To purchase the entire book, please order ISBN 1417900903.
Paperback, 36 pages
Published
February 2nd 2004
by BookSurge Classics
(first published August 8th 2000)
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During one of those idle internet journeys the original purpose of which can't be remembered, I discovered that Debussy had, before his untimely death, finished 20-odd minutes of an opera based on Poe's 'The Fall of the House of Usher'. As something of a Debussy fanatic, I ordered the out-of-print 80s recording and pursued information on Poe's story. Seduced by the approachable length and its ready availability online, I settled down to a single sitting of 'Usher', Laphroaig, and Sibelius' 4th,...more
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I love this story... I read this years (and years) ago, but when I found the audio online, I decided to listened to it. I'm not sure who the reader is, but wow... whoever he was did a fantastic job.
It was so easy just to fall right into this story. The language is so beautiful and eerie, and the tone is just one of perfect paranoia and fear...
Good stuff! Reeeeeead it.
It was so easy just to fall right into this story. The language is so beautiful and eerie, and the tone is just one of perfect paranoia and fear...
Good stuff! Reeeeeead it.
My only problem with the "antique books" is the language, it takes me longer than usual to understand whole paragraphs, if i do at all .
I must admit that i adore writings from this era, it takes me away to a world of novelty and wonderful manners, but my knowledge of English doesn't allow me to fully enjoy them.
The fall of the house of Usher begins with the invitation the narrator gets from his boyhood friend Roderick Usher, apparently his friend is sick and lonely and he needs a company that m...more
I must admit that i adore writings from this era, it takes me away to a world of novelty and wonderful manners, but my knowledge of English doesn't allow me to fully enjoy them.
The fall of the house of Usher begins with the invitation the narrator gets from his boyhood friend Roderick Usher, apparently his friend is sick and lonely and he needs a company that m...more
Edgar Allan Poe - jeder kennt ihn, viele mögen ihn und ich habe ihn bislang immer gemieden. Nachdem ich mich letzten Monat an "Ligeia" gewagt habe, wollte ich nun auch "Der Untergang des Hauses Usher" eine Chance geben. Es hat sich definitiv gelohnt!
Die Geschichte beginnt recht düster und melancholisch. Edgar Allen Poe hat es geschafft, dass das Buch im Laufe der Zeit diese Stimmung nicht verliert und hat sie sogar noch einmal gesteigert. Durch die sehr detaillierte Beschreibung des Hauses Usher...more
Die Geschichte beginnt recht düster und melancholisch. Edgar Allen Poe hat es geschafft, dass das Buch im Laufe der Zeit diese Stimmung nicht verliert und hat sie sogar noch einmal gesteigert. Durch die sehr detaillierte Beschreibung des Hauses Usher...more
Nov 10, 2011
Bonnie
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommended to Bonnie by:
1001 Books to Read Before You Die
And the award for the longest run-on sentence that still manages to somewhat make sense goes to... yes, you, Edgar. You, my friend, know how to use those punctuation's to their fullest potential and then some. You even manage to use dashes like it's nobody's business.And now for the winning sentence...
*deep breathe*
"It was possible, I reflected, that a mere different arrangement of the particulars of the scene, of the details of the picture, would be sufficient to modify, or perhaps to annihilat...more
4 likes · like · see review
So that was dark and gloomy.
Things I liked:
* Poe knows how to describe gloominess in many different ways, every page is dripping from it and does not get boring.
* He draws the reader in with imagistic writing and great atmosphere
Things I did not like:
* It seemed to be a story with no message, simply for amusement. There is nothing wrong with amusement, I however like to learn something from a book, like to be changed through reading in some way, expand or made silent, be encouraged to think or l...more
Things I liked:
* Poe knows how to describe gloominess in many different ways, every page is dripping from it and does not get boring.
* He draws the reader in with imagistic writing and great atmosphere
Things I did not like:
* It seemed to be a story with no message, simply for amusement. There is nothing wrong with amusement, I however like to learn something from a book, like to be changed through reading in some way, expand or made silent, be encouraged to think or l...more
This one wasn't as powerful for me as "Cask of Amontillado". I think it's because we're in the narrator's POV, outside the madness and the terror to an extent. Part of what makes "Cask" so effective is that we're following Montressor down the path of his madness. The first-person POV encourages us to identify with him even as he's bricking up his enemy in a tomb. This time, tombs are once again the motif of fear, but we as readers don't experience it. It's distanced first by the third-person POV...more
Oct 28, 2012
K.D. Oliveros
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommended to K.D. by:
1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2006-2010)
There are three Edgar Allan Poe books that are included in the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die. They are: The Fall of the House of Usher, The Purloined Letter and The Pit and the Pendulum. Yesterday, I started reading The Tell-Tale Heart and Other Writings as my first Halloween book this year. All these three stories are there. So, reading that book is like shooting three birds with one stone.
