Comparison and Contrast Essay

                In this essay there will be different points to be compared. There are two stories and some points of the story are the ones that will be compared or contrasted. The stories are “The Fall of the House of Usher” by Edgar Allan Poe and “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner. The authors will be compared and contrasted, also some of the characters and the setting of both stories.

                The authors of the stories are not that similar, Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, and also he was considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Likewise, William Faulkner was an American writer, he wrote novels, short stories, a play, poetry, essays and screenplays throughout his career. Edgar and William had very different childhoods, Edgar was abandoned by his father and soon after he left his mother died. On the other hand William lived with his family and was perfectly fine. Edgar was unofficially adopted by a man named John Allan and that the reason Edgar is known as Edgar Allan Poe, because he felt part of John’s family.  However William added a “u” in his last name and there were no specific reason involved. Also they were both alcoholics and both married.

                The character of Emily in “A Rose for Emily” ,she started off as a very vibrant girl but after her father dies she turns into a very reserved and lonely woman, unlike Madeline in “The Fall of the House of Usher” she was always a very sick and ‘dark’. There is also Homer Baron in “A Rose for Emily”, who is a large man with a dark complexion and light-colored eyes and was a ladies’ man. On the other hand there is Roderick Usher in “The Fall of the House of Usher” who was a very sick man; he was very pale and very lonely.  There are many other characters in this stories but this are some that had more importance for me.

                The settings in both stories are not very similar but are not very different. In “A Rose for Emily” the story is developed in Yoknapatawpha, which is a place invented by Faulkner that was based on the place he used to live in that was Lafayette County, Mississippi, also it is in a very nice community and her house turns into a place where people do not come in or out. However, in “The Fall of the House of Usher” the setting isn’t as important as the atmosphere and the mood in the setting. Besides the fact that the setting is the Usher mansion, which is portrayed as a very creepy and dark place, the story is more emphasized on how the setting makes you feel. In this story is all about feeling the tension and the darkness of the story, is all about making you feel that you are in the horror story.

                There are many differences between the story, the authors and the characters in the story, but also there are some similarities, is all about finding where are those differences and similarities. The stories are very interesting and somewhat similar, but you will need to focus on both stories to understand completely everything in both stories.  In conclusion, these stories have been very different from what I have read before but also have been very interesting too.