Southern Gothic Literature in “The Cask of Amontillado” A sub-genre of the “18th and early 19th Century Gothic fiction, Southern Gothic Literature spawned in the “mid-20th Century” (Weinauer, Ellen). Southern Gothic Literature is used to characterize the grotesques, in which doom and gloom are displayed. This is a method often utilized to represent strangeness as well as the untraditional. As an “artistic device” characterizing the grotesque allows writers to “expose, highlight, or conceal” the writers “individual apprehensions” (Agata). Southern Gothic Literature also implements fantastic incidents to create a scene that produces a “vivid emotional response” in the reader ("Southern gothic.").
American gothic is often devoid of castles and objects which allude to a civilized history. Differentiating between horror and terror is important in the study of these texts. Considered the quintessential American Gothic writer, Poe's epic story, The Fall of the House of Usher (1839) reveals the tragedy of Rodrick Usher, who suffers from a variety of mental health disorders not even invented or named by modern psychology when Poe wrote about them: hyperesthesia (sensory overload), hypochondria, and acute anxiety. It’s a stellar tale sure to disturb and delight the reader. Characteristics of the Gothic include: death and decay, haunted homes/castles, family curses, madness, powerful love/romance, ghosts, and vampires.
Stories written during the Gothic Era have a dark nature to them. One story that highlights the prime elements of the Gothic Era is Dracula by Bram Stoker. Dracula incorporates the themes of the Gothic Era all throughout the book. Dracula is filled with settings that are isolated, dark, and sinister which are important characteristics of the Gothic Era. It
Terror, mystery, paranormal activity, doom and death were the main features of gothic novels during the era of gothic romanticism. Gothic novels and poems were given their own genre mainly because they include extreme emotional content and intensely dark themes. The natural settings were castles and monasteries which are typical forms of gothic literature. By 1840 the gothic genre had played itself out and this was partly due to writers who were developing the
Gothic literature, both traditional and contemporary which both create a suspense. It originated in England in the second half of the half 18th Century and had success in the 19th. In traditional gothic literature the word is more traditional way as it is written in 19th Century such as Charles Dickens ‘The Signalman’. It was written in 1866. Dickens conveys the story to the readers by using an unfamiliar, isolation and supernatural themes.
The Early Gothic The word “gothic” existed long before it become as a specified literary genre. The origin of Gothic literature is traced back to the various aspects, the history, culture, and tradition. The gothic elements were popular in the folktales such as bridegroom, cannibal, demon lover…etc. 19 The gothic roots belong to the medieval romance. If gothic genre is featured by its elements, then, gothic could be traced back to the old legends of chivalry, which embody stories set in an atmosphere of fantasy and enchantment, and deal with traditional heroes encounter monsters and beasts for the sake of fame and glory such as “Beowulf”; an epic which involves struggles with monsters as Grendel and his mother, and supernatural creatures as the
One characteristic of gothic literature is supernatural events or beings, thus, it is only expected his writings will feature supernatural events and beings. This leads the reader to believe that several supernatural events took place during this novel. Stevenson successfully intertwines the characteristics of gothic literature such as characters encountering supernatural creatures or events
Bhimani 1 Outline Prescribed Question: How does the text conform to, or deviate from, the conventions of a particular genre, and for what purpose? Text: The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Thesis: In The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorne effectively conforms to the conventions of the gothic genre for the purpose of characterizing the Puritan society as oppressive, portraying the hypocrisy found within Puritan society and highlighting the consequences for not confessing sin. Point #1: Hawthorne effectively establishes a dark and gloomy atmosphere that adopts the conventions pertaining to the gothic genre by highlighting the oppressive nature of the Puritan society. • Use of dark imagery, and prison as a symbol of sin. • Juxtaposition
Southern gothic literature is a method of writing that deals with problems in society that can be influenced by family values or disturbing lives. In the three texts To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, The Life You Save May Be Your Own by Flannery O’Connor, and The Flowers by Alice Walker they are revolved around southern gothic literature. In these texts there is a strong emphasis on familial values in the southern gothic literature because all the problems faced in the texts are caused by family values. All three of these texts are based in the south where there is many different views on cultures and race which southern gothic literature strives on. In To Kill a Mockingbird there is several examples of how family values impact the story and the way characters develop.
It was propelled in the later eighteenth century. The Goths, one of the numerous Germanic tribes, battled various fights with the Roman Domain for quite a long time. As indicated by their own particular myths, as related by Jordanes, a Gothic antiquarian from the mid 6th century, the Goths began in what is currently southern Sweden, yet their ruler Berig drove them toward the southern shore of the Baltic Ocean. They at last divided into two gatherings, the Visigoths (the West Goths) and Ostrogoths (the East Goths), so named on account of where they in the end settled. They came to the stature of their energy around 5th century A.D., when they sacked Rome and caught Spain, yet their history at last subsumed under that of the nations they vanquished ("Goths").