The Fall of the House of Usher is the best horror story that I've read for a long time now. Not...more
The Fall of the House of Usher is the best horror story that I've read for a long time now. Not...more
8 likes · like · see review
Wow. This book is a lot to take in. I actually quite like this short story. I mean, I had a headache while reading it, which had me learning something; I shouldn't read a long Edgar Allan Poe story when I do have an extremely bad headache. The characters development in this story is fairly interesting, as is the narrator of the story. This is a lot to process in one sitting. This fifteen or so page story probably took me close to a half an hour to journey through, and yet, it was incredibly good...more
My favorite of all of Poe's writings (The Cask of Amontillado coming in a close second), this story is what made me like Poe more than The Raven, The Telltale Heart, The Pit and the Pendulum, or any of his other works did. I still try to read it every year around Halloween and can say that I really wish they did a faithful adaption of this book instead of the "camp" but entertaining Roger Cormen version of the '60s that had Vincent Price. I can't explain what the appeal to me is of a house that...more
Very wordy. While reading this, I was comparing it to what the same story would be like written either by someone else in the same time or if it had been written today. I've wanted to read this story since I read the sequel (of sorts) Return to the House of Usher by Robert Poe. I loved that book. It's been years since I read it, but I remember loving it and wanting to read this story.
I hate to say it, but of the two of these stories, I liked the Robert Poe story much better, since it was less w...more
I hate to say it, but of the two of these stories, I liked the Robert Poe story much better, since it was less w...more
Why only two stars? I could say it's Poe's wordy, verbose writing. But then I need to observe how Wikipedia's review finds "every element and detail relevant and related" .... hhmmmm .... I could say it's Poe's eagerness to entertain false assumptions (see for instance, at the very beginning, how he decides that every mind usually finds even the most desolate or terrible/sternest images with half pleasurable, poetic feeling - I never liked these morbid representations myself, this is not poetry...more
The Fall of the House of Usher is one of Poe's more popular stories, especially among his earlier ones, but, as it just so happens, it is also, in my opinion, one of his worst.
This short story is about a house owned by a slightly insane man named Usher, whose sister is ridden with malady. Usher's friend, who acts as narrator of the story, visits Usher at his home at Usher's own request and so provides us with a first hand account of the madness he witnesses in the eerie house of Usher.
Now, it...more
This short story is about a house owned by a slightly insane man named Usher, whose sister is ridden with malady. Usher's friend, who acts as narrator of the story, visits Usher at his home at Usher's own request and so provides us with a first hand account of the madness he witnesses in the eerie house of Usher.
Now, it...more
Jun 16, 2012
Gloria Mundi
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Fans of Tim Burton
Recommended to Gloria by:
1001 book list
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I seem to be on a roll these days. I have a lot of time on my hands and have been finishing books quite quickly these days. I wanted something quite fluffy and short, because I intended to read Everything is Illuminated this month, but didn't feel this was a good book to read before bed since I tend to have weird dreams already and that book is kinda crazy. Instead I perused my Kobo and found this short story from Edgar Allen Poe, that is also on the list of 1001 Books to Read before you die. It...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
This felt strikingly similar to Ligeia, with some unknown illness afflicting the characters which was supposed to make me feel some trepidation while reading. It did not. In fact, I found it incredibly dull, plodding and predictable.
This is, in my opinion, the worst of the three works by Poe that I have read this month and I am severely disappointed that even with my greatly reduced expectations, this failed to impress on any level.
I do not like Poe’s style of writing at all. I find him too word...more
This is, in my opinion, the worst of the three works by Poe that I have read this month and I am severely disappointed that even with my greatly reduced expectations, this failed to impress on any level.
I do not like Poe’s style of writing at all. I find him too word...more
Durante um dia inteiro de Outono, escuro, sombrio, silencioso, em que as nuvens pairavam, baixas e opressivas (...) encontrei-me diante da melancólica Casa de Usher.
Sendo Edgard Allan Poe sinónimo de "perturbador", toda e qualquer narrativa por ele escrita remete obrigatoriamente para o desconforto.
