Depression is one of the leading problems in society today. Not only does it take over one’s life, but it can lead to so many other bad things, such as problems with one’s appetite, low self-esteem, and even self-harm. Depression is a major problem in society today, but it is not a new disease. It has been around for hundreds of years and is quite evident in the short story, The Fall of the House of Usher, written by Edgar Allan Poe in 1839. This story shows the end of Roderick Usher and his sister’s life while they try to fight off depression’s tight grip on them. Rodrick gets the help of his childhood best friend, but his sister is left alone to die. Although this short story was written 177 years ago, the ideas and concepts that the story shows are still very much a part of society today. Back when this short story was written it was very hard for doctors to study what was going on in the mind of those who were suffering from depression, but now with all of the advances we have in technology and medicine, we can do very in-depth research. Roderick Usher’s depression and eventual death were brought on by the environment that he grew up in and was living in, and by how isolated from society he was. These concepts have been studied and the research has shown that there is a very distinct connection to one’s environment and how isolated they are, and the effects of depression on them. Roderick was effected by how far he was isolated from society because of where the Usher’s estate was located and how he had no social connections with anyone.

First, Roderick Usher was severely depressed and maybe even suicidal when he called the narrator for help. Roderick was in a very dark place and knew he needed to do something soon to try to get out of it. Without the help of his friend, Usher could have been at his end. When the Narrator first arrived at the Usher’s Estate, Roderick seems to be at his wits end. Doctors cannot tell him what is wrong but it is easy for readers to identify that he is depressed. He is sad and physically and mental down and needed to be picked up by his friend. The narrator spends days just trying to cheer up Usher, but it had little effect. This is a classic sign of depression. Danielle M. Restrepo, Megan S. Chesin, and Elizabeth L. Jeglic conducted a study where they tested to see if there was a connection between social maladjustment, childhood abuse and suicidal behavior, and their researched led them to find that there was a very distinct connection to depression and suicide in people that grew up or lived in a bad environment. They found that social maladjustment led to depression later in life in children and teens that were subject to both physical and mental abuse (Restrepo, Chesin, Jeglic). This can cover a wide variety of problems that happen in a house hold, but their research showed that the more frequent and more intense that the abuse that the child or teen was put through, led to higher levels of depression and even a higher rate of suicide. Though Usher is not a child, he is still living in a home where social maladjustment and breaking social norms happens often through his social isolation, decaying house and stagnant property, and incestuous family. If Roderick had lived in a normal house and grew up with a normal family, he would have a much more positive outlook on life. If he had closer neighbors and people he could talk to and associate with n a normal basis, his life would not be so dark. He would have a much high chance of not being depressed, but coming from the home where he was raised, he was almost set up to become depressed. Living in his house led Usher to depression and could have killed him if the Narrator did not come to help, and if his sister had not killed him first.

To expand on the idea that Roderick was suicidal, one can infer that since he called the Narrator out of the blue, he must have really been at his lowest point. Roderick and the Narrator had not talked in many years, but they were best friends when they were growing up. Roderick knew that he was falling down a deep dark hole and wanted to go back to a time when things were easier and pleasant so he wanted to reconnect with his childhood friend. Roderick might not have had the best childhood, but his friend the Narrator could cheer him up, and he hoped that he could help him get out of his depression. In Restrepo, Chesin, and Jeglic’s research, they have found that “once depression sinks in, it is nearly impossible to get rid of”.  And their research also shows that the deeper one’s depression gets, the more of a chance of suicidal though appearing in a person’s mind. Even if Roderick was able to lighten his mood while the Narrator was there, he would slip back into depression when the Narrator left to go back to his home. And if that happened, Roderick might have turned to suicide as his only way away from the pain that is inside of him. The best way for Roderick to try to diminish the depression in him would be to have the Narrator move into the Usher’s estate with him. But even with that, after a while the depression would come back because Roderick would slowly go back to his normal life. His childhood friend may have help for a short period of time, but the depression that was in Roderick was in there deep and to get that out would take an entire lifestyle change. 

Secondly, growing up in a home where your family tree is linear could have led to the maltreatment of Roderick Usher, leading to his depression later in life. Usher grew up in a house where this family only form of reproduction was incest, and when that happens, there can be a lot of problems that arise in a home like that. There is no information given about Usher’s childhood or any other member of his family besides his sister but one can infer that since everyone in the family was born from incest, Usher’s parents could have had some problems that would make them unfit to care for him. This can lead to abuse on both the physical and emotional level and that would have damaged Roderick severely. Aida Dias, Luísa Sales, David Hessen and Rolf Kleber published a study in the European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry academic journal where they studied the effects of childhood and teenage maltreatment. They found that “any form of maltreatment, including physical, verbal, and emotional abuse as well as neglect all had connections to depression and emotional problems later in life” (Dias, Sales, Hessen, Kleber). Receiving maltreatment as a child or teen could have easily happen to Usher. Coming from a home like he was from, it would be almost too easy for Roderick to experience maltreatment. With the little information given about Roderick’s early life, one can infer that since he turned out depressed in his later life, that he suffered some form of maltreatment. This leads one to see that Usher’s depression could have come from something from much earlier in his life. This could also be why the Usher family line ends so quickly because no member of the Ushers was ever able to outlive the depression that they acquired from a childhood of maltreatment. This could cause a very vicious cycle and could be one of the key reasons why maltreatment is seen in the Usher’s family, and why no member of the family ever lives a long, full life. 

