Angel Oquendo

Professor Kwong

ENG 3407

9/12/19

Critical Response

In both gothic stories, Castle of Otranto and The Fall of the House of Usher deal and mention paintings. The authors of these stories seem to be heavily affected by paintings in their lives to the point to write stories mentioning them. In Castle of Otranto, There was a painting made by Alfonso of his son, Theodore that was adored and evaluated for hours by the some of the women of the story, Matilda and Isabella. In The Fall of the House of Usher, there are also paintings, paintings created by a mentally unstable man by the name of Roderick Usher. Like the painting of Theodore in Castle of Otranto, the paintings that Roderick Usher produces are so realistic that it made himself “shudder” and exclaim about how they are as “vivid as their images before me”. Although these paintings are beautifully realistic, it is scary to Roderick as much as it is beautiful. The painting is uncanny to Roderick and affects him mentally and physically. He creates his paintings when he his hurting and concerning himself about his health. 

On page five, Roderick goes to create a painting and it starts with an ominous white tunnel that is shaded along the edges to make it seem like it is so far underground that it has never seen the light of the sun. The tunnel is low hanging with smooth white walls. Light rays are beaming through the tunnel but it is unclear as to where the light is coming from. 

“A small picture presented the interior of an immensely long and rectangular vault or tunnel, with low walls, smooth, white, and without interruption or device.”