From the late 18th to early 19th centuries, known as the Romantic period, there was a shift in certain cultural and artistic elements that leaned toward a renaissance Gothic. In addition to a revival of the Gothic through architectural adaptations in England, writers in particular began to enjoy incorporating elements of the Gothic aesthetic into their works, thus beginning a fusion of the two styles. The imagery associated with Gothic was considered so distinct and carried a certain essence that its use, whether politically, socially, architecturally, culturally, or spiritually inspired, made for an interesting and unique collection of literary works. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get an Original EssayIn order to better understand the correlation between Romantic and Gothic, it is first necessary to understand the basics and complexities of the definition of both these terms. In the simplest terms, the Oxford Companion to English Literature defines Romanticism as "the triumph of the values ​​of spontaneity, visionary originality, wonder, and emotional self-expression over classical norms of balance, order, restraint, proportion and objectivity. ..[it] derives from “romance,” the literary form in which desires and dreams prevail over everyday realities” (Oxford Companion to English Literature). Prominent authors of the Romantic period include William Wordsworth, William Blake, John Keats, and Percy Bysshe Shelley. To attempt to define the Gothic aesthetic, we must first define what is truly Gothic. The Oxford Companion to English Literature defines the Gothic literary tradition as "a distinct modern development in which the characteristic theme is the hold of the past on the present, or the encroachment of the 'dark' ages of oppression upon the modern era “enlightened”. ... generally embodied in enclosed and haunted settings such as castles, crypts, convents or dark mansions, in images of ruin and decadence, and in episodes of imprisonment, cruelty and persecution” ( Oxford Companion to English Literature). He defines the term Gothic itself as meaning "medieval and, by implication, barbaric" (The Oxford Companion to English Literature). The Gothic Revival includes anything reminiscent or reminiscent of the past, socially, culturally, architecturally, and spiritually. It simultaneously allowed a confrontation of the old with the new in the creation of contemporary works, combining the historical and the modern, for a new “vintage”. The concepts, ideas, fears, emotions, opinions, and morals that existed in the Medieval Gothic era still existed in the Romantic era, so New Gothic writers could take these traditional subjects and find a new way of telling them to readers. The ideals commonly associated with the Gothic Revival are medievalism, barbarism, and supernaturalism. Established largely with the use of the supernatural, or that which seemed supernatural but would later seem natural to me, people were reminded of their feelings of fear of God and superstition, as well as the presence of "the other ". As David Hume puts it, the Gothic novel "can be seen as one of the symptoms of a widespread shift away from neoclassical ideals of order and reason toward a Romantic belief in emotion and imagination" (Hume 282). . Some Gothic works, which need to be discussed in more detail, include “Christabel” by Samuel Colderidge, “The Eve of St. Agnes” by John Keats, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontëand The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole. Walpole's The Castle of Otranto is considered the first Gothic novel, paving the way for other modern additions to the romance genre. Walpole himself, a fervent enthusiast of the Gothic Revival, even had his own medieval-style castle built, drawing inspiration from Gothic architecture. The relationship between the Romantic period and the Gothic Revival can be discussed through the way one inspired or interacted with the other. However, it is very difficult to try to clearly distinguish the links between the Gothic influence on the Romantic and, as Michael Gamer explains, "what we therefore have are borrowings which cannot be explained exclusively in terms of influence, whether passive or active, individual or cultural... the relationship between the Gothic and Romantic ideology is itself Gothic, since the presence of the Gothic in Romantic writing is characterized by "multiple interpretations ... [of] multiple modes of consumption and production, [of] dangerous consumption and excessive productivity. , and [of] economies of meaning” (Gamer 28). Everything is subject to interpretation. Although it is difficult to determine where exactly the influence lies, it is still possible to see the connections and assess the relationship that way. The presence of the Gothic, whether architectural, spiritual, cultural, social or political, is unmistakable in certain Romantic works, so it is an explorable subject. Romantic writers wanted to recognize growth, life and beauty, to arouse emotions in readers, to create something new or old they feel. It didn't necessarily matter as long as they were stimulated to feel or respond. David Hume discusses their relationship by suggesting that "Gothic and Romantic writing arise from the recognition of the insufficiency of reason or religious faith to explain and make understandable the complexities of life" (Hume 290). People are always looking for reasons and explanations to life's questions and problems, and the inexplicable arouses feelings of resentment and anger. By influencing the Gothic on their romantic writings, authors were able to offer readers the opportunity to find relief from these feelings. Hume further notes that while "romantic writing reconciles the discordant