<P> The House of Usher , itself doubly referring both to the actual structure and the family , plays a significant role in the story . It is the first `` character '' that the narrator introduces to the reader , presented with a humanized description : its windows are described as `` eye - like '' twice in the first paragraph . The fissure that develops in its side is symbolic of the decay of the Usher family and the house `` dies '' along with the two Usher siblings . This connection was emphasized in Roderick 's poem `` The Haunted Palace '' which seems to be a direct reference to the house that foreshadows doom . </P>
when is the first time that eye in the singular is mentioned in the story
first paragraph