"The name refers to Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages, which was characteristic of the settings of early Gothic novels."
Examine the relationship between Romanticism and Gothic literature, which share elements of suspense, horror, and the supernatural, as well as a fascination with the mysteries of the human psyche.
Historical Context: Understanding the historical events, social norms, and cultural values during the Romantic period and Gothic era, which influenced the literature of the time.
Key Literary Figures: Familiarizing oneself with the major authors, poets, and playwrights of the Romantic and Gothic movement, including William Wordsworth, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Mary Shelley, Edgar Allan Poe, and others.
Romanticism Characteristics: Learning the defining features of Romantic literature, such as the focus on emotion, nature, imagination, individualism, and the supernatural.
Gothic Literature Characteristics: Understanding the defining elements of Gothic literature, including horror, gloom, mystery, and romanticism.
Main Themes: Identifying and exploring the recurring themes found in Romantic and Gothic literature, such as love, death, loss, isolation, alienation, and the quest for transcendence.
Literary Devices: Understanding the literary devices used in Romantic and Gothic literature, such as symbolism, metaphor, allegory, and imagery.
Comparative Analysis: Analyzing the similarities and differences between Romantic and Gothic literature and other literary movements, such as realism and modernism.
Gender and Sexuality: Examining the representation of gender and sexuality in Romantic and Gothic literature, including the role of women and the portrayal of relationships.
Psychological and Philosophical Themes: Analyzing the psychological and philosophical themes explored in Romantic and Gothic literature, such as the nature of the self, human consciousness, and the meaning of life.
Gothic Architecture: Studying the importance of Gothic architecture and its influence on Gothic literature.
Criticism and Interpretation: Familiarizing oneself with the critical approaches and interpretations of Romantic and Gothic literature over time.
Pop Culture and Adaptations: Exploring the influence of Romantic and Gothic literature on contemporary popular culture, including film, TV, and music adaptations.
Dark Romanticism: A sub-genre of Romanticism characterized by an exploration of the darker aspects of human nature, such as evil, death, and sin.
Transcendentalism: A movement that emphasizes the spiritual and philosophical over the material, and stresses the importance of individualism, intuition, and the search for truth.
American Gothic: A sub-genre of Gothic Literature that emerged in the United States in the 19th century, with a focus on horror, mystery, and the supernatural.
Romantic Irony: A literary technique that involves using irony as a means of expressing the romantic ideal, and of exploring the contradictions and complexities of human experience.
Sublime: A philosophical concept that refers to the beauty and awe-inspiring nature of the natural world, as well as to the human capacity for imagination and creativity.
Femme Fatale: A character archetype that appears in both Romanticism and Gothic Literature, typically represented as a seductive and dangerous woman who leads men to their downfall.
Grotesque: A style of art and literature that combines elements of comedy and horror, and that often incorporates exaggerated, distorted, or surreal imagery.
Byronic Hero: A character archetype that typically embodies the Romantic ideal of the solitary and rebellious individual, marked by his or her brooding demeanor, mysterious past, and cynical or nihilistic outlook.
Doppelganger: A literary device used in both Romanticism and Gothic Literature, typically involving the appearance of an identical, or nearly identical, double of a character.
Horror: A genre of literature that explores the darker, more fearful aspects of human experience, often featuring supernatural or otherworldly elements.
"The first work to call itself Gothic was Horace Walpole's 1764 novel The Castle of Otranto."
"Contributors included Clara Reeve, Ann Radcliffe, William Thomas Beckford, and Matthew Lewis."
"Works by the Romantic poets, and novelists such as Mary Shelley, Charles Maturin, Walter Scott, and E. T. A. Hoffmann frequently drew upon gothic motifs in their works."
"The early Victorian period continued the use of gothic aesthetic in novels by Charles Dickens and the Brontë sisters."
"...as well as works by the American writers Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne."
"Later well-known works were Dracula by Bram Stoker, Richard Marsh's The Beetle, and Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde."
"Twentieth-century contributors include Daphne du Maurier, Stephen King, Shirley Jackson, Anne Rice, and Toni Morrison."
"Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror..."
"Gothic fiction is a loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting."
"Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages... was characteristic of the settings of early Gothic novels."
"later subtitled 'A Gothic Story'"
"The Gothic influence continued into the early 19th century..."
"...novels by Charles Dickens and the Brontë sisters..."
"Later well-known works were Dracula by Bram Stoker..."
"...works by the American writers Edgar Allan Poe..."
"Works by the Romantic poets... frequently drew upon gothic motifs..."
"Twentieth-century contributors include Daphne du Maurier, Stephen King, Shirley Jackson, Anne Rice, and Toni Morrison."
"Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror (primarily in the 20th century)..."
"...Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde."