Dec 19, 2009

The Fall of the House of Usher | Topics for Further Study

Examine the lyric "The Haunted Palace" written by Roderick Usher in "The Fall of the House of Usher'' and discuss how it reflects Roderick's mental and emotional state.

Read the short story "The Yellow Wallpaper" (1892) by Charlotte Perkins Gilman and compare and contrast the portrayal of mental breakdown in each story.

Poe's fictional works and critical theories greatly impacted nineteenth-century literature, particularly the French symbolist movement. Research and discuss Poe's influence on such French writers as Charles Baudelaire and Paul Valery.