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Why do most scary stories tend to have some type of transformation?. What affects does transformation has on the story?. Changes are triggered in a character when they undergo momentous events. We see many transformations in stories such as “House Taken Over” by Julio Cortazar,”Where is Here” and “The feathered pillow”. In all these stories, transformation is seen in various ways whether it is a change in one's life or in the character. This raises the question, In what ways does transformation play a role in stories meant to scare us?.In my opinion, in a story a change in characters and a change in one’s normal life plays a very important role; the reader start to imagine illogical things, get more interested in the story, start to ask questions to themselves and transformation creates suspense which develops terror in reader’s mind.
In “Fall Of House Of Usher” a gothic story in which an unnamed narrator goes to his old friend’s house named Roderick usher who is ill physically and psychologically just like his twin sister Madeline and feel like his house has some type of supernatural power. In this story transformation in the house, in the characters, and in the atmosphere made me feel uneasy and created emotions such as awe and terror. After Usher and the narrator have entombed Madeline alive because they thought she was dead big transformation takes place in Usher ” His ordinary manner had vanished…. occupations were
The door frame had receded an inch or two.” The house transforming elicits fear because we don’t feel comfortable when the house start to change especially after a strange man entered with peculiar requests. In The Fall of the House of Usher the house also transforms when the house implodes on itself and creates a dark mood. These houses transformation frightens us as they create dark and disturbing
Have you ever read a story that has a significant change in the plot suddenly? A lot of thrillers/horror stories, will use the method of transformation to create fear. Transformation plays a huge role in stories meant to scare us. It causes sudden change of mood or how you feel about a certain character quickly which can create a fearful aspect in the story. Examples of writers that use this method include; Ishmeal Reed and Edgar Allen Poe.
With our imagination we can have many thoughts in our mind, we can think of how we want to be in the future. Everybody in this world has their own way of thinking. “In the Gothic stories, “The Fall of The House of Usher written by Edgar Allan Poe and “House Taken Over” by Julio Cortazar the authors write about how both stories have some type of interest that makes the reader want to be very eager about the story. The imagination can overcome reason through issues such as: fear, paranoid, delusion, etc. The House of The Fall of Usher talks about how Mr. Usher is trying to get over his “dead” sister and the narrator is trying to help him. They begin to hear things inside the house, and realize that the sister was alive at the end. House Taken Over about a bother and sister that share a house that’s been passed over from previous family members and normally they have a typical daily routine but at night they come across “spooky” occasions.
Throughout both short stories, “The Fall of the House of Usher” and “House Taken Over” readers are exposed to situations in which imagination overcomes reason in some characters. In the short story, “The Fall of The House of Usher” written by Edgar Allan Poe imagination overcomes reason with both the narrator and the main character. Roderick Usher and the narrator believe they are hearing the noises in the house that are being described in a novel they are reading. In addition, Usher’s imagination overcomes his reason when he believes he hears noises of his dead sister Madeline. Similarly, in the short story “House Taken Over” written by Julio Cortazar it exemplifies the idea of imagination overcoming reasoning. This is showed when a brother and a sister are driven from their home when it's invaded by unwelcomed visitors. The siblings believe there is an evil force taking over their house. LIkewise, in the poem “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe the idea of imagination overcoming reasoning is shown when the author believes that there is an evil force that keeps reminding him of something he is trying to forget ; Lenore. Aso his imagination takes over his reasoning since he is talking with a raven, even though birds do not talk. In both the short stories and the poem the idea of imagination overcoming reasoning is portrayed throughout the characters.
Transformation plays a role in stories meant to scare us by playing with our imagination safety and mood of a story. Imagination appears in both Edgar Allan Poe’s, gothic fiction story “The Fall of the House of Usher,” by Usher’s isolated environment and in Joyce Carol Oates gothic literature story “Where is Here?,” by foreseeing who people are. Transformation also plays a role by it assists knowing our own selves are safe in a scary situation. This is shown in, “ Why do Some Brains Enjoy Fear?,” by Allegra Ringo and in “ House Taken Over,” by Julio Cortazar. Transformation plays with our imagination and our safety it also plays a role in the mood and setting. This appears in , “The Fall of the House of Usher,” and “The Dream Collector,”
As with many of Edgar Allan Poe's pieces, "The Fall of the House of Usher" falls within the definition of American Gothic Literature. According to Prentice Hall Literature, American Gothic Literature is characterized by a bleak or remote setting, macabre or violent incidents, characters being in psychological or physical torment, or a supernatural or otherworldly involvement (311). A story containing these attributes can result in a very frightening or morbid read. In all probability, the reason Poe's stories were written in this fashion is that his personal life was fraught with depression, internal agony, and despair. Evidently this is reflected in "The Fall of the House of Usher." Conjointly, Edgar Allan Poe's "The
I just just glanced through my phone, swiping quickly to going through the photos of everyone’s snapchat story. But one word caught my eye: fire; it caught my eye but I did not really think about it afterwards. Several hours later however, I was with my friends working on our english essay when all of a sudden, I look up to see what looked like an enormous blanket of brown dust staining the clear blue sky. There was a distinct line between the perfectly blue sky and the disgusting smoke from the fire and this transformation that occurred so out of the blue causing both shock and awe from me and my friends. Transformations play a role in stories meant to scare us by creating an atmosphere of discomfort and uncertainty because the characters are unable to control the situation around them. Through the short stories of “The Fall of the House of Usher”, “House Taken Over”, and “Where is Here”, the authors of those stories all elicit an atmosphere of fear through the combined transformations of setting, mood, and characters. “The Fall of the House of Usher” change occurs at the climax of the story where Roderick Usher falls into insanity. “House Taken Over’ changes when the mysterious intruders fully overtake the house and the siblings are forced to flee. In “Where is Here” the stranger leaves the home which causes the house to fade in color, draining it of life.
