impse of the lady Madeline firsthand; rather, we see her through the Narrators limited glimpses and Ushers accounts, since she never speaks. She is probably the most essential to the plot, as it is his concern over her that causes Ushers insanity to decline, as well as her premature burial and escape that kill both of the siblings, and the house, in the end.The point of view in the story, which is first person, is told from an atypical viewpoint, as it is not the protagonist confessing to his crime; rather, we know little about the Narrator, who is the observer and/or participant in the story. In this way, the reader is further drawn into the story by becoming the narrator, thus making the fantasy of the story more of a reality, and contributing to the horrific effects of each incident. This point of view is also very effective by the Narrator not fully knowing what is going on, so that the surprises are more of a shock to the unsuspecting reader.The structure of the story entraps the reader within the first five paragraphs. The composition of the story gives the reader a sense of being confined within the house of which they are reading, as well as being inside a tomb (the house) while the storm (the rest of the world) rages on outside. The setting of the story also contributes from the very first sentence, dull, dark, and soundless day clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens within view of the melancholy House of Usher. From these first words, the reader, as a result of Poes imagery, is aware of the sense of death and decay. These themes are further expanded on when the House itself is described as, bleak walls, upon the vacant eye-like windows, a few rank sedges, and upon a few white trunks of decayed treeswith an utter depression of soul The setting is important to the plot as it sets the tone of melancholy for the story, with its rural, bleak landscape, and old-fashioned feel. The constancy of a drab, dull, and lifel...
