Gothic Literature

First appearances

• Horace Walpole wrote the first Gothic novel in 1764- The Castle of Otranto.
• It was inspired by a nightmare he once had and the reconstruction of his home.

Some Gothic Conventions:

• Murder & Death, Gloomy Settings, Secrets, Curses, Terrors, etc.
• Damsel in Distress, Castles, Graveyards, Secret Corridors/Passageways and Rooms, Priests, Sleep/Nightmares, etc.
• Seem to take place in "creepy" places like castles, dungeons, etc.

The metonymy of gloom and terror

• "Metonymy" is a subtype of metaphor.
• Something like "rain" may be used to mean something else. It may supposed to be seen as "sorrow."
• It often sets the mood in movies quickly. For instance, it is usually raining in funeral scenes of movies.

Importance of setting

• It is mainly used to evoke the "horror" and "dread" of the novels, but it also has a deeper meaning.
• Usually, there are decaying and ruined scenery which is supposed to indicate the world was once thriving, but now it isn't.
• Sometimes the setting is one that used to be appreciated and cared for meticulously, but now it is decaying and falling apart much like the lives of the characters or the storylines.

Types of Characters

• There is always a protagonist who is isolated in some way (by choice or sometimes not).
• There is usually villain, who is evil, either by his own fall from grace, or by the implication that he is evil.
• Also, there is sometimes a "wanderer" in Gothic literature. He is usually always alone as he wanders the Earth as a punishment for something.

Examples of Gothic LIterature

• Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier
• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronté
• Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronté

Gothic writers

• Anne Rice
• Edgar Allan Poe
• Joyce Carol Oates
• Stephen King
• Stephanie Meyer