Thesis Statement
The Fall of the House of Usher, by Edgar Allan is one of the most influential short stories that were written and published in the 19th century. It is a first person narrative and the narrator is not a character in the story.
Reliability of the Narrator of ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’
All elements are not only relevant but are also related, a factor that makes the narrative to be significant and real. The story begins when the narrator arrives in a friend’s house and proceeds to narrate the scenery as well as characteristics of the people he finds in the house and more specifically his friend. He does not understand a lot of the situations and happenings though the person who had invited him is his boyhood friend. There are many issues illustrated in the story, but the most notable issue is the type of the narrator since it is a first person narrative. He is not named at any particular moment save the instance he is referred to as a mad man. One cannot therefore help it but ask if the narrator is mad, deluded or crazy. Nonetheless, a critical analysis of the story illustrates that the narrator is most reliable since he manages to narrate to the whole story in the best way possible. This essay shall therefore argue for the reliability of the narrator.
As highlighted in the introductory part, the narrator in the story is nameless as he is not named. As much as it may be argued that it contributes to his unreliability, the reverse is true because his main work is to narrate. In addition, that helps the readers to become more focused on the happenings in the story other than focusing on the narrator. The fact that the narrator tries as much as possible to describe the situation and the happenings in the story adds to his credibility since that helps the audience form the mental picture of the situations that are being described. For instance, the narrator describes explicitly the situation of the house of Usher and to make sure the readers understand how strange it looks, he keeps on insisting that the attempt of describing the house is not only futile but also insignificant. For example, he states that “I lack words to express the full extent or the earnest abandon of his persuasion” (Poe, pp. 120). He tries as much as possible to explain that the situation was even more horrifying than it is being explained in the story. Therefore, the narrator is not only reliable due to the fact that he succeeds in portraying the exact picture of the situations in the story, but also due to the fact that he manages to convince the readers to believe his word.
Apart from encouraging the trust and the support of the readers, the narrator is reliable because he is able to accurately interpret the situations in the story. In addition, he is in a position to share values not only with the author but also with the readers. For instance, he tells the story in retrospect to ensure that the tone of the author is maintained even when the situations change in the story. On the other hand, he is able to share the same emotions with readers especially while describing the health and the situation of characters in the story. The narrator has managed to explain very intense emotions in the story while at the same time taking control of the situation. He explains horrifying events as if they were a normal story as illustrated in the extract.
“For a moment she remained trembling and reeling to and fro upon the threshold, then, with a low moaning cry, fell heavily inward upon the person of her brother, and in her violent and now final death-agonies, bore him to the floor a corpse, and a victim to the terrors he had anticipated” (Poe pp. 128).
As much as the narrator is not named and is referred to as a mad man, the story illustrates that he cannot be referred to as an unreliable narrator whatsoever. Studying the story from the beginning to the end shows that he is able to understand major happenings in the story and to predict some even before they happen. Moreover, he puts in enough effort to help the readers understand that the situation is strange and horrifying. For example, he explains how strange the house is as well as the disease of his friend’s sister. Putting in to consideration all the attributes of the narrator, his reliability needs not further emphasis and cannot be disputed.
Works Cited
Poe, Edgar Allan. The Fall of the House of Usher and Other Tales. New York: Signet Classic, 1998.Print.
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