Gothic Literature

Gothic Literature- characterized by grotesque characters, bizarre situations, and violent events.
-originated in Europe, spread in the United States during the 19th century
-examples of Gothic Literature: Edgar Allen Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne

Romanticism-
1) Limitations of reason
2) Individual spirit
3) Emotions
4) The splendors of nature
5) Imagination
6) Fascination with the supernatural
-examples of Romanticism in literature: Washington Irving, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Typical Romantic Literature includes:
7) Atmosphere
8) Sentiment
9) Optimism

Transcendentalism- "transcendent forms" of truth exist beyond reason and experience. (faith) "belief in something beyond the physical (karma, fate vs. free will, etc)
-every individual is capable of discovering this higher truth on his or her own, through intuition. (anti-christian belief, anti-puritanism, not achieved through God but on your own)

American Gothic- cavernous Gothic cathedrals, irregularly placed towers and high stained-glass windows were intended to inspire awe and fear in religious worshipers.
-gargoyles warded off evil spirits, looked more like demonic spirits, grotesque creatures, the mascot of Gothic, gives an idea of the kind of imaginative distortion of reality that Gothic represents
Romantic Movement- the imagination led to the threshold of the unknown; the shadowy region where the fantastic, the demonic, and the insane reside. Gothic territory, this perspective can be called "the dark side of individualism."
-Romantics see "hope"
-Gothics see "potential of evil" - the darkness of the supernatural
Edgar Allen Poe- dark medieval castles or decaying ancient estates provide the setting for weird and terrifying events.
-his male narrators: insane; female characters are beautiful and dead (or dying)
-murder, live burials, physical and mental torture and retribution from beyond the grave
-in such extreme situations, Poe thought people to reveal their true nature
Hawthorne- didn't look at the mind and its functions (or dysfunctions) like Poe, but instead examined the human heart under various conditions of fear, greed, vanity, mistrust, and betrayal.