Neste longo conto, o autor coloca a nú o subconsciente profundo, utilizando o elemento "medo" e fá-lo valer através do "estranho". Com estranho ambiente, estranho tempo e estranhos acontecimentos, A...more
Sendo Edgard Allan Poe sinónimo de "perturbador", toda e qualquer narrativa por ele escrita remete obrigatoriamente para o desconforto.
Neste longo conto, o autor coloca a nú o subconsciente profundo, utilizando o elemento "medo" e fá-lo valer através do "estranho". Com estranho ambiente, estranho tempo e estranhos acontecimentos, A...more
Eh...
In sixth grade, my reading teacher read us all The Telltale Heart on Halloween. I'm still haunted by it every time I'm alone in a quiet room with a ticking clock.
In ninth grade, my English teacher went through The Casket of Amontillado with our class. I don't remember it as much, but I do remember finding something about it to be darkly enjoyable.
This afternoon, I read The Fall of the House of Usher. And... I was bored. I didn't feel a real strong sense of horror, only a bit of vague sadn...more
In sixth grade, my reading teacher read us all The Telltale Heart on Halloween. I'm still haunted by it every time I'm alone in a quiet room with a ticking clock.
In ninth grade, my English teacher went through The Casket of Amontillado with our class. I don't remember it as much, but I do remember finding something about it to be darkly enjoyable.
This afternoon, I read The Fall of the House of Usher. And... I was bored. I didn't feel a real strong sense of horror, only a bit of vague sadn...more
As far as the story goes, the spook-factor wasn't working on me. It has all the classic gothic elements -- a creepy house, dreary weather, odd and morose people, and strange goings-on. I know I am supposed to find layers of meaning in the relationship between Roderick and his sister, and the crumbling of the family mansion, but I wasn't really getting it. I suppose re-reading would help.
Poe's language, however, I love. I know his sentences are ridiculously long. No one would write like that now....more
Poe's language, however, I love. I know his sentences are ridiculously long. No one would write like that now....more
The gothic style of writing is one that features two primary components: the Sublime, and the Beautiful. Although not one of the forefathers of gothic literature, Poe certainly did a great job of using it in some of his stories, and instead of thinking back to The Raven when Poe is mentioned, I think back to The Fall of the House of Usher. It's a beautifully haunting story that greatly influenced my own writing, in that I grew to love the juxtaposition of the horrific, and the beautiful. Seeing...more
A beautiful example of Poe's poetic abilities applied to narratives. That the man had a way with words is inarguable. The story, even if I knew the conclusion beforehand and wasn't necessarily as engaged in the narrative features of the plot as I knew the author had meant for me to be, I could still feel myself becoming more anxious as the story wore on. By the end, I was flying through the pages to get to the end, such is Poe's gift to inspire feelings in his readers. I could feel that nervous...more
I must say that my wife thinks that Poe, himself, had commited murder or buried someone alive at some point in his life. I can't blame her as Poe tends to write of the same topic over and over.
This story is no different.
Once again, we have a character being haunted by hearing "false sounds", which ultimatley leads to their demise. As flowery as the writing is, the story could easily be one paragraph long. I will say, that the final paragraph is quite haunting and done very well.
The story stuck...more
This story is no different.
Once again, we have a character being haunted by hearing "false sounds", which ultimatley leads to their demise. As flowery as the writing is, the story could easily be one paragraph long. I will say, that the final paragraph is quite haunting and done very well.
The story stuck...more
Okay first and far most I love Edgar Allan Poe work. But this book sort of got me. It was aluttle confusing at times to figure out. But I love a challenge. I also found this book very sad, depressing and odd. But yet interesting. The Fall of the House of Usher started off with this no named person visiting a childhood hood friend name Roderick Usher.
Roderick has so much going on its crazy lol. His twin sister is dead and he's sick. But his friend like all good friends are there through this eer...more
Roderick has so much going on its crazy lol. His twin sister is dead and he's sick. But his friend like all good friends are there through this eer...more
A short story of just 18 pages, but takes super-human effort to read! The language and the sentence structure is so convoluted that I had to motivate myself to carry-on.
The story itself is good and in the first person. Edgar Allan Poe is noted for his stories of the super-natural and horror genre. The rich language does aid in enriching the detailed description of the plot environment and the character emotions.
