GOTHIC MOVEMENT

Gothic literature was a literary movement that focused on death, decay and both physical and
psychological terror. Gothic style also suggests a belief in the supernatural and thus many gothic
texts contain an air of mystery and intrigue. The genre was originally thought to be a response to
the Age of Reason, which was a radical notion held by Thomas Paine that criticised religion and
challenged the legitimacy of the bible. Another key aspect in any gothic text is 'evil'. Such
inclusion of these evil figures consequently helped to make visible the political view of the text.

During the emergence of the gothic literary movement, it is perhaps unsurprising that the period
was characterised by widespread terror; namely from the French Revolution. Subsequently, the
genre became very popular amongst writers as it enabled them to express their sympathy and
concern over such political movements.The presence of the quintessential elements of gothic
horror consequently helped to make the genre so alluring to both readers and authors.

The term “Gothic” originates from the ornate architecture created by the Germanic tribes called
the Goths. This ornate and intricate style of architecture proved to be the ideal backdrop for both
the physical and the psychological settings in a new literary style.

How did Gothic literature emerge?

Gothic fiction actually emerged as a subgenre of Romanticism which was a reaction to the
formal form of the Enlightenment, a European intellectual movement. The Romantics focused on
the beauty of nature, subjectivity, individualism, and the sublime. Though Gothicism shared
many features of Romanticism, it mainly focused on the darker side of humanity and its
preoccupation with sin and evil.

How did Gothic literature emerge?

Gothic fiction actually emerged as a subgenre of Romanticism which was a reaction to the
formal form of the Enlightenment, a European intellectual movement. The Romantics focused on
the beauty of nature, subjectivity, individualism, and the sublime. Though Gothicism shared
many features of Romanticism, it mainly focused on the darker side of humanity and its
preoccupation with sin and evil.

As opposed to the Enlightenment that emphasized reason and science over superstition and blind
faith, the Gothic writers intended to thrill feelings and emotions among the readers. They mainly
focused on human fallibility, the psychological effects of guilt and sin, self-destruction,
punishment, and judgement.

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE SETTING & ATMOSPHERE

Old, rundown structures: especially castles or great country manors.

• Hidden passages
• Trap doors
• Dungeons or secret rooms
• Decline from its former greatness.
Bleak foreboding environments
• Dark forests •Imposing mountains
• Stormy weather
• Areas far away from civilization.

Atmosphere
• Mystery
• Horror
• Dread

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE PROTAGONIST

• The protagonists of Gothic literature are isolated or alone.
• Physical (trapped in a house far from civilization)
• Emotional (cut off from the people around her)
• Self-imposed or a result of circumstances beyond her control.
• Plot involves hidden secrets which threaten the protagonist.

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE EMOTIONS

• Emotions run high in Gothic literature.
• Characters are often passionate and strong-willed, defying others or even their own common
sense in pursuit of their goals.
• Women are often curious and have a tendency to swoon, while men storm and rage in
reflection of unseen inner torments.
• The events in Gothic literature emphasize high emotion and often reflect a heightened sense of
drama.
• Examples include murders, kidnappings, people going mad and tragic illnesses

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE DAMSELS IN DISTRESS

• The "damsel in distress" motif appears quite often in Gothic literature, with women threatened
by tyrannical men or just the circumstances in which they find themselves.
• They often appear frightened and may suffer from some kind of ailment.

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE FOREBODING

• Ominous implications precede dark events in Gothic literature.
• Unlucky omens appear, ancient curses linger in the air, and dark forces beyond the
protagonist’s control thwart his ambitions.

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE DECAY

• The overall impression of a Gothic world is one of decay: a formerly great family, community,
country or individual who has peaked and now begins a slow process of decline.
• This appears both in the landscape (crumbling buildings) and in the characters themselves.

ELEMENTS OF GOTHIC LITERATURE THE SUPERNATURAL

• The supernatural often appears in Gothic literature, particularly ghosts and unexplained
manifestations.
• In some Gothic novels, these elements ultimately have a rational explanation, but the
implication always suggest something not of this world.
Development of Gothicism in Literature: The Gothic Fiction & Writers
The First Gothic Novel
The term ‘Gothic’ was first used in literature by Horace Walpole, an English author, art
historian, and a Whig politician. He was the third son of Sir Robert Walpole, Britain’s first Prime
Minister, and a pivotal figure in 18th century art, literature, society, and architecture. He used the
term ‘Gothic’ in the subtitle of his novel “The Castle of Otranto: A Gothic Story” (1765).
Walpole’s book resulted in a literary movement which has sired monsters, unleashed lightening
and put damsels in distress for 250 years!
Therefore, Horace Walpole is truly considered the chief initiator of Gothicism in literature. He is
known as the first Gothic writer as well as the founder of Gothic fiction.

What is American Gothic Fiction?

While Gothic literature was flourishing in England, American literature was in the midst of
Transcendentalism, a literary movement that focused on science, nature and individualism. Then
emerged Romanticism as a response against this “reason over feeling” or “head over heart”
mentality. The Romantics believed in emotions, feelings, and the unseen world, rather than the
cold facts of science.

As an offshoot of Romanticism emerged Dark Romanticism, also known as American Gothic.

As compared to Romanticism, it was darker, had more emphasis on the supernatural, and a deep
fascination with the grotesque, irrational, and demonic.

Edgar Allan Poe from America skillfully got hold of the Gothic genre. In his hands, Gothic
fiction flourished to its extreme. All the works of Edgar Allan Poe are, indeed, well-known for
their Gothicism. His famous story ‘The Fall of the House of Usher’ (1839), for instance, unfolds
all the terrors of the human soul. Furthermore, he also wrote many detective, horror, romantic
and comic stories. All these stories successfully explore Gothic themes and motifs of aristocratic
decay, death and instability.

Thus, it was Edgar Allan Poe who, with his masterful grip on the stories of ‘terror’, raised the
Gothic genre to the peak of fame. He is best known today as the master of gothic horror tales and
also the father of American Gothic literature.

Some famous Gothic novels and their writers are listed below:

• The Castle of Otranto (1765) by Horace Walpole

• The History of the Caliph Vathek (1786) by William Thomas Beckford
• The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) by Ann Radcliffe
• The Monk (1796) by Matthew Lewis
• Wieland (1798) by Charles Brockden Brown
• Frankenstein (1818) by Mary Shelley
• The Vampyre (1819) by William Polidori
• Melmoth the Wanderer (1820) by Charles Maturin
• The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1831) by Victor Hugo
• The Fall of the House of Usher (1839) by Edgar Allan Poe
• Jane Eyre (1847) by Charlotte Bronte
• Wuthering Heights (1847) by Emily Bronte
• The House of the Seven Gables (1851) by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Carmilla (1872) by Sheridan le Fanu
• The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886) by Robert Louis Stevenson
• The Picture of Dorian Gray (1891) by Oscar Wilde
• Dracula (1897) written by Bram Stoker
• The Turn of the Screw (1898) by Henry James
• Rebecca (1938) by Daphne du Maurier.
• Psycho (1959) by Robert Bloch
• We Have Always Lived in the Castle (1962) by Shirley Jackson.
• Rosemary’s Baby (1968) by Ira Levin

Difference between Romanticism and Gothicism in Literature Gothicism in Literature is

considered to have originated from Romanticism; it is a subgenre of the English Romantic
Movement. Both Romanticism and Gothicism were parallel movements. Romanticism focused
on the realization of nature’s beauty, imagination, intuition, idealism, inspiration, and
individuality in literature and other arts. While Gothicism dealt with the darker and more tragic
themes than the Romantic works.