Art can reflect the internal psychological processes of the human mind. Specifically, Edgar Allen Poe uses the atmosphere of The Fall of the House of Usher to portray Roderick’s inner turmoil. The tumultuous gloom besetting the house is equal to the doom of the Usher family. The narrator’s description of the house sets the tone of the story. The house is downtrodden and borders a stagnant tarn. Similarly, Roderick becomes quiet aged and deals with emotional problems.The house is described as “breathing of sorrow” and “and air of ster, deep, and irredeemable gloom hung over and pervaded all.“ The house lacks any proper upkeep and is showing signs of decay with age. The overall eerie feeling exuded is attributed to the human characteristics of the dwelling. The windows are “vacant and eye-like”. The dark draperies hung on the walls are similar to the dark secrets which Roderick bore. The general interior of the house is dark, gray, and seemingly similar to Roderick personal trauma. The tarn outside of the house represents the incestuous nature of the Usher family. The small pond next to the home is stagnant and lacks life. The Usher family has not had a child outside the immediate family. “...in other words, that the entire family lay in the direct line of descent, and had always, with very temporary variation, so lain.” The lack of movement and life in the pond is analogous to Roderick and his sister, Madeline, rotting in the house.Not only does the house resemble Roderick, but Roderick also takes after the house. The house is uncomfortable and not personal. “The general furniture was profuse, comfortless, and tattered.” It left the narrator feeling sorrowful and gloomy. This emotion also is reflected onto Roderick‘s physical appearance. “Surely, man had never before so terribly altered, in so brief a period as has Roderick Usher....
