Gothic Gothic LiteratureLiterature

By By

Mike Roy, Sarah Idler, and Mike Roy, Sarah Idler, and

Brittany JohnsonBrittany Johnson

What is What is Gothic Literature Gothic Literature

The standard Gothic paraphernalia (haunted castles, creaking staircases, vampire bats, and zombies) are only the trappings that may or may not be present.

More substantial characteristics of Gothic are:

An oddly romantic relationship Labyrinths Extreme weather, rugged

landscapes Omens and ancestral curses A passion-driven villain-hero or

villain Ruined buildings and/or castles

which threaten life

Gothic LiteratureGothic Literature There are two different styles of Gothic

Literature:

Revival of the medieval: especially in architecture; Manor houses were built in the style of the Tudor castles of the Middle Ages because this were thought to be an indigenous “English” style that symbolized the English values of tradition.

Another aspect of medievalism: the mysterious and spooky world of the Catholic church at the time of the Inquisition and the bright jewel-like colors, flat perspective, and sometimes gory piety of fifteenth-century church painting.

Gothic Architecture Gothic Architecture By the 18th Century in England, Gothic had become

one in the same with the Middle Ages, a period which was in disfavor because it was perceived as chaotic, unenlightened, and superstitious.

The words Goth and Gothic also described the Germanic tribes (e.g., Goths, Visigoths, Ostrogoths) which ravaged the rest of Europe in the third, fourth, and fifth centuries.

Because of these tribes and their actions, the words Gothic and Goth also came to mean barbarian, barbarous, and barbaric.

Gothic architecture tends to lean towards the grandiose and extravagant.

Architecture cont…Architecture cont…

Terror vs. HorrorTerror vs. Horror TERROR: the feeling of unknowing;

feelings of uncertainty and doom associated with shadows and a presence in the night; threats of happiness

HORROR: the physical gore of a murder; blood, guts, and at times unnecessary. This would also be

Gothic MovementGothic Movement Divided into two categories: High Aesthetic and Low Aesthetic

High Aesthetic – works were concerned with supporting society as a whole (gender roles, class structure, etc…)

Low Aesthetic – works were considered to be corrosive because they went against the norms of that time period

The Gothic Movement was considered as Low Aesthetic because it contradicted many of the notions of that time.

Responses to the Responses to the Gothic MovementGothic Movement

Excerpts from “Gothic Threats” – Andrew Cooper “Examinations of eighteenth-century critics’ condemnations of the Gothic reveals more than a

widespread belief that the literature of terror threatened the social order in terrifying ways: it also reveals that critics took the task of defending society upon themselves, using their condemnations in an effort to shield the social order from the most dangerous Gothic texts. A strong political agenda either overtly or covertly informs the ‘supposedly’ aesthetic judgements of these critics-as-social-defenders” (18)

“While anxiety of the potential pernicious influence of certain kinds of art itself, the vehemence with the British critics condemned most Gothic novels in the politically and socially turbulent 1790s that the peak of the early Gothic’s popularity marked the beginning of a new era for the fear of literature’s generative potential” (18).

It is not difficult to see that Gothic literature would not have been seen as popular at that time. According or Markmen Ellis “For most of its history the institutions of literary criticism have largely ignored the Gothic novel” (12).

The Mysteries of UdolphoThe Mysteries of Udolpho “Another gate delivered them into the second

court, grass-grown and more wild than the first, where, as she surveyed through the twilight its desolation – its lofty walls, overtopt with briony, moss and nightshade, and the embattled towers that rose above, - long-suffering and murder came to her thoughts. One of those instantaneous and unaccountable convictions, which sometimes conquer even strong minds, impressed her with its horror.”

The Castle of OtrantoThe Castle of Otranto Horace WalpoleHorace Walpole

AnacondaAnaconda

The MonkThe Monk

Gothic vs. RomanticismGothic vs. Romanticism Gender Relations:

Class Structure:

Ideals of Virtue:

Polarized Stereotypes:

Gothic vs. Amatory FictionGothic vs. Amatory Fiction Gender Relations:

Class Structure:

Ideals of Virtue:

Polarized Stereotypes:

Status of WomenStatus of Women Before After

Modern GothicModern Gothic