Principales caractéristiques du texte gothique

The following list identifies some key characteristics of the gothic text. No text is likely to display all of these, and some of the qualities below tend towards the mutually exclusive; nevertheless the list should prompt some useful reflection:

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a fascination for the past, particularly — but not exclusively — the medieval era

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a liking for the strangely eccentric, the supernatural, the magical, and the sublime, sometimes subtly intermingled with the realistic

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psychological insights, especially into sexuality, through (at best) fascinating and intricate characterisation, or (at worst) stereotypical caricatures

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representation and stimulation of fear, horror, the macabre and the sinister, within the context of a general focus on the emotional rather than the rational

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frequently exotic settings and locations, although this tendency may be contrasted to a more 'domestic' gothic tradition, especially found amongst American texts

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plots within plots often multiple narrators, and other stylistic characteristics such as the use of 'tableaux' and overt symbolism.

As the gothic tendency in literature developed, so too did the range of structural and stylistic opportunities open to its practitioners. Gothic elements have found their way into a number of literary models and genres, suggesting that the gothic impulse is both fertile and eclectic. Some of the directions taken include:

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the classic “gothic horror” tale (e.g. Frankenstein, Dracula)

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the historical romance — the Waverley novels of Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832), for example

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the American tradition of domestic gothic fiction — some of Poe's tales, for instance, or the novels of William Faulkner (1897-1962) and some of Henry James's (1843-1916) fiction

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fantasy fiction, as in the work of Mervyn Peake or Tolkien (1892-1973)

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the psychological thriller — some of Susan Hill's fiction, for example

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idiosyncratic gothic experiments, as demonstrated by writers like Angela Carter, Umberto Eco and Salman Rushdie

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some science fiction and science fantasy texts — H.G. Wells's (1866-1946) The Island of Dr Moreau (1896) or certain aspects of Isaac Asimov's (1920-1992) novels, for example.

Literature

Literature of the supernatural often uses recurring themes, images, and symbols to envision the human condition. Watch for the following motifs in the works we will study (especially the poems of

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