The Fall of the House of Usher EAP

1. DURING the whole of a dull, dark, and soundless day in the autumn of the year, when the clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country; and at length found myself, as the shades of the evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher. The Fall of the House of Usher EAP

2. There was no possibility of taking a walk that day. We had been wandering, indeed, in the leafless shrubbery an hour in the morning; but since dinner (Mrs. Reed, when there was no company, dined early) the cold winter wind had brought with it clouds so sombre, and a rain so penetrating, that further out-door exercise was now out of the question. Jane Eyre CB

3. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way--in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only. Tale of Two Cities CD

4. At the lake shore there was another rowboat drawn up. The two Indians stood waiting. “Indian Camp” EH

5. Hemingway’s Style • Stark minimalist nature • Grade school-like grammar • Austere word choice (severe, strict, harsh) • Short, declarative sentences • Uses language accessible to the common reader

6. What elements/themes from Hemingway’s life do you see in “Indian Camp”?

8. Hemingway’s Themes • Love and lack of it • Mortality • Suicide • Courage in the face of fear/death • Loneliness • Pain and suffering • Disillusionment (loss of naïvefaith & trust)