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Gothic Literature Essays

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Making its first appearance in the 1930´s, Southern Gothic became a sub-genre of the popular Gothic Literature, taking the macabre and the grotesque and transplanting it into the American South. It takes issues of race, poverty and religion. Southern Gothic Literature is an attempt to understand society in its deepest and darkest parts. The stories originate in everyday events and emotions and writers trying to answer this question they were telling, in some detail, the story of their life. “The...
2 Pages 820 Words
A more elaborate understanding on the modes of narration is later on cleared as the narrator reveals how much he or she knows when said: “Already we knew” about the sealed room upstairs and what lies behind it; however, we never knew how he/she knew. More significantly, for one of the few times in the story the narrator uses the term “they” and not “we” as opposing to the previous sections; he/she originally said “Already we knew that there was...
2 Pages 1119 Words
Introduction The contemporary gothic form deals with the feminist perspective on sexuality and gender, as well as gender roles in the sense of them being socially and culturally conditioned. Violence and the sublime are translated into the fear of consequences of the choices imposed on the female protagonists by the society and the dominating male-villains. The modern twist on the fear of the consuming male figures is transformed into fear of villain-husbands with a horrid secret threatening to destroy the...
5 Pages 2429 Words
My comprehension about Mary Shelley, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Bram Stoker, is that they are all around creators of renowned books, for example, Robert's well known novel 'Fortune Island', Bram Stoker's epic 'Dracula', in like way, Mary Shelley's story 'Frankenstein'. These creators all lived amidst the times of the late, late 1800's. They were all amazing in their inheritance. The likenesses that the greater part of the makers share for all objectives and purpose behind existing is that they are...
1 Page 563 Words
Gothic literature was the genre that emerged as the darkest romantic form of the late 18th century, and the literary genre seemed to be part of a broader romantic movement. Gothic romance features terrible facial expressions, ugly romance, supernatural elements and dark landscapes. From the beginning, this fictional type contains many different elements and has a series of renewals. Most elements found in Gothic literature are similar to the middle Ages and have similar themes and backgrounds. The reader's fascination...
4 Pages 1650 Words
Gothic fiction rapidly gained popularity during the nineteenth century and continues to appeal to contemporary readers. The ‘postmodern’ genre that composes of various elements in provoking distinct emotions of fear and anticipation, this follows the theme of horror, thriller and romance. Gothic literature allows readers to understand the character different perspectives in the story, allowing readers to formalise their own contradicting opinions for its suspenseful writing. Both “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Edgar Allen Poe “Wuthering Heights” by Emily...
2 Pages 919 Words
The 19th century was a marking era in literature with many movements and genres gaining popularity. After examining the romantic and gothic genre, it is clear that Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley respects the ideals of romanticism and the gothic genre. It is thus because of the setting’s frightening and sublime elements, it t is a work of the romantic and gothic genre. This is present in the sense of mystery they evoke, the value they attribute to nature and...
2 Pages 948 Words
In literature, horror fiction aims to stir fear within readers. Horror itself has many sub-genres, the style of gothic being one of the more common ones. Gothic literature effortlessly blends horror with aspects of romance. Although, the romance in gothic literature hinges on sensibility with a far more dreadful path. Anne Rice successfully indicated horror and the gothic style within her novel. In her novel Interview with the Vampire, Rice exhibits anti-hero behaviors and qualities within her protagonist, follows the...
2 Pages 1027 Words
Edgar Allan Poe’s narratives envision a larger body of interdisciplinary elements within the literary purview of the Gothic; so far in creating a distinct mode of style that is new and fundamentally universal in approach, the writer can be seen as perfecting it through his hyperbolism of human fears and follies. The title “Revisiting the Gothic” comprise of not only a quintessential positioning of Gothic and its creativity in the field of literature, but it is a re-analyzing as of...
4 Pages 1687 Words
Modern writing has changed time and time again throughout the centuries. Arguably, one of the biggest influences for modern writing was gothic literature. Gothic literature was such a dramatic change from many previous works due to its dark, mysterious, melancholy tone. This different approach to writing allowed authors to express themselves in a different way than what was originally seen as “normal” or “the right way”. Gothic literature provided people with a different creative outlet allowing them to express their...
