Daniel Hoffman says of the House of Usher: »It is no house at all, but a profound and intricate metaphor of the self.« Discuss.

A sense of the supernatural and mystic surrounding the house pervades the narration from the very beginning. The house is personalised, as the narrator and Roderick attribute to it the ability to influence people (its inhabitants as well as the narrator). We are thus made to consider it as more than merely a part of the background for the story. The first hint at the house being a metaphor of the self is given in …

…dead, and finally dies, the house collapses as well. Since the Usher race no longer exists, the House of Usher cannot either. In light of the indisputable parallel drawn between the house and its inhabitants, Hoffman's statement seems quite accurate. The house in the House of Usher can indeed be perceived as a metaphor of the self; profound because of what it expresses and intricate because of the various ways in which it is expressed.