Gothic Novel

Gothic novel
Introduction
A Gothic novel can be characterised by its setting and content. Gothic novels are
often set in a decaying castle, mansion, or abbey, and contain mystery, suspense, terror, or
something otherworldly that cannot be rationally explained.
Origin
Gothicism‘s origin is attributed to English author Horace Walpole's 1764 novel The
Castle of Otranto. It is set during the Crusades in Italy in a medieval castle, home to Prince
Manfred of Otranto. The story contains phantoms, visions, a family curse, and secret
passages. Fittingly, Walpole wrote it as the result of a vivid dream he had.
Although Walpole called his tale a Gothic tale in its second edition, he did not use the
term again; the word ‘Gothic’ in this context came into use mainly during the 19th century.
Characteristics
1. pure, good-natured' female heroines who often find themselves in the hands of
psychopathic individuals
2. dumb, easily scared and lower-class servants
3. remote locations (other countries in Europe) and times that have long gone by (which
we must approach from the perspective of the first readers of these novels, so often
the (early) Middle Ages)
4. dark castles and creepy mansions
5. corrupt Catholic clergy and old ruined clerical buildings
6. corrupt nobles
7. uncaring family and 'friends'
8. love interests that are far away
9. mysterious situations like locked doors, secret hidden rooms, strange lights, eerie
sounds and missing portraits
10. supernatural events or characters
11. wild, foreboding nature in the form of, for instance, violent storms or deep, dark
forests
12. oppressed or 'deviant' sexuality
Peak Popularity and Famous Examples of Gothic Novels
Then, around the turn of the century, just after the French Revolution, when
industrialization began gathering steam and romanticism emerged, the quality and quantity
of gothic novel production went through the roof.
Examples -
1. First of all, Ann Radcliffe emerged, who is still seen as the best and most exemplary
classical gothic writer. Her novels, especially The Mysteries of Udolpho, became
known for using the already established tropes in the best kind of way.
2. Then The Monk by Matthew Gregory Lewis was published, which shocked and
excited readers with immorality and incest and introduced the trope of the corrupt
Catholic clergy.
Northanger Abbey
During this time, the genre was at its highest point, as evidenced by the fact that its
first parodies and criticisms emerged shortly after. One of the most important of these is
Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey.
In this novel, Austen shows the obsession with gothic novels of the time period in the
form of young heroine Isabella Thorpe who, through her love of all things gothic, is deceived
into thinking that people and places are more dangerous and deceitful than they really are.
Late Gothic Novels and Gothic Influence
After its peak, the sturdy assembly of tropes that was the gothic novel largely
crumbled, but all its parts remained successful. There were more scathing parodies, like
Thomas Love Peacock's Nightmare Abbey, but the novel crumbled as well from within.
Gothic narratives began to include more original settings, plots and themes and thus
began to water down their essence.
Examples of such late, less gothic novels are -
1. Dracula, which included a contemporary time period, effectively bringing the gothic
past into the here-and-now
2. Wuthering Heights, which focused on realistic social horror
3. Frankenstein, which introduced moral and philosophical questions and a scientific
theme
Moreover, borders between the genre and other genres began disappearing, for
instance, poetry borrowed from the Gothic and poets like Byron became a new type of gothic
hero.
Victorian and 20th-Century Ghost Stories
During the Victorian age and the 20th century, the lines moreover also blurred
because of a host of new genres taking aspects from the gothic novel.
● Ghost stories became popular, and writers like Charles Dickens and Sheridan Le
Fanu used many gothic tropes in them as well.
● Psychological thrillers, fantasy and crime drama early on also took from the gothic,
which can, for instance, be seen in the work of Edgar Allen Poe.
The Gothic Today
Today, the gothic can primarily be seen as an element within other genres and within
specific stories. Most people, however, would not refer to these elements as 'gothic' but
rather as 'creepy', 'mysterious', 'ghostly', 'Victorian', 'romantic', 'horror'
Stories that are clearly gothic often are reinterpretations or adaptations of original
gothic novels, like Dracula, but even those are no longer categorized under 'gothic.'
Many people, however, clearly still enjoy the gothic as a genre. Classical gothic
books are still widely read, and gothic themes are still popular elements to include in horror
movies or Halloween decorations.

Gothic Novel

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gothic Novel

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gothic Novel

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Gothic novel

Peak Popularity and Famous Examples of Gothic Novels

Late Gothic Novels and Gothic Influence

Examples of such late, less gothic novels are -

Victorian and 20th-Century Ghost Stories

The Gothic Today

You might also like

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.