52 pages • 1 hour read
T. KingfisherWhat Moves the Dead
Fiction | Novella | Adult | Published in 2022A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Chapters 7-9Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Chapter 7 Summary
Content Warning: This section of the guide contains descriptions of suicide.
In the morning, Easton talks to Roderick about Madeline. Roderick reveals that Madeline’s maid died three months ago. When Easton urges Roderick to take action, he angrily asks what he is supposed to do. His anger fades, and he admits that he has thought about burning down the house, but Denton enters and suggests that Easton meant that Roderick should hire another doctor. Denton knows that he cannot diagnose or treat Madeline’s condition; he understands why Madeline is losing hair but not why it is regrowing so quickly. Roderick refuses to bring in another specialist because he does not want Madeline to undergo examinations and tests.
After visiting Hob and feeding apples to him and Denton’s horse, Easton goes to the house’s library, hoping to find books that might have information about hares. Unfortunately, all of the books have been ruined by the damp, moldy conditions of the house. Easton jokes that the Ushers should have stayed in Gallacia, and Roderick agrees. Before Roderick’s mother died, she had lived in Gallacia to avoid the Ruravian house of Usher. Roderick knows that Madeline won’t leave, and he fears that the house will kill both her and himself. Easton goes to Denton to ask if he knows anything about hares, but he does not know much; however, he posits that the same disease might impact both hares and humans, as rabies does. Easton asks about Madeline’s maid and learns that she died by suicide, not a disease. Denton agrees to examine a hare if Easton will bring him one.
The following day, Hob almost steps on a hare. To make sure that the hare is sick, Easton waits for the hare to move, and it moves more quickly than ka expects it to. Ka follows the hare and finds two others, all of which are standing and staring at kan. Easton shoots one of the hares; it falls, but the others do not move. More strange hares appear as Easton waits for a wave of tinnitus to pass. Ka then picks up the dead hare, but the hare moves, so ka throws it in revulsion. The dead hare crawls a short distance and lifts itself back into a sitting position, staring at Easton, who flees.
Easton wonders if the hare was not really dead, although ka had shot it in the head. Easton tells Denton about the incident, and he is concerned despite Easton’s attempts to downplay the event. Denton then suggests that Easton did not miss the shot. He posits that the hare was in fact dead but then dismisses his own idea, calling himself “as fanciful as Roderick” (90).
Chapter 8 Summary
Easton sleeps relatively well that night, waking briefly upon hearing a man cry out. Ka wakes in the morning to the sound of Roderick playing piano and cheers when he finishes his song, which startles him. Easton learns that Madeline died in the night after a cataleptic fit, and Denton has confirmed her death. Easton asks to see Madeline. Roderick and Denton lead Easton to the crypt, which is under the house. The crypt is behind an arched door that is locked and barred. Inside, Madeline’s shrouded body lies on a slab, and a dark hallway leads to the tombs of other deceased Ushers. Easton drops down and prays, and they all return upstairs.
Roderick is jumpy and claims to hear worms eating at the house. After dinner, Easton goes to the library with a bottle of livrit. Ka doesn’t understand why ka is so upset since ka was not very close with the Ushers. Angus finds Easton after Easton gets drunk, and he puts kan to bed. Easton wakes up with a hangover, which was intentional, as the hangover will help to smother the grief. At breakfast, Roderick says that he heard Madeline knocking on the crypt door during the night. Easton suggests that they leave, but Roderick refuses, claiming that he wants to wait until after Madeline is laid to rest. Easton is frustrated but admits that Gallacia has superstitions surrounding death. There, people sit with bodies for three days to ensure that the person is truly deceased.
Easton internally repeats, “The dead don’t walk” (100). While reflecting on the hare that ka shot, ka realizes that there are no rats in the house, which is strange. After going for a ride and eating dinner with the others, Easton returns to kan room and finishes the dregs of the livrit. Angus asks how long they are staying at the house, and Easton decides on a limit of three days. In the middle of the night, Easton returns to the crypt, lifts Madeline’s shroud, and discovers that Madeline’s neck is broken.
Chapter 9 Summary
The next morning at breakfast, Easton ponders which of kan companions killed Madeline. Ka reasons that because Denton examined the body and must have noticed the broken neck, he might also be the murderer; however, Denton could also be covering for Roderick. Easton reflects, “If there was ever a man wracked by a guilty conscience, it was Roderick Usher” (105). When Easton’s fork scrapes kan plate, Roderick screams, blames his nerves, and says that he must be hearing things.
