GOTHIC LITERATURE

The Monster Is Society Itself - How Does The Gothic Tale Return The Spectacle Of Monstrosity Back Onto Society, And On Which Aspects in Particular?

The Monster Is Society Itself - How Does The Gothic Tale Return The Spectacle Of Monstrosity Back Onto Society, And On Which Aspects in Particular?

Introduction

Gothic literature is defined by the usage of supernatural beings and the wavering between the two worlds that are of reality and the fantastical (Garrett 2003, p.83). Such literature also includes desolate places, fantastical creatures and dark magic practices by the characters in the stories (Hogle 2002, p.2). Novels such as “Frankenstein”, “Strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, “Dracula”, “Picture of Dorian Gray” and “Castle of Otranto” are few classic examples of this literature. The presence of monsters like Dracula, Dorian, Frankenstein, Mr. Hyde in these novels represent that the morality and identity were some of the main problems of the Victorian England. In his work, Guedes agrees that the monster encapsulates the terrible aspects of the society (Guedes, p.1).

Marry Frankenstein depicts that love is the most vital thing and it plays a significant role in shaping up the personality of a person. But if one is deprived of love then that person becomes depressed and lonesome. Another aspect that could be counted as an ill of any society is the denial of rights. Whenever this evil enters the society it gets corrupt. Then naturally people began to fight for their rights, and it creates chaos in the society. In Frankenstein, the monster was denied its right of mingling with the society. One critic, Harold Bloom, supports this by saying that the monster wanted to mingle with people and live with them cooperatively, yet people did not welcome him (Bloom 2007, p.8). In spite of his efforts with the De Lacey family, he faced violent behaviour from the society. In Frankenstein, the monster wanted other people to recognize him as an individual having his own identity. Yet the monster remained troubled due to other's limited recognition of him as an individual (Guedes, p.5).

Even if the society gave him an identity, it identified him as a monster capable of destroying and harming everyone and everything. Frankenstein's monstrosity both mirrors and criticizes the ills and fears of Victorian society that had rigidly set its ideals along with strict ethical principles. Following is the detailed analysis of the ills of the society in general and of the novel's society that affects the person to immense measure and occasionally turns him into an evil being, hateful of its surroundings and humanity on the whole.

Discussion

The word 'Goth' was used for Germanic tribe, which was considered, to be barbaric and uncultured by the Romans. Later this term “Gothic” was used to refer to uncultured medieval buildings (Smith 2007, p.2). In England, during the Victorian Era, gothic literature was produced. Dark themes and medieval buildings which are commonly believed to be cursed such as castles, mansions, wild forests or dungeons were incorporated in such ...