“Fear is not real. It is the product of thoughts you create. Danger is very real, but fear is only a choice.” Fear is not something that is always real, such as when Usher was scared but there was nothing to fear yet, but the danger at the end of the story, especially for Ushers friend, was something to fear for. In the Gothic Literature short story, “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe, the setting is somber and creates an illusion of darkness. On the other hand, “House Taken Over” by Julio Cortazar, portrays the idea of magical realism in, which setting is more realistic and less gloomy. Although Gothic Literature and Magical Realism are similar, there are also many differences, especially in their settings.
How Transformation Plays a Role in Scary Stories Moving from Oklahoma to California proved to be quite the transition for me, as it had been different in culture and presented a distinct social environment. Not only was making new friendships difficult for me, but also getting accommodated to the community’s customs had proven terrifying. This experience shows to be an important event for me because it ultimately transformed my characteristics as a person, which can be viewed as either advantageous or inauspicious. Transformation can be described as the change of someone or something. It affects different characters during dire, horrifying situations, which can intensify the situation more or convey a certain message, and it serves several
The short stories “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe and “House Taken Over” by Julio Cortazar are two well known works of literature that encompass unique literary styles. Poe utilizes Gothic literature in his story, a style of writing that incorporates elements of darkness, gloom, drama, and intense descriptions. On the other hand, Cortazar uses Magical Realism and its realistic characters, setting, and fantastic and unusual events to tell his tale. Despite the two being completely different genres, they share many similar traits, specifically relating to fear.
In the short story, "The Fall of the House of Usher," by Edgar Allen Poe, setting is used extensively to do many things. The author uses it to convey ideas, effects, and images. It establishes a mood and foreshadows future events. Poe communicates truths about the character through setting.
After evaluating the work of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher, he utilizes with imagery to build up the feeling of terror. First of all, the passage is about an ill man, Roderick Usher, who invites his old friend of his to come meet him. In this passage both him and his sister, Madeline Usher, are the last remaining of the Usher race and is diagnosed with an unnatural illness. The narrator begins to feel terror with the supernatural things going on in the house of Usher and the illness of the Ushers. Although the narrator feels the sense of terror from the moment he entered the house, through the use of imagery, Poe is able to bring emotion to the reader. Throughout the passage, the author continues to build up the sense of terror by asserting the image and setting of both the passage and the atmosphere. For instance, he starts the passage by stating “a dull, dark, and a soundless day...clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens” (Poe 194). In relation to the previous quote, the quote illustrates the image of the atmosphere and the setting of the story. In particular, because Poe expresses the sense of terror by describing the atmosphere as dark, quiet, and gloomy, the reader can get an image of the surroundings and get the feeling of the darkness and horror. In addition, according to Poe, during the first glimpse of the house of Usher, the narrator describes it as gloomy and unpleasant. In particular, Poe states “the shades of the evening drew on… a sense of insufferable gloom” (Poe 194). Additionally, the description of the house adds on to the sense of terror that Poe established in the beginning of the story. Based on the past two quotes stated by the author, the reader can begin to picture a dark and dull day with a gloomy house adding on to the darkness. Lastly, in regards to Edgar Allan Poe, the house of Usher is
One of the central themes underlying the short story, The Fall of the House of Usher, is that of the nature of the house. The way it is described and the way it is so mysterious. Another central theme about this story is the nature of the people that live in the house. They are portrayed very much in the same manner throughout the story. Thus, they have several similarities with each other. All of which are of a bad feeling, showing how bad things are for the people and the house. These similarities are very well laid out in the story and are, I believe, meant to be something to be considered when reading it.
The Fall Of the House Of Usher is a short story written by Edgar Allen Poe in 1839. The short story is complexly written, with challenging themes such as identity and fear. Poe utilises many elements of the Gothic Tradition such as setting and supernatural elements to create a more mysterious story, and uses language to his advantage, employing adjective filled descriptions of literal elements that also serve as metaphors for other parts of the story.
In the story “The Fall of the House of Usher” there are three characters the narrator, Roderick Usher, and Madeline Usher. The story starts with the narrator arriving at the Usher family home where both Roderick and Madeline live, Roderick is both physically and mentally ill and Madeline is just mentally ill. The Usher family