Easton takes Hob out for a ride and spurs Hob to move faster when ka sees a hare. Reflecting on an earlier conversation with a sheep farmer, Easton remembers that diseases can present differently in different species and wonders if Roderick’s fear is a symptom. Ka sees three more hares before finding Miss Potter, who is working on a painting of another mushroom. The sight makes Easton question if Madeline’s disease was caused by a fungus. Miss Potter agrees that some fungal infections—like ringworm and thrush—are common, while some are rare and others are fatal. She tells Easton that there is also a fungus that actively hunts nematodes using a net of hyphae, or filaments, which often look like white hairs. Easton brings Miss Potter to the Usher house and leads her to the crypt to examine Madeline’s body and the white hairs on it. Miss Potter is hesitant but agrees. However, when they get to the crypt, Madeline’s body is missing.
Chapters 7-9 Analysis
These chapters intensify the suspenseful tone and offer further insights into the characters’ inner struggles and the implications of their circumstances. As everyone becomes more deeply affected by The Psychological Impact of Isolation and Environment, Roderick’s increasing anxiety and Easton’s morose reaction to the ever-more-ominous events enhance Kingfisher’s focus on Gothic tropes and patterns. At the same time, the focus on Mycology and the Possibility of Intelligent Fungi seasons this structure with a blend of science fiction and horror, especially as Easton realizes that Madeline likely contracted a fatal fungal infection.
The richness of Kingfisher’s descriptions is designed to indicate the extensive psychological turmoil that Roderick, Easton, and Denton are experiencing. For example, Roderick’s anger when Easton encourages him to “do something” demonstrates his desperation to help his sister combined with his inability to make any appreciable difference in the situation, and the raw frustration of his tone reflects this dilemma when he exclaims, “Don’t you think I know? Don’t you think I’d fix it if I could? Take her to Paris—blow up this damned house—fill in that accursed lake—” (79). Not only does his response reflect his helplessness, but the sudden cut-off of his last sentence also places emphasis on the significance of the setting, developing The Psychological Impact of Isolation and Environment. As Roderick explicitly expresses his negative feelings toward the house and the tarn, the scene implicitly indicates that the setting itself plays an antagonistic role in the plot, and although the sentient fungus has yet to be identified, Kingfisher nonetheless implies that Roderick has the same illness as Madeline and is destined to suffer a similar decline. The presence of the strange white hairs on Roderick’s body also indicates the presence of Mycology and the Possibility of Intelligent Fungi, but because Roderick can still express his dislike of the tarn, it is clear that the fungal infection has not yet commandeered Roderick’s brain.
The Psychological Impact of Isolation and Environment is also developed through Easton’s and Denton’s mutual unease and reminiscences of their traumatic experiences of war. These scenes allude to post-traumatic stress disorder, especially when the narrative directly references the concept of “soldier’s heart,” a term that describes soldiers’ increased risk of developing heart conditions (Pollard, Harvey B., et al. “‘Soldier’s Heart’: A Genetic Basis for Elevated Cardiovascular Disease Risk Associated with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.” Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience, 2016). Specifically, Denton describes the lasting impact of his time at war, saying, “Soldier’s heart, we called it after the war. I once had a bit of an episode because they had lined the street with flags, and […] they were all snapping…the sound wasn’t like cannon fire at all, but it still was, you know?” (89). Easton’s full empathy with Denton’s experience shows that the isolated ruin of Usher is dramatically impacting the well-being of the two visitors. The characters’ conversations also develop The Reinterpretation of Classic Literature, for during this historical time frame, psychological war trauma was not well understood. By describing the effects of war-related trauma on Denton and Easton, Kingfisher incorporates an intimate and sympathetic view of war veterans. While the characters’ status as veterans has no direct impact on the plot, it does enhance Kingfisher’s nuanced and widely ranging critique of the dominant issues and social patterns of this time frame. The scene also helps to create a more endearing and relatable portrait of Denton, thoroughly humanizing him in advance of Easton’s later suspicions upon the discovery that the deceased Madeline’s neck is broken. By portraying Denton through a sympathetic lens, Kingfisher prevents him from becoming an antagonist for his role in Madeline’s death.
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