Gothic Literature
Gothic literature is a genre that blends horror, mystery, and romance, often exploring themes of the supernatural, madness, and the macabre. It originated in the late 18th century with Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto (1764), which set the foundation for key gothic tropes such as haunted castles, dark secrets, and brooding villains.
Key Elements of Gothic Literature:
- Dark, Mysterious Settings – Often in abandoned castles, graveyards, or isolated mansions.
- Supernatural Elements – Ghosts, curses, omens, and inexplicable events.
- Psychological Horror – Madness, obsession, and the exploration of the human psyche.
- Gothic Heroes & Antiheroes – Often brooding, tortured protagonists or villains with a tragic past.
- Damsels in Distress – Women in peril, trapped in threatening or supernatural situations.
- Melancholy & Death – A pervasive sense of doom, decay, and obsession with mortality.
Famous Gothic Works & Authors:
- Frankenstein (1818) – Mary Shelley
- Dracula (1897) – Bram Stoker
- The Fall of the House of Usher (1839) – Edgar Allan Poe
- Wuthering Heights (1847) – Emily Brontë
- The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886) – Robert Louis Stevenson
The gothic genre has influenced modern horror, fantasy, and psychological thrillers. Contemporary works often reinvent gothic themes, blending them with modern anxieties and settings.
- Identify the key features of Gothic Literature.
- Explore literary devices used in Gothic stories.
- Read and analyse an excerpt from the Gothic text, A Tell Tale Heart.
- Use elements of a Gothic narrative to plan our own Gothic story.
What does Gothic mean?
Gothic literature is a genre of writing that features dark themes, such as mystery, horror or the supernatural.
Features of a Gothic Text
There are four distinct features that indicate whether a text is Gothic:
Eerie Setting
Mysterious Characters
Supernatural Elements
A sense of Foreboding Tension
Edgar Allan Poe:
A well-known Gothic author is Edgar Allan Poe. He was an American author best known for his poems and short stories. Poe was a key figure in the Gothic and Romanticism literary movements in America during the 1800s. His work is considered very influential, specifically his horror short stories.
One of his most famous works was a short story called The Tell-Tale Heart (1843).
The Tell-Tale Heart:
The story is written in the first-person narrative. The narrator explains that he’s killed a man because of the man’s ‘pale blue eye’. For a week, our narrator watches the man as he sleeps each night and then finally kills him and hides the body under his floorboards. He begins to hear the imaginary heartbeat of the man, ‘louder and louder’, and eventually admits to the crime. Throughout the story, the narrator tries to convince the reader he’s not mad.
Features of The Tell-Tale Heart:
Eerie Setting:
The story mostly takes place in the victim's small, dimly lit room, which intensifies the suspense.
Mysterious Characters:
We don’t know much about the narrator or the victim in the story as they are not given any physical attributes apart from the old man’s eye.
Supernatural Elements:
The man’s heartbeats are heard even after his death, haunting the narrator.
Sense of Foreboding Tension:
The narrator goes to great lengths to describe his plan, and the story pace picks up faster and faster.
Spooky by Design:
There are many literary devices authors deliberately use to ensure a spooky atmosphere and uneasy feeling in Gothic texts.
Let’s examine the literary devices used in a Gothic narrative, and how Poe uses them in The Tell-tale Heart.
Gothic Device 1:
Building Tension:
Building tension refers to an author’s ability to make readers feel what the characters feel. In Gothic texts, the feeling is usually worry, fear or suspense.
Poe builds tension by repeating certain words throughout the story. Consider what ‘It’ is referring to in the excerpt on the right.
What is the impact of building tension in this text?
It grew quicker and quicker, and louder and louder every instant. The old man’s terror must have been extreme! It grew louder, I say, louder every moment!
It grew louder — louder — louder!
Gothic Device 2:
Pace:
Pace refers to the tempo and speed at which the story unfolds.
In this text, Poe uses pace and tempo to reveal the narrator’s sanity.
Compare the opening (first) paragraph to the closing (second) paragraph, and notice the use of punctuation.
