Gothic Literature Subgenre of Romanticism

Gothic Literature The Beginnings… Gothic Literary tradition came to be in part from the Gothic architecture of the Middle Ages. Gothic cathedrals with irregularly placed towers and high stained-glass windows were intended to inspire awe and fear in religious worshipers.

Milan Cathedral, Italy Reims Cathedral,France Cologne Cathedral, Germany Gothic Architecture

Gargoyles—carvings of small deformed creatures squatting at the corners and crevices of Gothic cathedrals—were supposed to ward off evil spirits, but they often look more like demonic spirits themselves. Think of the gargoyle as a mascot of Gothic, and you will get an idea of the kind of imaginative distortion of reality that Gothic represents.

Gothic Literature It is an offshoot of Romantic Literature. The first Gothic Novel was The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole. Gothic Literature is the predecessor of modern horror movies in both theme and style. Gothic Literature put a spin on the Romantic idea of nature worship and nature imagery. Along with nature having the power of healing, Gothic writers gave nature the power of destruction. Frankenstein is full of the harsh reality of nature. Many storms arise in the novel, including storms the night the Creature comes to life. The most common feature of Gothic Literature is the indication of mood through the weather.

Gothic vs. Romanticism Romantic writers celebrated the beauties of nature. Gothic writers were peering into the darkness at the supernatural.  Romanticism developed as a reaction against the rationalism of the Age of Reason. The romantics freed the imagination from the hold of reason, so they could follow their imagination wherever it might lead. For some Romantics, when they looked at the individual, they saw hope.  For some Romantic writers, the imagination led to the threshold of the unknown— the shadowy region where the fantastic, the demonic and the insane reside.  When the Gothic's saw the individual, they saw the potential of evil.

Gothic Movement in America The Gothic Tradition was firmly established in Europe before American writers had made names for themselves. By the 19 th century, Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and to a lesser extent Washington Irving and Herman Melville were using the Gothic elements in their writing. Edgar Allan Poe was the master of the Gothic form in the United States.

Definition The term Gothic novel broadly refers to stories that combine elements from horror and romanticism. The Gothic novel often deals with supernatural events, or events occurring in nature that cannot be easily explained or over which man has no control. Typically follows a plot of suspense and mystery.

 Gloomy, decaying setting  haunted houses or castles with secret passages, vaults, dungeons, trapdoors, and other mysterious architecture  Supernatural beings or monsters (ghosts, vampires, zombies, giants)  Curses or prophecies  Damsels in distress  Heroes  Romance  Intense emotions Characteristics

Religion, usually Christianity or at least spirituality, is confronted. A gothic “double” is used in which a character who seems to be good is linked with another who is evil

Characteristics Blood, pain, death Cruelty Characters with “aberrant psychological states” Events are uncanny or melodramatically violent bordering between reality and unreality

Purpose To evoke “terror” versus “horror” in the reader because of situations bordering reality/unreality Often used to teach a message or make a social commentary May lack a Medieval setting but will develop an atmosphere of gloom and terror

Terror vs. Horror Terror is the feeling of dread and apprehension at the possibility of something frightening, while horror is the shock and repulsion of seeing the frightening thing. Terror is the sounds of unknown creatures scratching at the door. Terror is the feeling a stranger may be hiding behind the door. Horror is seeing your roommate eaten alive by giant rats. Horror is the squirt of blood as the stranger’s knife sinks in.

Terror vs. Horror  Works that bypass terror and rely on non-stop gore and shocks are often dismissed as “cheap thrills.” And it is true that horror is easier to achieve than terror.  The loudest scream a horror film gets is the moment when, out of the blue, the killer leaps into the frame with a startling howl. It shocks you, but the shock is ephemeral. It does not stay with you, lingering in your mind like a proper moment of terror.

Gothic Conventions MurderDeathSuicideGhostsDemons Gloomy settings Family secrets DungeonsCursesTorture VampiresSpiritsCastlesTombsTerror

A few more gothic conventions Damsel in distress (frequently faints in horror) Secret corridors, passageways, or rooms Ancestral curses Ruined castles with graveyards nearby Priests and monks Sleep, dream, death-like states

Metonymy of gloom and terror Metonymy is a subtype of metaphor, in which something (like rain) is used to stand for something else (like sorrow). For example, the film industry likes to use metonymy as a quick shorthand, so we often notice that it is raining in funeral scenes.

Note the following metonymies that suggest mystery, danger, or the supernatural wind, especially howlingsighs, moans, howls, eerie sounds rain, especially blowingclanking chains doors grating on rusty hingesgusts of wind blowing out lights footsteps approachingdoors suddenly slamming shut lights in abandoned roomscrazed laughter characters trapped in a roombaying of distant dogs (or wolves?) ruins of buildingsthunder and lightning

Importance of Setting The setting is greatly influential in Gothic novels. It not only evokes the atmosphere of horror and dread, but also portrays the deterioration of its world. The decaying, ruined scenery implies that at one time there was a thriving world. At one time the abbey, castle, or landscape was something treasured and appreciated. Now, all that lasts is the decaying shell of a once thriving dwelling.

Basic Plot Structure for a Gothic Novel Action in the Gothic novel tends to take place at night, or at least in a claustrophobic, sunless environment. Ascent (up a mountain high staircase) Descent (into a dungeon, cave, underground chambers or labyrinth) or falling off a precipice; secret passage; hidden doors; Physical decay, skulls, cemeteries, and other images of death; ghosts; revenge; family curse; blood and gore; torture; the Doppelganger (evil twin or double), etc.

Gothic Writers Anne Rice Anne Radcliffe Bram Stoker Mary Shelley The Bronte Sisters Edgar Allan Poe Nathaniel Hawthorne Joyce Carol Oates Stephen King Stephenie Meyer