Southern Gothic Research Paper

Gothicism is a representative of the South’s nobility eventually being defeated after the American Civil War. The characterization of Miss. Strangeworth symbolizes the gothic elements of the South’s “higher society” before the Civil War. The non-participating

Southern Gothic literature, which is a sub-genre of the Gothic writing style, is unique to the American South. Southern Gothic literature has many of the same aspects as Gothic literature; it focuses on topics such as death, madness, and the super natural as well has having many mystical, bizarre, violent, and grotesque aspects. These tools are used "to explore social issues and reveal the cultural character of the American South (Wikipedia)."

Consolidate that with a southern setting and we understand that it's not quite Gothic, but rather Southern Gothic. The Southern Gothic kind concentrations – now and again inconspicuously, now and again clearly – on servitude, or the fallout of subjugation in the South. You can see this in "A Rose for Emily."

Southern gothic is a type of literature that focuses on the harsh conflicts of violence and racism, which is observed in the perspective of black and white individuals. Some of the most familiar southern authors are William Faulkner, Flannery O’Connor, and Cormac McCarthy. One author in particular, Flannery O’Connor, is a remarkable author, who directly reflects upon southern grotesque within her two short stories, “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “Revelation.” These two short stories are very similar to each other, which is why I believe that O’Connor often writes with violent characters to expose real violence in the world while tying them in with a particular spiritual insight.

Southern Gothic literature is a sub-genre of the Gothic writing style. It is unique to Southern America. Southern gothic style is a style of writing that engages very ugly and ironic events to study the value of the American south and its people. In this essay, I’m going to go over each story and give some details about the authors and their backgrounds. On one page, I will be comparing and contrasting all three stories. I will show how they’re similar through tone, plot, and scene in the story. And at the end, I am going to describe the three stories; “A Rose for Emilycomma inside quotes”, “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, and “Sanctuary”. Period inside quotes All of these short stories are good examples of southern gothic writing, because

Southern Gothic literature has rooted itself in American culture and created several classic short stories that have pushed literary boundaries and minds. Among the most influential of these Southern Gothic stories is “A Rose for Emily”, by William Faulkner; “A Good Man is Hard to Find”, and “Good Country People”, both by Flannery O’Connor. After first discussing what characteristics make up the genre of Southern Gothic, each of these stories will be evaluated and discussed in terms of what makes each of them a prime example of Southern Gothic literature.

1 Grotesque Elements of Social Culture in Southern Gothic Geraldine Golden-Brown Virginia College Grotesque Elements of Social Culture in Southern Gothic Southern Gothic literature was popular in England in the 18th century. The authors who wrote about grotesque literature wanted to tell about issues they saw in society. Many of the stories included supernatural elements which may not do well in Southern Gothic. One would believe the main focus was on themes which include death, darkness, and madness. Some of the well-knowngothic stories are “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Conner.

As Quentin and the little girl continue to search for her home, they run into her older brother whom was with the police and beats Quentin. Quentin was unable to get the little girl home. Because of this failure, he is dissatisfied and this gives him more of a reason to commit

William Faulkner is a writer from Mississippi. Faulkner is a very famous writer with most of his most famous works being short stories. Two of his most popular short stories are “A rose for Emily” along with “Barn Burning”. Faulkner has many other popular works, but “Barn Burning” was one of his well-known stories because of the many different of elements of literature in which Faulkner chose to include. Faulkner was known as a writer who could properly convey many different elements of literature, such as symbolism, conflict, tone, and many other elements of plot within his stories. In “Barn Burning”, William Faulkner most commonly uses symbolism and conflict to emphasize the obstacles that Sarty has to face in his youth years.

Race and gender roles were an ever present issue in the Southern culture and dynamic. After the Civil War, dramatic changes began to take place in the South. Political leaders began to enact Civil Rights amendments, industrialization became more popular, and gender roles were beginning to be indistinct. In Southern literature, the portrayal of female characters evolved along side with the Southern culture. Female characters became more independent, strong-willed, and hardworking. Even African Americans became the main characters in Southern literature. In “Caroline Gordon’s Ghosts: The Women on the Porch as Southern Gothic Literature”, Tanfer Tunc discusses the evolution of the female character in Southern literature.

Throughout the course of history, literature has gone through considerable changes. Dating back to its humble beginnings in folklore, fables, and storytelling all the way up to the scientific books and dramatic novels of today. Literature is arguably the centerpiece of all mankind. It is useful for record keeping, education, and bringing cultures and societies together. It has allowed us to expand our minds by painting a picture of the beautiful places this world has to offer outside of our corners of the earth. One genre of literature I find especially intriguing is Southern Gothic Literature. It is a subclass of gothic fiction, specifically set

William Faulkner was said to be one of the best Southern Gothic writers and the Southern Gothicism was brought about by Edgar Allen Poe in 1839. His novels and short stories such as Absalom! Absalom! (1936), The Sound and the Fury (1929), and “A Rose for Emily” (1930) were of the Southern Gothic genre. This paper will discuss what Southern Gothic is and its characteristics, along with William Faulkner and how Faulkner’s work conforms to the Southern Gothic genre.

He holds the values of gender and honor in high regard, but he cannot adapt to the encroaching values of the New South. Whether Quentin is cognizant of it or not, gender roles deeply influence him. By losing her virginity, Caddy reverses the gender roles that have been bred into the Compson family. Caddy is the sexually active sibling, which “makes Quentin feel that his sister has assumed the masculine role and that he has assumed the feminine role” (Irwin 59). Indeed, Quentin is ashamed, as he cannot lose his virginity while Caddy has lost hers.

Southern literature includes stories that either take place in the Southern United States or are written by writers from this region. Typically Southern literature focuses on Southern history, honor, the importance of family, Christianity or community and each person’s role within it. Southern literature often includes issues involving racial tension, social class, and uses Southern dialect. As the North moved into the Industrial Age, the South stagnated valuing its old traditions more than dollars. Southern writers’ literary success is thought to be based on how they refused to ignore its historical choices and traditions. Southern literature is different than other regions artistic style as southern authors incorporated vivid real experiences

People say that the Southern renaissance ended before WWII but it actually continued after WWII and was Affected by it. One example of how WWII had an effect on the Southern Renaissance is “...the coming of the second World War and its aftermath not only confirmed those changes but it created a modern-day south that in numerous respects seemed to bear little relationship to the community in which the leading writers of the Southern Renaissance had been born a half-century or so earlier” (Rubin 463). This quote shows what the second world war did to the south. The Southern Renaissance and WWII also had effects on segregation and black novelists. One example of the effect the renaissance had on segregation is “the period in which it emerged saw the south decidedly on the defensive in its efforts to stave off challenges to segregation” (Abadie 14). A good example of how the renaissance affected black novelists is “the depression in the 1930s and World War II in the 1940s are central events in American social history. Yet southern black novels during these two decades rarely do more than hint at the effects either event had on the lives of