Gothic

HistoryThe term “Gothic” originally referred

to the Goths, a Germanic tribe which helped bring down Rome.

Later, the term was used in to indicate “Germanic” or “Medieval,” especially in art and architecture.

Gothic Architecture

“Gothic” in Literature

A genre of literature that became wildly popular in the mid to late 1800s.

Called “Gothic” because it was often associated with things “wild, bloody, and barbarous of long ago.”

Including…

Desolate LandscapesAncient or Ruined Buildings

The Supernatural Monsters

Beautiful Women in Distress

Dashing Heroes

Evil Aristocrats

Essentially, it’s Romantic.

(With “villainy, murder, and the supernatural.”)

Some Familiar Gothic Works:

FrankensteinBy Mary Wollstoncraft Shelly

DraculaBy Bram Stoker

The Works of Edger Allen Poe

Southern GothicUses supernatural or unusual events to…

…explore social issues

…establish a cultural climate

William Faulkner, Flannery O’Connor, Tennessee Williams

Southern Gothic

Incorporates Gothic characters…

…more modern and realistic

…”The Grotesque”

References“Gothic”http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/lit_terms_H.html#horror_story_anchorhttp://www.uncp.edu/home/canada/work/allam/general/glossary.htm#g

“Southern Gothic”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Gothic