During a dull, dark, and soundless day in autumn, when the clouds hung oppressively low, I had been passing alone, on horseback, through a singularly dreary tract of country. At length I found myself, as the shades of the evening drew on, within view of the melancholy House of Usher. I know not how it was but, with the first glimpse of the building, a sense of insufferable gloom pervaded my spirit. I looked upon the scene before me—upon the mere house, upon the vacant eye-like windows, upon a few rank marsh plants, and upon a few white trunks of decayed trees—with an utter depression of soul which I can compare to no earthly sensation. There was an iciness, a sinking, a sickening of the heart—an unredeemed dreariness which no goading of the imagination could transform into something sublime. What was it, I paused to think, what was it that so unnerved me about the House of Usher?
Nevertheless, in this mansion of gloom I now proposed to spend several weeks. Its owner, Roderick Usher, had been one of my friends in boyhood. Many years had passed since we last met. A letter, however, had reached me in a distant part of the country—a letter which had required nothing less than a personal reply. Usher's letter spoke of illness—of a mental disorder which oppressed him—and of an earnest desire to see me, as his best and indeed his only personal friend. His desire was that through my cheerfulness I could help to alleviate his malady. It was the way it was said, it was the heart that went with his request, which allowed me no room for hesitation. I accordingly obeyed forthwith.

1
Select the correct answer.
What conflict might the underlined passage foreshadow?

A.
The gloomy effect of the house will challenge the narrator’s attempts to cheer his friend.
B.
The house’s “vacant eye-like windows” and the “decayed” landscape will mirror Roderick’s mental state.
C.
The house will undergo a full renovation under the narrator’s direction, much to the owner’s dismay.
D.
Roderick will move, leaving his friend in charge of complicated legal matters regarding its sale.
E.
Roderick will die, leaving the house to the narrator, who will fix it up and sell it for profit.