TFOTHOU 6 gr B

 SUMMARY :

The narrator enters Roderick Usher's room and breathes a strange air. He describes the room and R.U. It reflects the description of the house, and both are about to collapse (crumble). R.U. explains his illness to the narrator. The narrator understands R.U.'s fear. R.U. says that the house has a bad influence on his health. He mentions his sister, and she appears, saying nothing. He speaks about her illness (the doctors don't know how to cure it, and she is sometimes comatose ; she's about to die).They try to spend some time through art (reading, painting, guitar playing). The narrator describes Usher's music and painting. The narrator then describes a painting by Usher, the painting of a vault, the interior of a tomb.

 

The narrator uses very specific words to describe his friend. He says he's an ennuyé man of the world (which echoes the French expression mal du siècle to speak about the Romantic age) ; he's also described like a tragic hero : his "struggles" are "feeble and futile," and he inspires "fear and awe" (see Aristotle). When Usher says his sister and him are going to die, is it plausible, is it avoidable ? 

Another point is the very first line describing the House of Usher : there are "many dark and intricate passages," and the narrator will get lost without the help of a guide (here, the valet). It feels like it's a maze, a labyrinth : when Theseus enters the Daedalus, he needs Ariadne's help to find his way to the center of the darkness. 

Here, the narrator has just entered a physical labyrinth (the House), and a mental labyrinth (Usher). Can he go inside and go out unscathed ? Likewise, we as readers have just entered the story, which is "dark and intricate." The story itself is a labyrinth. We could even say that Poe's writing itself feels like a maze where we could get lost.

 

 

https://salle306.fr/120-2/anglais-llcr-1eres/american-literature-and-civilization-101/american-lit-cult-101-session-1/

https://salle306.fr/120-2/anglais-llcr-1eres/british-literature-and-civilization-101/british-lit-cult-101-session-1/

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