Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” functions as a Gothic allegory, Greg Johnson describes Gilman’s achievement as yet awaiting its “due recognition” and her compelling short story as being “[s]till under-read, still haunting the margins of the American literary canon” (530).1 Working from the premise that Gilman’s tale “adroitly and at times parodically employs Gothic conventions to present an allegory of literary imagination unbinding the social, domestic, and psychological confinements of a nineteenth-century
Beloved, as well as Who Fears Death, are examples of the genre of Speculative Fiction. This type of literature features supernatural and/or futuristic elements. Is serves as an umbrella term and includes science fiction, fantasy, literary fiction, supernatural fiction, horror, dystopia, utopia, (post-)apocalyptic and superhero elements, as well as their combinations (Jackson and Moody-Freeman, 127). Hence, “in Speculative Fiction the action of the story can take place in a culture that never existed, a
The Power of Words is one of the most significant works of Edgar Allan Poe, who remains an important figure in American Gothic literature. It is a small piece of work, in which a conversation between two angels is depicted by Poe. The conversation between the two angels, Oinos and Agathos, revolves around the idea of creation of the world by God as a one-time act, and the further populating of the world by man’s free will. The conversation takes place after the humanity has become extinct and it
Americas when many American authors like Edgar Allan Poe wrote dark short stories like “The Cask of Amontillado” about the world around him. Dark romantics focused heavily on nature like all romantics did, but it had more of a darker approach to nature. Dark romantics helped develop gothic style writing, the gothic style was like the darker romantics, but it also delved more into the supernatural and in to the mind of the characters. Poe was known as one of the best at gothic fiction. He took parts of
new genre of literature in America; the American Gothic. Already a popular genre in Europe, this new strain of literature in America arose to create a rather abrupt contrast to the Enlightenment foundations upon which American was born. Instead of concerning subjects of liberty and "the pursuit of happiness"; key elements of the American dream, American Gothic literature "embodies and gives voice to the dark nightmare that is the underside of 'the American dream'" (Savoy, 2003, pg. 167) Although
in Britain. The 1830s through to 1850s is when American literature emerged. After the American Independence War that ended in a victory over England in 1812, a new confidence and sense of national identity emerged. American writers reflected and wrote about the anxieties. Numerous writers and artists in the early 19th Century placed a special emphasis on the importance of Americans natural landscape for the development of national character. Americans became interested in literature centred on urban
Welcome to the world of science fiction, sometimes known familiarly as “SF,” but rarely “Sci-Fi,” which is generally considered to be pejorative by aficionados of the genre, and more appropriate for films than literature. Science fiction is one of the three subdivisions of fantastic literature, the other two being fantasy fiction and supernatural horror. Although definitions vary and some individual works may blur the distinction between one branch and another, most fantastic or speculative stories
The Mask of the Red Death as Fantastic Genre American author Edgar Allen Poe (1809-1849) wrote many poems and short stories back in the 1800s. Poe is said by some to have virtually created the detective story and perfected the psychological thriller. These works include "The Raven," "The Murders in the Rue Morgue," "The Fall of Usher House," and "The Mask of the Red Death" (April 30, 1842). In the fantasy short story Poe uses certain magical elements that are not accepted by the reader
The short stories of Washington Irving are examples of the literary movement of Romanticism and its characteristics which are evidenced in this author’s works. These characteristics are sometimes found in abundant quantities or limited amounts in each of his short stories. However, no matter what short story Washington Irving wrote, the Age of Romanticism and its defining characteristics are found in each of his selections. So, too, do each of the author’s short stories present a unique study about
Feelings of fear, shock, and utter abhorrence are key elements in Gothic horror literature that have frightened readers since the eighteenth century. American writer, editor, critic, and poet, Edgar Allan Poe became a highly influential figure in the world of literature and is one of the first writers to develop this genre of fiction and horror. In Poe’s popular short stories “The Fall of the House of Usher” and “The Tell-Tale Heart,” Poe can be described as a Gothic writer by exploring themes of