Gothic Literature: Isabella and Catherine From Victims To Heroines

1233 Words3 Pages

When the words gothic literature come to mind, most people would automatically assume that Poe or King are being spoken of, but two authors who have seemed to have slipped through the cracks in the world’s idea of gothic literature have not only succeeded in many things, but have written two lovely gothic novels in their own ways. Horace Walpole wrote The Castle of Ortanto and Jane Austen wrote Northanger Abbey; and while these two pieces are vastly different, they both employ the same devices to keep the reader in the world of the gothic. The main device they both share is their use of the setting. Walpole’s setting of a dark and passage-filled castle is a perfect place for things to go array but Austen on the other hand, must make up her own stories about what she wishes her setting were like, which fits her parodical writing perfectly. No matter how different, the settings of both these pieces contribute to the victimization of the female protagonists, Isabella, and Catherine Morland and by placing these characters in certain situations; the authors create a gothic theme.

Dark hallways, secret passages, and low ceilinged tunnels are just a few of the things mentioned in Walpole’s novel The Castle of Ortanto. Even the title of the castle seems a bit daunting when it is read aloud. Isabella was in the castle to marry the sickly Conrad, who unfortunately passed minutes before the wedding due to a large helmet falling from the sky. In a “normal” novel this would seem silly, but when reading one of the first gothic novels ever written, it is excused and understood as terrifying. Castles are typically know as private places, where no one can get in or out without the permission of the king. This is normally not an issue, but I...

... middle of paper ...

...er is truly satisfied with anything. Once she begins to fulfill what Henry told her, she becomes too terrified to even go on, which then makes her understand she could never survive in a novel at all, and she has been waiting all this time for nothing.

Walpole and Austen both employ many different things to contribute to the victimization of their female protagonists, and setting is a very important part. They create a contrasting setting to the characters, and allow them to explore them freely, and the reader sees what happens, and therefore falls in love with the characters. These two women went through many tribulations, and in the end when all things are settled, the reader and the characters know that they are bettered by the experience. Isabella and Catherine made a trying journey from victims to heroines in these two novels and they did it beautifully.

Open Document