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 833 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 1136 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 2415 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 564 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 1659 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 925 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 1034 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 1717 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 1066 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 1098 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 1618 Words
The novel, Dracula, by Bram Stoker is an important piece of gothic literature written to reflect on society’s views on female sexuality in the Victorian Era. Published in 1897, Stoker highlights the role of women in society as purely virgin and devoted to one man in their lives. The introduction of Dracula offsets the innocent side of women bringing forth seductive personalities which was deemed as taboo in the Victorian Era. However, female sexuality is deemed as dangerous in the...
2 Pages 1000 Words
While Wilde and Wells emphasize science as an underlying theme in their works, both authors use science to serve the bigger theme: gothic fiction, and to get the point across they use horror, suspense, and fear that is prevalent in the Victorian Age. In the Island of Dr.Moreau and in The Picture of Dorian Gray, both novels use different themes that are connected to the bigger theme of Gothic Horror. The term gothic novel typically refers to stories that combine...
5 Pages 2304 Words
The notion of Romanticism started to become prevalent in literature during the late eighteenth to the late nineteenth century. In this essay, I will present the key ideas of Romanticism, offering close analysis to the novel Frankenstein. Romantic concepts and formal choices often revolve around empiricism, the nature of the human condition, shared humanity and the appreciation for naturalistic beauty. Author, Mary Shelley embodied many of these Romantic ideas within her work, placing significance on her gratitude for the imagination...
3 Pages 1544 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 708 Words
Edgar Allan Poe is a 19th century American writer, he mostly uses gothic elements in his literary works. One of his literary work which includes gothic elements is “The Cask of Amontillado”. “The Cask of Amontillado” is about a man, Montresor, who wants to take revenge from one of his friends, Fortunato, because Fortunato insults Montresor and at the end of the story, Montresor kills Fortunato due to this insult that is not explained to the reader. The definition of...
4 Pages 1621 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 650 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 652 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 797 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 2300 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 851 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 1517 Words
Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein combines elements from Gothic literature and romanticism. Using the elements of fear, horror and gloom, Shelley combined these elements with the ideas of nature, beauty and emotions. Authors of this time created symbols of terror that were used during this period which included the wanderer, the vampire, and the seeker in their novels. Mary Shelly being part of this movement created her story Frankenstein to showcase how Frankenstein’s monster is considered a wander. The characteristics of...
2 Pages 706 Words
High and Popular Gothic were classed as poisonous novels which were read in secret. Beattie criticises the reading of sensationalist gothic novels as a dangerous past time because “Romances are a dangerous recreation… and tend to corrupt the heart and simulate the passions” (Beattie, J, (1970), pp. 309-327). In this assignment, I will argue that the relationship between the two genres is shifting alignments of popular and literary fictions with cultural theories, consumption and representations of science. This argument will...
9 Pages 4209 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 1772 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 1194 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 3422 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 1066 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 742 Words
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