Custom «Comparing Poes Books » Essay Paper Sample

The "Fall of the House of Usher by Edgar Allan Poe is a book that was written a long time ago. The book is roughly concentrated on his entire way of living such that it talks of the way he faced criticism and minimal recognition from the people. However, despite this Poe is a very strong, ambitious and a hardworking person who is guided by moral values. To add on that he is someone who has set goals to achieve. On the other hand 'Rappaccini's Daughter' by Nathaniel Hawthorne covers a lot about romance. It is in this where we learn of a young intelligent man who falls in love with a woman who he met recently but unfortunately their affair meets a disastrous ending.

Poe's part of the story begins on a very low mood where it is a dull, dark and a soundless night during the autumn season. The narrator clearly brings out the aspect of a style which clearly develops and rhymes with the whole plot of the story. Imagery develops, for instance it has an inner meaning of some sense of death and decay. The narrator is alongside other two characters namely Madeline and Roderick Usher. The "Fall of the House of Usher" as a title by itself has also a deeper meaning. It illustrates how unity has been lost in this house. This becomes evident as it is clearly seen that every detail in the story, from the opening description of the dark rooms to the unseen storm help to convey the terror within Usher's mind.

Madeline and Roderick suffer both suffer a strange illness. Despite the fact that they are twins, their illness seems to be abnormal in nature. It is believed to have been caused by the lifestyle they are leading and in this case it might have been attributed by the intermarriage of the family. Roderick has a problem with his senses whereas Madeline's illness is characterized by poor conscious and this always makes her loose her consciousness and feeling. Thus being more than a brother and sister a, the twins' illness accounts a lot in their behaviors such that when one feels bad, he causes the other one pain.

Besides the fact that the two, brother and sister, are twins; it helps develop the mental and physical components of two souls. Roderick's illness makes him go nuts such that it affects his behavior to and extend of making him look like a mad person. This on the other hand affects his counterpart, Madeline, by making her constantly loose her consciousness. There is a very strong connection between the family mansion and the other members who live in it. That is why the narrator uses the phrase "House of Usher" not only to refer to the decaying structure of the house, but with a deeper meaning of the all time honored Usher's race. Thus the house itself becomes a symbol and this is according to the narrator.

In the beginning of the story, Poe describes the house as a decaying mansion with cracks and fissures on it. This crack represents the fractures in an individual body of a human being. The crack further signifies the break up of the two lovely twin personality of Roderick and Madeline of which further foretells the collapse of both the family and the mansion. It is also clearly seen that Roderick is so much attached to his twin sister Madeline. The two acts as compliments such that one cannot survive without the other. Living without Madeline is like living without his senses

In summary Poe's work including the "Fall of the House of Usher" has been influenced a lot by most of his experiences in his life. Culture also took part in this. His life has been characterized by his lifestyle. He faced poverty and was an alcoholic and this has influenced his life and work. Regardless of all the struggles, Poe is seen as an intelligent writer as he has so far been one of the greatest writers in America's history.

The book "Rappaccini's daughter" by Nathaniel Hawthorne talks about a young man who falls in love with a woman. It is much concentrated on love. Romance is thus seen to have built the whole plot, and also taken the major theme of the story. Thus Hawthorne narrates the tale of this botanist who has raised and took care of his daughter as a flower.

This story is full of hidden symbols which work hand in hand with the themes, to help develop the flow and the plot of the story. The narrator mainly focuses on Rappaccini's daughter, Beatrice to whom the young man by the name Giovanni has fallen in love with. Giovanni seems to be a neighbor to Beatrice as this works out to be the foundation of their love affair. Giovanni is also a scientist by nature as he is capable to examine and also treat not only flowers but also plants. The setting of the story is much in line with the main theme such that the garden is filled with pure vegetation and poisonous flowers.

To some extend, Giovanni notes that Rappaccini avoids taking care of the exotic flowers in his garden but her daughter , Beatrice does this well. She touches and caresses them just as the way her father loves her. It is thus proved thus the setting of the story is based purely on love. For instance, the fatherly love as seen expressed towards her daughter and also the natural love as seen expressed by Giovanni towards Beatrice. The flowers flourish under Beatrice care. Imagery develops as a stylistic device. Rappaccini's garden makes us recall the Garden of Eden that was given to Adam, Eve and the serpent. Thus imagery is seen as a similar style which has developed in the two stories. In this case of study, Beatrice represents the serpent. She is very poisonous and once she poisons you will get trapped within her. This is what happens to Giovanni, who is deeply in love with her that no one could convince him of Beatrice's' poison, even her father.

Evilness is also another theme that develops. Even though it is a minor theme, it plays a slightly extensive role in the story. Rappaccini values his science than humankind and thus poisons his garden and his daughter who takes care of the flowers. Beatrice on the other hand is forced to tell the truth about his poisonous nature to Giovanni. This makes Giovanni betray his heart and as a result he ends up being affected by the poison. The reason behind the poisoning of Beatrice was to protect her from all the maliciousness in the world. Thus the poisoning of Giovanni was to secure him for Beatrice and make him her future companion. This is what is common even up to date. Many scientists neglect their hearts to work in favor of experiments of which is unhealthy, unforgiving and unfair.

In summary, Rappaccini is seen as a very tragic hero who tries to defend God's creation and protect his daughter. Hawthorne develops the theme of power. Rappaccini has that lust of power, being a scientist, he makes use of his knowledge to try and imitate God by only superseding His creation. This is evident with all that he has done to her Beatrice and Giovanni in the name of love. All of these malicious acts in the play are seen as sins. In conclusion, the two stories are used to bring out mainly the themes of romance in its evil way, lust for power, poverty and individual's personality which have contributed to the flow of the stories.