In more modern, particularly feminist texts, these roles are sometimes deliberately subverted (see Angela Carter’s short stories in The Bloody Chamber). Women are often the innocent victims of men, who hold the sexual, economic and society power. Look too at the very limited female roles in Jekyll and Hyde. Note how both these roles are used by Coleridge in ‘Christabel’, though the witch is at first disguised as an innocent beauty. In older texts, women tend to be characterised in two ways: either the innocent sacrificial virgin or the evil witch. Note that the central story at the heart of Susan Hill’s The Woman in Black is about a young woman who is rejected by her family and society for exploring her sexuality before marriage, resulting in an illegitimate child. You may note Victor Frankenstein’s fear of sexuality, while Angela Carter uses Gothic elements specifically to explore female sexuality in The Bloody Chamber, developing the ideas in this feminist text. Again, this is a major field of Freudian analysis. Sexuality and RepressionĮxploration of characters’ psychology in turn often focuses on the repression of instincts, particularly sexual. Dreams and visions are also important indicators of the subconscious mind. Utterson, in Jekyll and Hyde, fails to find the answers because he is so governed by his rational mind. Note Kipps’ desperation to hang onto his rationality in The Woman in Black, and Frankenstein’s state of mind after his realisation of what he has created. The interest in the maintenance of the rational mind and the suppression of fears and instincts mean that Gothic texts often lend themselves to Freudian analysis. Most Gothic texts explore the state of mind of the main character or the narrator (the two are often the same). There is also the question of temporal location the medieval period is a favourite, as a distant time of part history, part legend, where religion was powerful and magic could happen. This is often an example of pathetic fallacy, where the external conditions mirror the internal psychology. The setting is often indicative of the psychological state of the narrator or main character, and is often accompanied by appropriate weather conditions – storms, thunder, lightning, wind. The setting is always important it might be an expanse of open heath (as in Wuthering Heights), a glacier ( Frankenstein) or a building ( The Fall of the House of Usher, The Bloody Chamber and innumerable other texts). ![]() ![]() This is not a checklist, and certainly should not appear as such in any exam essay, but it can be helpful in targeting revision of texts which you have studied. When writing about Gothic literature, it is helpful to have a mental list of pointers to keep track of some of the frequently-appearing elements employed by writers.
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