TYPES OF NOVEL – GOTHIC

     A gothic novel epitomizes a type of novel that is specifically written with the objective of inducing awe in the reader, much like the spectacle of a classic gothic construction tends to do so in the mind of an onlooker. Originally emanating in Germany, gothic novels made their foray into English literature in 1764 with the publication of Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto, the first English gothic novel proper. Other noteworthy instances of this novelistic form include Ann Radcliffe’s The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794), The Monk (1796) by Matthew Lewis, and Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897).

 

1.       Gothic novels are invariably set in antiquated spaces such as old castles, manor houses or monasteries, which are typically dilapidated and situated in out of the way places like wilderness or mountain range. They are characteristically filled with several hidden chambers, underground passages and corridors, which impart a certain forbidding character to the building making them seem unduly ominous. Bolstering this effect is the point that they are often presented in the narrative as having some sinister past attached to their history, and are shown to be haunted with paranormal activities involving supernatural phenomena as ghosts and vampires. The whole point of the setting is of course to inspire a feeling of awe in the reader, which in fact is the stipulated objective of all the characteristic features that inform this type of novel.

 

2.       Gothic plots tend to entail elements of mystery which are frequently presented as closely tied up with the history and architecture of the ancient locale where they are set. It is however noteworthy that unlike in a detective novel, these mysteries are not so much puzzles to be logically solved, but exemplify some arcane curse or presence that is triggered to life after being dormant for a long while. The mysteries are basically meant to invoke a feeling of thrill in the reader, which naturally adds to the sense of nervous tension that the book aims to provoke. They also serve to induce a sensation of suspense that accentuates the basic feeling of awe, keeping the readers both scared and at the edge of their seats.

 

3.       Seminal to any gothic novel’s plot are two aspects that primarily account for the tense impact they cast. These are terror and horror. Terror signifies a situation involving a sense of anticipation that something dreadful is about to happen, while horror denotes a scenario in which the anticipated dread is made manifest in explicit terms. Of the two, it is of course terror that is of primary significance, for it is that which fundamentally plants the seed of nervous tension in the reader. It is in fact possible to fashion a gothic narrative entirely on the back of terror alone, as Ann Radcliffe does in her works via explaining all mysterious happenings in the course of her narrative ultimately as either misunderstandings or humanly induced. This is exactly why gothic novels are sometimes also called novels of terror.

4.       Gothic novels typically involve middle class individuals as characters, who are portrayed as caught in a tug of war between two antithetical sensibilities. On the one hand, they are shown to be desperately trying to rise above their rank and attain the conventional privilege attributed to the nobility, while on the other are simultaneously delineated as riddled with a feeling of guilt for trying to do so and break with tradition. This conflict is often seen as accounting for the many unnatural and supernatural occurrences that fill the plot, with phenomena such as specters and monsters often interpreted as external manifestations of the troubling impulses that emanate from the dilemma.