# Roderick Usher — Short Fiction character guide

> Roderick Usher in Short Fiction by Edgar Allan Poe.

**Role:** major

**Also known as:** Usher

**First appearance:** 0025-the-fall-of-the-house-of-usher

## Snapshot

A hypersensitive aristocrat who summons his boyhood friend to a decaying mansion, hoping companionship might ease a malady of body and mind.

## Who they are

Usher is the last of an ancient, branchless line, his family and its house so merged that the peasantry call both by one name. His letter—wildly importunate, evidence of nervous agitation—draws the narrator to the tarn-side mansion where an atmosphere peculiar to the place seems to hang. His excessive reserve, his devotion to strange art and music, and the oppressive sympathy between himself and his sister define the early arc's suffocating grip.

## Relationships

### [Unknown Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/characters/unknown_narrator)

_friendship_

The narrator is an old childhood friend summoned to comfort the ailing and morbidly sensitive Roderick Usher.

### [Unknown Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/characters/unknown_narrator)

_friendship_

The narrator is an old childhood friend summoned to comfort the ailing and morbidly sensitive Roderick Usher.

### [Unknown Narrator](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/characters/unknown_narrator)

_friendship_

The narrator is an old childhood friend summoned to comfort the ailing and morbidly sensitive Roderick Usher.

## In the story

### [Edgar Allan Poe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/chapters/edgar-allan-poe)

Character from Poe's tale 'The Fall of the House of Usher,' cited as an example of his work.

### [The Life of Edgar Allan Poe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/chapters/the-life-of-edgar-allan-poe)

Referenced as the central figure in Poe's tale 'The House of Usher', which is praised for its classic style.

### [The Death of Edgar Allan Poe](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/chapters/the-death-of-edgar-allan-poe)

Mentioned as a character from Poe's 'Fall of the House of Usher,' used to illustrate the traces of Poe's personal character in his works.

### [Short Fiction](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/chapters/short-fiction)

Central figure in 'The Fall of the House of Usher,' suffering from acute sensory illness and a deep bond with his sister.

### [Metzengerstein](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/chapters/metzengerstein)

Not present in this chapter.

### [Mystification](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/chapters/mystification)

Not present in this chapter; no match found.

### [The Fall of the House of Usher](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/chapters/the-fall-of-the-house-of-usher)

Roderick is the host, suffering from acute nervous agitation and a morbid sensitivity; he fears the impending death of his sister and the influence of the house.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/characters/roderick_usher
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_14_se/characters