2 Pages 1050 Words
Throughout Poe's life, many challenges have been thrown at him, causing him to fall into a deep depression. He was born in 1809, and his mother sadly passed away 2 years later in 1811. Poe was adopted by the Allen family after her death, but his siblings stayed with different families. While he lived with the Allens, he went to good schools and lived in a welcoming community. Edgar was a good student, but when he entered college he started...
2 Pages 1102 Words
Gothicism is defined as a style in fictional literature characterized by gloomy settings, violent or grotesque action, and a mood of decay, degeneration, and decadence. This style of writing can be found in numerous different pieces of literature. An example of literature that uses this is Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher”. In Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher”, he tells a mysterious tale about the unknown narrator and his friend Roderick Usher. Roderick’s...
3 Pages 1545 Words
The few elements that make up Gothic literature, sexuality contributes to many themes of novels. While being such a controversial topic, especially during the Victorian era, many authors continued push this element in their works. Two novels that really concentrated on the theme of sexuality was Carmilla written by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu and Dracula by Bram Stoker. Centered around vampires, which are known for their expressing their sexualality and provoking other’s repressed desires. The ideal role of women in...
1 Page 646 Words
Introduction For theme selection, I deeply researched on internet, magazines and design related books and then I finalized the theme by merging two themes, Strega fashion and gothic architecture. I merged these two themes because I wanted to add different elements in my final collection garments and I thought it will look great and different at the same time if I would use elements of two different theme and come out with one new element which I would use in...
1 Page 601 Words
The gothic genre, largely developed during Romanticism in Britain, has been associated with the combination of mystery, the supernatural, horror and, at times, romance. Starting with Walpole’s Castle of Otranto, the gothic genre gained its popularity during the Victorian era, with writers such as Stoker and Stevenson continuing to develop stories in the late 19th Century. In more modern times, King and Rice have continued to adapt gothic conventions by merging them with contemporary fears and anxieties. Stoker’s Dracula (1897)...
3 Pages 1506 Words
In this essay, I will analyse Bram Stoker's Gothic taking as a reference point his novel Dracula. The main purpose of these pages is to present the aspects conform to conventions of Gothic fiction and the ones that vary from this genre. Gothic fiction is considered a literature and film genre that mainly combines death, fiction and horror, and occasionally romance. Gothic narratives always describe journeys, flight and pursuit tales or stories of escape (Duncker, 2004). 1790s writers, considered the...
3 Pages 1186 Words
In Gothic literature, novels use a wide range of themes that center around gothic elements. Beginning in the early eighteenth century, these elements began a new genre that incorporated the ideas of the supernatural, horror, and dark events and sceneries. Horace Walpole’s novel The Castle of Ontranto is regarded as the beginning of Gothic literature. His novel set the standards future novels in this genre. Using the ideas of horror and terror, nature and the supernatural, and male/female roles and...
2 Pages 843 Words
As we know, most Gothic novels are mysterious and horrible tales which intend to chill our spine and curdle our blood, and they are always characterized by Gothic elements such as gloomy setting and supernatural beings or monsters. Above all, the two short stories which I read are “The Black Cat” and “The Tell-Tale Heart”. 'The Black Cat' is one of Edgar Allan Poe's most remarkable short stories. The story centers around a black cat and the subsequent deterioration of...
2 Pages 724 Words
Apart from bringing the world an enviable amount of novels, theatrical plays, puritan and native literary pieces, 19th-century American literature has provided authors such as Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne. These masters of the macabre use similar characters, setting, and narration in their writing in order to build up a sense of impending doom. Even today numerous readers enjoy, study, and discuss the shared gothic elements within their works. The gothic style is concerned with the dark side of...
5 Pages 2275 Words
Spawning in the 18th century was a widely popular genre of literature. Known as gothic literature, it explored the supernatural and mysterious elements of our world. Containing spooky tropes like haunted houses, a spooky castle with trap doors, etc. Not only was this genre spooky it was romantic and maintained intense emotions between characters in the stories. Although we can identify these characteristics that this genre is popular for, what really makes a gothic novel a gothic novel? A true...
