Elements Of Gothic Literature

“Gothic Fiction is a genre of literature that combines elements of both horror and romance.”
With such an ambiguous statement, Gothic Literature is essentially hard to define. From the origins of the genre, where the description within the stories terrified the small group of its readers, up until the recent 21st century novels, where the brutal images became more all-pervasive, I feel the impact created by the genre is generated by a range of other effects. I believe that one can be pin-pointed and is ubiquitous throughout all gothic texts, adding to the way that the reader feels and the way that the story evolves into what we call ‘Gothic’ today. What draws Gothic Literature out from the other genres is the way that the settings of various

Pathetic fallacy plays a crucial role in this section of the text and the moon in particular is key to maintain the ‘Gothic feel’ of the novel.

“It had got dusk, and the moon looked over the high wall of the court, causing undefined shadows to lurk in the corners of the numerous projecting portions of the building. I set my burden on the house steps by the kitchen door, and lingered to rest, and drew in a few more breaths of the soft, sweet air; my eyes were on the moon, and my back to the entrance, when I heard a voice behind me say-“

We see in this scene the moon highlighting the return of a key figure within the novel. Within the section the moon acts as an overlying force that looks over the events taking place. The moon itself is responsible for the creation of shadows, which immediately deepens the sense of dread that Nelly Dean feels within the scene. “I turned to discover who spoke, fearfully.” For readers of the time, this passage would evoke the sense of the unknown, crucial to the Gothic genre, and would enhance the feelings once they encountered Heathcliff again; dread mixed with anticipation. Mary Darby Robinson also uses the moon within her poem, ‘The Haunted Beach’, but she draws on the moon as a peaceful object. Her phrase “the moonlight scene was all serene” contrasts with Bronte’s use of the moon, creating the Gothic image itself. Robinson has used language which suggests a subdued gothic feeling, but uses pathetic fallacy to make the setting of the poem key, and also includes sibilance to create a hypnotic rhythm, building to a mysterious end, all of which is highlighted by the setting of the