Type of Work: Gothic horror story Setting An ancient English manor house; nineteenth century Principle Characters An unidentified Narrator Roderick Usher, the Narrator's gravely ill friend Lady Madcline, Roderick's even more in firm sister Story Overveiw (Classical gothic imagery - drippingly dark surroundings and terrifying ghostly symbols - is used throughout this tale to evoke a sense of fear and forboding that present-day novels and films have made commonplace to modern lovers of horror. Thus, …showed first 75 words of 1485 total…

…showed last 75 words of 1485 total…free herself and survive being buried alive, then returning to punish a weak man. References to blood at the end suggest to some that Madeline perhaps was a vampiress. Still others simply enjoy Poe's unmatched style that conjures up remarkably horrid mental images and brings on a wonderfully grim suspense. In all, the imaginative details and descriptions, the inventive drama, and the sheer popularity of the story, have made it a literary classic. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ **Bibliography**