Gothic and Southern Gothic Guide

Southern

Gothic

Literature

1

Background on Gothic Literature

The terms “Goth” and “Gothic” were
originally used to describe the Germanic
tribes that pilfered and plundered across
Europe from
the 3rd to the
5th centuries.

3

Characteristics of Gothic Literature

• Gloom and doom setting –

mysterious castles, dungeons,
frightening forests, labyrinths,
secret passages, cemeteries,

mist and fog
• Ambiguous heroes and villains –

neither absolutely good nor
absolutely evil

• Often involves an ancestral
curse and family secrets

8

Common Motifs

• Revenge
• Decay
• Transformation
• Superstitions
• Grave robbing
• Mystery
• Nightmares/dreams
• Necromancy
• Pursued female
• Unreliable narrator

9

Southern Gothic Literature

Southern Gothic literature turns the
tropes of traditional gothic literature,
such as the hero and the monster, into
American Southerners.

It focuses on their
moral and social
shortcomings of
damaged, even
delusional
characters.

13

Characteristics of Southern

Gothic Literature

“Grotesque” – This term can include
situations
as well as
flawed,
characters
exhibit anti-

and places
deeply
disturbing
who often
social

behavior while simultaneously
invoking feelings of sympathetic pity.

14

More Characteristics

• Outsiders become

heroes

• Dark humor
• Sense of

supernatural

• Generational decay

• Strong sense of

place

• Disturbing, realistic

or ironic events

• Nostalgia for past
• Broken or unusual

physical objects.

15

The Castle of

Otranto

A novel by Horace Walpole written
in 1764 and considered the first
example of Gothic literature.

7

Multiple Choice

One of the elements of Gothic literature is ___________ settings like old castles, and old mansions.

• supernatural

• decaying

• isolation

• fear

Multiple Choice

What is almost always true about the setting of novels in Gothic Literature?

• Takes place in the wild west
• Revolves around a castle or mansion
• Full of joy and happiness
• Straight forward with no hidden messages

Multiple Choice

a feeling that something bad will happen

• foreshadow

• foreboding

• something that was before

Multiple Choice

The word 'gothic' can also be applied to architecture.

• right

• wrong

Multiple Select

What are some of the characteristics of Gothic literature? Tick all the correct answers.

• horror and terror

• excess and irrational response

• violence and mystery

• warning of the dangers of transgression

Multiple Choice

What is the meaning of the word isolation?

• in a crowd

• left alone

• packaging that keeps something cold

Multiple Choice

What technique is this an example of? 'The trees watched over the boy as he walked through the dark forest.'

• Metaphor

• Personification

• Simile

• Alliteration

Multiple Choice

What would we NOT expect to find in a Gothic setting?

• Graveyard

• Old house

• Busy crowds

• Forest

Multiple Choice

What is considered to be the first gothic novel?

• The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole

• Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

• Dracula by Bram Stoker

Multiple Choice

Which definition best defines the word gothic?

• Something that is dark, mysterious, and sometimes depressing.

• Something that is happy, but scary.

• Something that involves Halloween items and the color black.

• Something that is spooky and dark, but also involves bright colors.