Additionally, the fact that Roderick Usher and his family’s estate was so isolated from society could have played a major role in his development of his depression. The Usher’s estate was set far back in the country with no neighbors near and with all the problems the family faced, they would never leave the house. This is a very serious case of isolation and can be the catalyst for problems. The American Journal of Public Health published an article in November of 2016 about the effects of isolation. The article was titled, A Prospective Study of Social Isolation, Loneliness, and Mortality in Finland. In this article, they researched to see if there is a connection between isolation and mortality. They tested four different types of isolation. These include living alone, not being in contact with family members that they do not live with, isolation from friends, and not participating in associational life. They saw that “in every level of isolation, there was a distinct connection to the mortality of the people being isolated” (Tanskanen & Anttila). As the levels increased and the subject was more and more isolated, the rate of mortality increased. Also, there was a connection to the level of isolation the individual was subject to and the level of loneliness that they felt. The high the level of isolation, the lonelier the individual felt. This study can make a clear connection to what was happening to the Ushers and how their downfall was so easily achieved. The Usher’s estate was set far away from any other home. Since the Ushers were isolated from everyone but themselves they were not at the fullest extent of isolation, but through the study above, it is shown that it does not matter what level they are on, there is still a connection to their mortality rate. One could can see why the Ushers could not prosper on their land just do to the fact of how isolated from the rest of the world.

To add, Tanskanen and Anttila also researched the effect of loneliness and the connection it has with depression. Roderick was all alone in his house except for his sick sister. He had no one to talk to or even see. The research that Tanskanen and Anttila collected showed that there is a very distinct connection between loneliness and depression. The research showed that “the lonelier someone becomes, the higher their rate of depression is” (Tanskanen & Anttila). Knowing this lets one see how serious Roderick’s depression really was. He was isolated and lonely his entire life and this depression could have just been building and brewing up inside of him. When Roderick called the Narrator for help, he probably knew he was at his wits end. If the Narrator had not shown up to help, it probably would have been the end for Roderick right then and there, but the Narrator came but it was too late. Roderick had suffered for too long and his body and mind could take it no longer. The Narrator just prolonged Roderick’s life a little while longer, but with the Narrator’s help or not, Roderick’s time was up. The effect of loneliness had gotten to him and depression was taking over his life. The Ushers were beaten down by loneliness and were pushed into depression because of their isolation. 

Not only was Roderick feeling the effects of the environment, but his sister was too. Roderick’s sister was sick from the beginning of the story and no doctor could tell her what was wrong. This was due to the fact that back in the 1800’s, doctors did not have the technology or the medicine to study what happens in the human brain. The doctors in the story were so baffled by what was happening to Roderick’s sister that they wanted to study her corpse when she “’passed’, but Roderick would not let that happen. Roderick would have most likely ended up just like his sister if he had not gotten help from the Narrator. If Roderick’s sister had been able to call a friend to help her, like her brother did, she may have been able to be saved, but for her it was too late and her time had come. Roderick’s sister received little to no help for her depression and it finally wore away at her and her time came to move on. If the doctors had the medicine we have today, they might have been able to save her It probably would have been a smarter decision for Roderick to allow the doctors to study his sister because then they would have found that she was still alive at the time, Roderick would still be alive, and they would have been able to see what was happening in Roderick’s sisters brain and see how depression was effecting it. Since both of the Ushers living in the house were effected in almost the same way from their environment, one can clearly see that where you live has a very strong connection to your health. 

Lastly, since the Usher’s estate is so isolated, Roderick has little to no connection to any other people around him. The Usher’s estate was set away from all other homes and the Usher’s had little to no contact with their neighbors, if they even had them. Having little to no social connections is an extreme form of isolation and can cause serious problems for people. Another study that was conducted by Wisconsin Rural Women’s Initiative, studied the connection of the health of women based on where they lived. Most of the researched was found from women that lived in very rural areas, mush like that if where the Usher’s estate is located. The study showed that there is a “very strong connection to the health of women and where they live and it was shown that the more isolated the women was, the poorer her health was” (Tittman,

Harteau, & Beyer). One of the most important things that was found from this study was that our social connections with others has a very strong connection to health and without the social connections that we need, we will eventually fall ill and die. This again connections directly to the short story The Fall of the House of Usher because it directly relates to what Roderick Usher’s sister went through. She was so isolated from everyone else that she could not maintain her social connections and she did fall ill just like the study said she would. Not only can isolation effect women though. All through this study was only done on women, one can infer that the effects of isolation that Tittman, Harteau, and Beyer studied could also affect men in the same way. Men and women have their differences but mental health can be affect both genders in the same way. They both need to maintain social interactions with others or else, as the research shows, they can fall into a deep, dark depression. 

All in all, depression is a very serious problem in every society. Whether it is 1839, or 2016, people can and will be effected by it. Research has shown that isolation and the environment you live in are major factors that determine if you will become depressed. And not only can depression happen, but it can lead to many worse things, one of the absolute worst being suicide. This is a problem that society needs to be aware of because if we are not, it could go on for another 177 more years and that could result in even more problems and even more deaths because we did not pay it enough attention. We need to continue to study the human mind to see what actually happens in it while someone is going through depression so that we can truly understand what they are going through and what would be the best and most effective way to help them get better. We need to care about others and show support for our friends just like how the Narrator was there to help Roderick, because if we are not there to help, people with depression can very easily end up like Roderick’s sister.