A dictionary (or Google) is strictly recommended as you may encounter words which may...more
The story itself is good and in the first person. Edgar Allan Poe is noted for his stories of the super-natural and horror genre. The rich language does aid in enriching the detailed description of the plot environment and the character emotions.
A dictionary (or Google) is strictly recommended as you may encounter words which may...more
This short story was absolutely great. It was scary, it was thrilling, and it was definitely something I would have expected from Edgar Allan Poe. The plot is extremely original and my only qualms with the story is that it doesn't really give that good of a reason for Roderick to do the things he does.
I really liked how Poe tied together a fictional story about a knight who fights a dragon and the end of The Fall of the House of Usher. It worked really really well and definitely added to the sus...more
I really liked how Poe tied together a fictional story about a knight who fights a dragon and the end of The Fall of the House of Usher. It worked really really well and definitely added to the sus...more
Okay, so I had to read this for English class tomorrow and the only way I could motivate myself is if I put it on my goodreads list. Once I managed to get the visual of the artist Usher out of my head (I mean, c'mon. A family of artists with the name Usher?), I could finally read the story in peace.
It was okay, good but not one of Poe's best in my opinion. Also, idk but I felt like there were a lot of Tell Tale Heart references (I don't know which one was written first sooooo). Like, the constan...more
It was okay, good but not one of Poe's best in my opinion. Also, idk but I felt like there were a lot of Tell Tale Heart references (I don't know which one was written first sooooo). Like, the constan...more
Interesting. But I had to read the sparks notes. I haven't read Poe since high school. Too wordy for me. But I actually did enjoy reading a condensed version and the notes. I enjoyed the story much more after reading the interpretation. There were a few things I thought I knew what he was talking about, but wasn't sure until I read the notes. For example, the direct line descendents, I thought he inferred that the family was incestous, but I really wasn't positive, until the notes confirmed it....more
Me han gustado bastante los tres relatos que apararecen en este libro. El que más me ha impactado es el primero que da título al librillo.
En el primer relato el ambiente inquietante de la casa es perfecto. Condiciona de una manera terrible el devenir del relato. Esa casa que ejerce una influencia enorme en sus moradores, sobre todo en el protagonista del relato, Roberick, que sufre una extraña enfermedad que le hace que no pueda soportar la luz, los perfumes, la música (salvo de cierta clase de...more
Oh holy creepiness.
I have always had a certain expectation of Poe. I expected mass levels of creepiness and the only Poe I have ever read was the Raven. I have heard multiple retellings of his stories and set my expectation from that. Unfortunately, I decided to start my Poe journey randomly and chose the Purloined Letter, which was not in the least bit creepy. I found myself disappointed.
Then I moved onto this. It delivered. I found myself shivering with anticipation and gasping as events too...more
I have always had a certain expectation of Poe. I expected mass levels of creepiness and the only Poe I have ever read was the Raven. I have heard multiple retellings of his stories and set my expectation from that. Unfortunately, I decided to start my Poe journey randomly and chose the Purloined Letter, which was not in the least bit creepy. I found myself disappointed.
Then I moved onto this. It delivered. I found myself shivering with anticipation and gasping as events too...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discuss the importance of language as pertains to control | 3 | 18 | Feb 12, 2013 10:30am | |
| Classic Readers: The Fall of the House of Usher | 1 | 8 | Oct 27, 2012 02:56pm | |
| Classic Readers: The Fall of the House of Usher | 3 | 10 | Oct 07, 2012 10:26am |
The name Poe brings to mind images of murderers and madmen, premature burials, and mysterious women who return from the dead. His works have been in print since 1827 and include such literary classics as “The Tell-Tale Heart,” “The Raven,” and “The Fall of the House of Usher.” This versatile writer’s oeuvre includes short stories, poetry, a novel, a textbook, a book of scientific theory, and hundr...more
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“Not hear it? --yes, I hear it, and have heard it. Long --long --long --many minutes, many hours, many days, have I heard it --yet I dared not --oh, pity me, miserable wretch that I am! --I dared not --I dared not speak! We have put her living in the tomb!”
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“I was forced to fall back upon the unsatisfactory conclusion, that while, beyond doubt, there are combinations of very simple natural objects which have the power of thus affecting us, still the analysis of this power lies among considerations beyond our depth. It was possible, I reflected, that a mere different arrangement of the particulars of the scene, of the details of the picture, would be sufficient to modify, or perhaps to annihilate its capacity for sorrowful impression.”
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4 people liked it
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