2 Pages 1059 Words
This essay will examine the representation of doubles in Irish Gothic literature and its thematic significance. For the purpose of this essay when invoking the phrase Gothic, I am referring to the definition of Gothic as a genre of fiction ‘characterized by suspenseful, sensational plots involving supernatural or macabre elements and often having a medieval theme or setting.’ In addition, by a Gothic novel I am implying the definition to be that ‘with scenes of cruelty and horror and […]...
7 Pages 3028 Words
This essay aims to argue in favour of the category of ‘Irish Gothic’ with reference to Bram Stoker’s Dracula and a film directed by Neil Jordan entitled ‘The Butcher Boy’. The themes of paranoia, Protestantism, anti-Catholicism and the desire or fear of the Other are typical of the reoccurring motifs found in Gothic literature generally (Hoeveler 2). Their inclusion within Irish literature does not in itself create the category of ‘Irish Gothic’ and Irish Gothic artists, both writers and directors...
8 Pages 3462 Words
Bram Stoker and WW Jacobs are both writers of Gothic Literature. Bram Stoker wrote 'Dracula’s Guest', sadly it was published in 1914 two years after his death. WW Jacobs wrote the story 'Monkey's Paw', which was written in 1902. Both stories use a variety of techniques that create suspense and tension. 'Monkey's Paw' is a story about an innocent family who are introduced to a talisman. He holds the fate and power which leaves their family in a problem situation...
2 Pages 784 Words
The style of writing found in Gothic literature was used by many writers in the early 1800 and 1900s and can still be found in writing today. Within Crimson Peak by Guillermo del Toro and “Death in the Woods” by Sherwood Anderson, the theme of Isolation can be identified. Within Crimson Peak by Guillermo del Toro, “Allal” by Paul Bowles, and “Death in the Woods” by Sherwood Anderson, the theme of Isolation is found. Isolation affects both the character and...
2 Pages 773 Words
Flannery O’Connor and William Faulkner are well-known for their Southern Gothic style of writing. Their short stories like “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, ”A Rose for Emily”, and ”Good Country People” feature many elements that are characteristic of this genre of literature. Southern Gothic Literature was introduced early in the 20th century and eventually grew in great popularity. The genre stemmed from the Gothic and American gothic writing styles. Southern Gothic literature focuses on the social issues and...
4 Pages 1750 Words
“The fall of the House of Usher” and” House Taken Over” are two stories we have read so far. These stories have similar stories with the whole house being taken over by a mysterious entity. Although both stories are technically different genres with “The Fall of the House of Usher” being gothic literature and “House Taken Over” is Magical realism the stories have very similar plots. Both stories end with the main characters leaving the house with nothing because it...
1 Page 510 Words
American Gothic is a diverse genre that often follows themes of terror, oppression, and danger. A popular film, The Joker, follows many common characteristics of this genre by portraying a subject that demonstrates the severity of numerous mental illnesses that individuals fight every day in our society. The production follows Arthur, a standup comedian and clown, who has numerous medical conditions that make him feel like an outlier in his city. His conditions make him appear heartless, extremely irritable, and...
2 Pages 702 Words
In “The Feather Pillow” there are elements that make the genre of the story Gothic Literature and Magical Realism, but the question is if it is Gothic or Magical Realism and if it’s Gothic would it be Traditional or Modern? The story has elements of the unknown, dark bleak settings, and the supernatural. Thus, the genre that “The Feather Pillow” is composed of is Traditional Gothic. In the story, there are some elements that are composed of traditional gothic. A...
2 Pages 812 Words
Emily Bronte was born on the 30th July 1818 in west Yorkshire. She is one of the most significant figure of the nineteenth century literature. Although she lived a brief and a protective life she has left behind some of the most passionate and inspiring works. Among the six children that included the famous Charlotte and Bradford Bronte she was the fifth child. She was good at art just lie her siblings. Emily was self taught she was also good...
2 Pages 943 Words
The late 1700s birthed a gothic intensity, a genre; it brought out the dark minds of horror, the reality, the eyes who saw the darkness, and the sensual desires one has. It created sub-categories of the most terrifying horror stories in time with the help of authors such as Stephen King or Tim Burton. A gothic sense has come into this present time as reality to the human race, bringing up terrible matters in this world like a bloody, gruesome...
2 Pages 1137 Words
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