Gothic Elements in Short Stories The use of Gothic literature appears in a sector of shortened stories. These stories all share similar themes within the stories. The two shared themes throughout the short stories I have chosen are revenge and grotesqueness. Most of these stories were written in the same time range which is a similarity of why their following themes could have been influenced. Revenge is recognized by a credible amount of humans. Revenge is a form of justice, it makes others feel good about oneself for something that has badly affected them. In “The Devil” revenge is depicted by Tom walker's wife in the story, the author describes in detail the wives idea which she had stolen from her husband, Tom Walker, “ At length she determined to drive the bargain on her own account, and if she succeeded, to keep all the gain to herself’(Irving 327). Tom was offered his soul to be given to the devil in exchange for loads of money, deciding maybe that was not the smartest idea he has had his wife thought different, and decided on her own that, that is what she must do. In “The Prey” by James Matheson, the main character purchased a doll as a gift, it being “the one who kills” ends up attempting to slaughter her, giving her many scratches and horrific battle wounds. Toward the end of the story whenever she is pursuing to end the toy dolls excursion, she finally catches him with her suitcase, “she slammed the lid, and threw the suitcase flat” (Matheson 2), this is her way
As the carriage stopped beneath the archway, Elizabeth Cockles jumped out and looked around her. Above her head was a tall archway of trees that edged the pathway to the house. As she got closer, Elizabeth realised that “mansion” was a more correct way to describe it.
Although Gothic Elements can be very sadistic and twisted the use of it is seen in all types of stories. Some of the more famous stories that Gothic Elements are used in are the following “ A Rose for Emily,” “ The Minister’s Black Veil,” and “ The Tell- Tale Heart”. In these stories, gothic elements are found all over the place do you know why? Well the reason is that all these stories are darker stories than most. Gothic Elements are needed to make a superb scary story.
Various authors develop their stories using gothic themes and characterizations of this type to lay the foundation for their desired reader response. Although Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Fall of the House of Usher” and Peter Taylor’s “Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time” are two completely different narratives, both of these stories share a commonality of gothic text representations. The stories take slightly different paths, with Poe’s signifying traditional gothic literature and Taylor approaching his story in a more contemporary manner.
The burning began at the earliest hour. His majesty, king of Otranto watched unsatisfied as the roaring flames licked over what was once the purest of white roses. All composure lost at but a petal unlit, he left no rose in his entire kingdom with even the dignity of coal before dismantling to ash, until alas, they were sealed to their fiery fate. The winds were still now, not even the tweak of a tree for encouragement nor the bravery of a whisper of the surrounding men as they watched in due apprehension to break the stillness. All that remained were the plumes of billowing exhaust tracing upwards into the air, and King Warner, as he watched from his throne until the smog faded into the midst. By dawn the white roses, together with any
In the Gothic stories The Black Cat, Prey, and The Devil and Tom Walker all have similar themes. These short story themes all intertwine with each other in some for or fashion. For example, all three stories use violence and Entrapment as a common theme in order to convey a certain message.
Gothic literature has been criticized as being a dreary, dark, and death-involving subset of Romanticism (a literary movement accentuating human individuality, imagination, and subjectivity). In addition, gothic lit incorporates several themes- not all about deathly acts - but includes some emotional and surprising themes such as dreams, nightmares, or hallucinations, and grotesque or bizarre occurrences. Two short stories, both written by Edgar Allan Poe, entitled “The Raven,” and “The Black Cat,” as well as the novel The Night Circus, by Erin Morgenstern, all encompass these gothic elements, found throughout each story.
chest as if it were a newborn child in danger. I'd been following her for
The classic short story of “The Tell-Tale Heart”, written by one of the all time masters of horror, Edgar Allen Poe, has always been used as an excellent example of Gothic fiction. Edgar Allen Poe specialized in the art of gothic writing and wrote many stories that portrayed disturbing events and delved deeply into the minds of its characters. In "The Tell-Tale Heart," Poe revolves the plot around a raving individual who, insisting that he is sane, murders an old man because of his` “vulture eye”. The three main gothic elements that are evident in this story are the unique setting, the theme of death and decay, and the presence of madness.
Gothic literature has a different way of captivating the reader. Page by Page, gothic themes are present that create mystery and evoke suspense. The Night Circus, a novel by Eric Morgenstern, “The Devil and Tom Walker”, by Washington Irving, and “The Oval Portrait”, by Edgar Allan Poe share two important themes: eerie setting and isolation. All the stories connect through a lesson that passion can become harmful.
“The Tell Tale Heart” by Edgar Allen Poe is a fantastic short story, but how does it fit into literature? The story uses elements and techniques that delve into the gothic genre and allows the reader to be introduced to a darker reality. In “The Tell Tale Heart”, gothic elements reveal themselves in the short story through the use of setting and also through the use of characterization. These two elements are key components which demonstrate gothic features and help to classify this story as gothic literature. Murder and the supernatural elements also show that this text can be considered within the gothic genre of literature.
Pre-Write In the novel “Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children” and the short stories The Black Cat, Feather Pillow, and The Raven, the author uses elements that cause a domino effect on each other and cause distress, physically or mentally on the victim. The authors have intricate ways of evoking or emphasizing points they want to get across, and can do it so well they only have to subtly apply it into their works. In all the works, the authors use gothic elements such as psychological issues, monsters, and death to show their prevalence within each other and their level of severity.
One thing Southern people are known for is their story-telling ability. Much of that tradition has been in the oral aspect of story-telling, however, the South has produced many great story-telling writers. Southern Literature focuses on a few common themes, such as, community and one's role in it, and insert another theme. On the other hand, Gothic Literature works possess supernatural, romance, death, and darkness elements. This collection of short stories will cover works that are “Southern,” “Gothic,” and how some of these works contain both.
Edgar Allan Poe, renowned as the foremost master of the short-story form of writing, chiefly tales of the mysterious and macabre, has established his short stories as leading proponents of “Gothic” literature. Although the term “Gothic” originally referred only to literature set in the Gothic (or medieval) period, its meaning has since been extended to include a particular style of writing. In order for literature to be “Gothic,” it must fulfill some specific requirements. Firstly, it must set a tone that is dark, somber, and foreboding. Next, throughout the development of the story, the events that occur must be strange, melodramatic, or often sinister. Poe’s short stories are
Stephen King's The Boogeyman was my favorite piece of gothic literature that we read. I was trying to figure the story out all the way until the end and had to re-read some of it to fully understand. It was suspenseful, scary, but also had a good story to listen to. The Boogeyman was full of gloomy settings, monsters, characters in distress, and intense emotions. These 4 things are just a couple elements that make up gothic literature.
on the aid of Hell itself, and to find things familiar in the world of