What is the impact of pace in this text?
Above all was the sense of hearing acute. I heard all things in the heaven and in the earth. I heard many things in hell. How, then, am I mad? Hearken! and observe how healthily — how calmly I can tell you the whole story.
I felt that I must scream or die! — and now — again! — hark! louder! louder! louder! louder! —
“Villains!” I shrieked, “dissemble no more! I admit the deed! — tear up the planks! — here, here! — it is the beating of his hideous heart!”
Gothic Device 3:
Foreshadowing:
Foreshadowing is an indication or warning of something happening in the future.
Poe uses foreshadowing in the first few paragraphs by showing the narrator’s insistence on his sanity.
What is the impact of foreshadowing in this text?
Now this is the point. You fancy me mad. Madmen know nothing. But you should have seen me. You should have seen how wisely I proceeded — with what caution — with what foresight — with what dissimulation I went to work!
Gothic Device 4:
Onomatopoeia:
An onomatopoeia is a word that describes a sound and sounds like the sound, for example, ‘bang’.
Identify the onomatopoeia in each paragraph.
What is the impact of onomatopoeia in this text?
And then, when my head was well in the room, I undid the lantern cautiously — oh, so cautiously — cautiously (for the hinges creaked) — I undid it just so much that a single thin ray fell upon the vulture eye.
Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was the groan of mortal terror. It was not a groan of pain or of grief — oh, no! — it was the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe.
Planning a Gothic Narrative:
Gothic stories have a unique structure. Let's brainstorm and plan a Gothic story by first comparing the narrative structures below.
Narrative Structure:
Gothic Story Element #1:
Setting:
Settings in Gothic stories are crucial to establishing an eerie mood and atmosphere.
Gothic stories are often set in isolation, at night and in the cold.
For example, The Tell-Tale Heart is set mostly at night, in an old house.
Consider this...
Use your 5 senses to brainstorm a spooky setting.
- Sight:
- Taste:
- Smell:
- Hear:
- Touch:
Gothic Story Element #2:
Characters:
Characters in Gothic stories are often mysterious and intriguing.
Our narrator in The Tell-Tale Heart behaves in an unusual and panicked manner, and there’s no description of his physical attributes. It could be difficult for the reader to connect with or understand him.
Consider this...
Brainstorm your main characters’ characteristics.
What qualities will they have that make them intriguing?
Gothic Story Element #3:
Tension Building:
Gothic stories are filled with typically negative tension, such as fear or pressure, that increases as the story goes on.
You can use these techniques to build tension in your story:
- Pace and tempo
- Foreshadowing
- Revealing information strategically
The pace within The Tell-Tale Heart gets faster as the text goes on, building tension and suspense, leading to the narrator’s madness.
Consider this...
Which technique will you use to build tension? Select at least one.
Gothic Story Element #4:
Climax:
The climax in gothic literature often involves the revelation of hidden secrets or the uncovering of forbidden knowledge.
The climax of The Tell-Tale Heart is when the narrator murders the man. He has been talking about preparing for the murder for most of the story, but it is not fully revealed until this moment.
Consider this...
What will your secret be?
Gothic Story Element #5:
Ambiguous Ending:
Most Gothic stories end with some ambiguity, leaving aspects open to interpretation. This creates a lingering sense of mystery and unsettlement, allowing readers to contemplate what it means.
The Tell-Tale Heart ends with the narrator confessing to the police. It is unclear if the victim’s heart was really beating, or if the narrator was overwhelmed with his own guilt.
Consider this...
How will your story end?
Let’s Recap;
Gothic texts include dark themes such as mystery and horror. Gothic texts typically include:
- Eerie settings
- Mysterious characters
- Supernatural features
- A sense of foreboding
Let’s Recap:
Gothic literary devices include:
- Building Tension
- Pace
- Foreshadowing
- Onomatopoeia
Gothic text structure:
- Orientation
- Building Tension
- Climax
- Ambiguous Ending
Let’s get planning for your very own spooky Gothic story.