Two 19th century American short stories reveal different uses of negative human traits to evoke emotional response in the reader. “Rip Van Winkle,” by Washington Irving, exposes the human tendency toward idleness and self indulgence, suggesting that people who are too lazy to accept personal and social responsibilities contribute so little that they may as well be dead. “The Fall of the House of Usher,” by Edgar Allan Poe, uses conventions of the ghost story to underscore the damaging effects of upper-class inbreeding.
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