Tension in Poe, O'Connor and Lovecraft's Works

Paper Summary:

The paper shows how Edgar Allan Poe in "Fall of the House of Usher" and O'Connor in "A Good Man is Hard to Find" both build tension in their stories by describing the complexities of individuals. The paper then examines H.P. Lovecraft's "The Horror at Red Hook" and how he focuses on the overall evil atrocities of a cult to build the tension in his story. The paper therefore highlights the differing approaches to building tension; Poe's narrator, similar to O'Connor's narrative, is keenly focused on the individual nature of man, while Lovecraft's narrator is focused on the overall evil of mankind.

From the Paper:

"In Poe's "Fall of the House of Usher," from the very beginning, tragedy and fear bleed into the story. The narrator is haunted by his own perception: ordinary things are laden with decay and desolation. Poe builds tension by showing how the narrator's every effort to change his perspective is wasted. Even when he attempts to reshuffle his view of these sinister objects, he is unable, and finds he must flee from the ominous setting.
"The nameless narrator is trapped because he feels he must not dishonor his endearing youthful friendship with Roderick Usher: "It was the apparent heart that went with his request--which allowed me no room for hesitation" (55). The tension is built through an inability of the narrator: the helplessness in figuring out what "unnerved" him.

More papers on Tension in Poe, O'Connor and Lovecraft's Works:

• Analytical Essay # 127647 : "O'Connor and Welty"
• Comparison Essay # 71219 : "Flannery O'Connor and Alice Walker"
• Comparison Essay # 73939 : "O'Connor and Hodgins"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: