Poeffect

A detailed Summary of Poeffect

Essay written by Henry George

When reviewing Nathaniel Hawthorne's Tales, Edgar Allen Poe pronounced that the

short story, if skillfully written, should deliver a single preconceived effect- an effect

upon which incidents be fashioned to accommodate that effect. Edgar Allen Poe was

indeed a skillful writer. His short story, "The Fall of the House of Usher" is a flawless

example of a story in which all elements contribute to the delivery of a single emotional

effect. Poe accomplishes this by achieving a perfect tone, developing suspense and

unifying stylistic elements thereby meeting his own criteria.

In his pronouncement Poe also wrote that "In the whole composition there should be no

word written, of which the tendency, direct or indirect, is not to the one

pre-established design." Thus, in "The Fall of the House of Usher" Poe creates a perfect

tone critical to the delivery of his preconceived effect. The senses of "insufferable

gloom," "utter depression of soul" and " sinking, sickening of the heart" which pervade

the narrator's spirit immediately establish the tone. The narrator's description of the

story, such as how, exactly, Madeline dies and the nature of her malady, serves

increasingly realistic and believable sounds, Poe transposes his audience into the

Madeline of Usher" and the "blood upon her white robes... evidence of some bitter

come by foreshadowing an imminent, terrible and rapid deterioration of the House of the

order to bring about his desired effect. Poe is able to skillfully structure long involved

It is clear that through his chosen style, Edgar Allen Poe has devised a believable tale

Approximate Word count = 1076
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

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