Gothic Literature Unit Notes Gothic style is characterized

Gothic Literature Unit Notes

Gothic style is characterized by the following elements: • The story is set in bleak or remote places. In classic gothic stories, this is often a ruined castle or mansion. • Characters are in a state of psychological or physical torment. • A supernatural or otherworldly element is often present. Many times this is a monster of some kind. In more modern gothic tales, the monster is a person with a monstrous characteristic.

Nathaniel Hawthorne • Was not best known as a gothic writer, but his short story, “The Minister’s Black Veil” definitely qualifies as gothic. • Hawthorne spent most of his career fighting against the Transcendentalist movement that gained popularity in America during the early 1800’s.

Nathaniel Hawthorne • Hawthorne was descended from a prominent Puritan family in Salem, MA. • One of Hawthorne's ancestors was a judge that played a key role in the witch trials. • Hawthorne inherited much guilt from this, and it led him to believe that evil was the dominant force in the world. • A common theme in his work was the exploration of darkness in the human heart.

Works • Hawthorne’s works included the famous titles, The House of Seven Gables and The Scarlet Letter. • His story, “The Minister’s Black Veil, ” is an example of an allegory.

Allegory and Parable • A parable is a simple, usually brief, story that teaches a moral lesson. • Unlike a fable, which has animal characters, a parable features humans. • A parable is a type of allegory, or a story with both literal and symbolic meaning.

“The Minister’s Black Veil” • Hawthorne subtitles it “a parable” because he wants to stress the importance of the moral message of the story. • The veil that Mr. Hooper vows never to remove is a symbol—something that has meaning in itself while also standing for something greater. • To discover the veil’s symbolic meaning, notice Hawthorne's descriptions of the veil and its effects on the characters in the story.

Edgar Allen Poe • One of the most beloved early American gothic writers. • We will view the A&E Biography of Poe’s life— pay attention; the video moves quickly through the study guide questions. • Poe argued that a literary work should achieve a unique or single effect. – He believed that every character, incident and detail should contribute to this effect.

Edgar Allen Poe • A common motif in Poe’s work is the death of a beautiful woman. • Poe’s protagonists were always male, and they almost always struggled with some sort of mental torture or insanity. • Poe’s settings were within the realm of classic gothic stories; they were almost always in the ruins of a castle, mansion or abbey.

POEtry • Look for examples of: – Repetition, or repeated words or phrases (they are repeated for a reason!) – Alliteration, or a repeated initial consonant sound – Rhyme, both internal and external – Assonance, or a repeated vowel sound among dissimilar consonant sounds (eg. Given distance)