Final answer:
The characters in "Fall of the House of Usher" and "House Taken Over" share the themes of isolation and decay, reflecting the characters' own deteriorating mental states through the symbolic decaying houses.
Step-by-step explanation:
The characters in Edgar Allan Poe's "Fall of the House of Usher" and "House Taken Over" are similar primarily in their shared themes of isolation and decay. Both stories delve into the bleak and dreary settings, where characters face the inevitable decline of their homes and sanity. The houses in both stories are not just physical structures, but symbolic extensions of the characters' own deteriorating mental states, acting as mirrors that reflect their owners' doom.
In "The Fall of the House of Usher," Poe crafts a world that is steeped in darkness and fatalism. Roderick Usher, alongside his decaying mansion, symbolizes the decline of that which was once vibrant and alive. The use of mirror images contributes to the themes of the story, intensifying feelings of hopelessness and despair. Mirror reflections feature prominently, from the literal reflection of the house in the tarn to the figurative reflections on the nature of Usher and his family's plight.