elements with which it confronts, resolving their apparent contradictions with imagination in the creation of a higher order...Gothic writing, the product of serious imagination, has not no such answers and can only leave "opposites". » contradictory and paradoxical. In its highest forms, Romantic writing claims the existence of higher answers where the Gothic can find only insoluble moral and emotional ambiguity” (Hume 290). What better way to evoke religious presence in a reader than with a supernatural entity, terribly invisible and yet so terribly real. Just like religion, it cannot be seen visibly, but its presence is felt indefinitely. Regarding the reception of the Gothic aesthetic during the Romantic period, attitudes towards this style varied. Some thought it was a thing of the past, reminiscent of barbaric and dark times in history. It represented decadence and destruction, ignorance, cruelty and persecution. Some people believed that looking back did not allow us to move forward. For others, the Gothic was "a vehicle for transmitting a forward-looking mentality through an unenlightened Middle Ages" (Dugget 59). Some accepted these images of decay and destruction and used them to envision a new and better future; it was a map of the path traveled by theCompany. As we move forward, we must remember where they came from to know how far they have come. Regardless, it was a reminder of medieval and more archaic times in English history, but whether that reminder provides one with a positive outlook on the future or deeply negative memories of the past depended on the individual. Michael Gamer recognizes that "it is the gothic's ease of dispersal and its capacity not to remain within the confines of prose romance - its habit of collapsing disciplinary and social categories, however sexist or polarized - them - who constituted one of the main threats to the critics who condemned him. » (Player 4). Regarding the reception of Walpole in particular, EJ Clery notes that Walpole's "contemporaries [regarded] the Gothic era [as] a long period of barbarism, superstition and anarchy [which] extended vaguely from the fifth century A.D....until the Renaissance and the rebirth of classical learning...[and that] 'Gothic' also meant anything obsolete, old-fashioned, or extravagant” (Clery 21). People wanted to read new material and the idea that Walpole had written a Gothic story raised the question of its modernity. People have always had an obsession with "newness" and originality, and the assumptions and associations that accompany the term "Gothic", especially when used in its title The Castle of Otranto: A Gothic History, have generated a feeling of aversion towards the idea of ​​Gothic literature. If it can be assumed that "only if a fiction is faithful to reality can it become the vehicle for useful instruction or moral improvement", then some wonder what the advantage would be to read a story where morality is learned using supernatural means. interference from an unknown entity (Clery 22). As Medieval Gothic was associated with a period of anarchy, its revival sparked political concern and disapproval due to fears of some form of political dissent. Associated with then-current political issues in England, “Gothic fiction and theater were seen as threats to the political and social order” (Gamer 31). Nevertheless, although this discouraged some from accepting it, its cultural, architectural and spiritual influences were easier to receive. “Christabel” by Samuel T. Coleridge was written in two parts, written in 1797 and 1800 respectively. The poem is an example of the Gothic influence on the Romantic. In the poem, Christabel is a young girl wandering through the woods in the middle of the night when she comes across Geraldine lying on the ground, claiming to have been kidnapped. Christabel brings Geraldine to her father Sir Leoline's castle to give her refuge, after which they discover that Geraldine is the daughter of Leoline's old enemy Roland. When Christabel begins to suspect Géraldine of trickery and deception, before being able to alert her father, she finds herself under Géraldine's spell who does not allow her to inform her father. Eventually, Christabel frees herself from the spell, but after informing her father, he discovers that he refuses to believe her, accepting Geraldine and excluding Christabel. The poem employs traditional Gothic elements, from setting to psychology. The speaker notes that "It is the middle of the night by the castle clock" and that "The night is cool, but not dark/The thin gray cloud stretches above,/it covers but does not hide not the sky./The moon is behind, and fully” (Colerdige 1.14-18). The very beginning of the poem takes place in the dark woods, creating a strangely haunting setting where the reader can predict an upcoming event. This creates an atmosphere of foreboding when Christabel is depicted wandering in misty mists and atmoonlight. Tension builds as the reader waits impatiently, expecting something as the narrator asks, "Is this the wind that moans darkly?/There's not enough wind in the air... Hush, beating heart of Christabel!/ Jesus, Maria, protect her. Good!" (Coleridge 45-57). This seemingly supernatural presence evokes fear of the supernatural, wondering what type of existence is near. Upon Geraldine's initial discovery near the tree, it appears that the source was a young girl victim, but as the poem progresses, Geraldine's bodily reality is called into question and she becomes the source of this seemingly supernatural activity. The reader becomes even more suspicious of Geraldine as she pleads with Christabel. : “Have pity on my sorrowful distress/ I can hardly speak for weariness:/ Stretch out your hand and fear not (Coleridge 73-76) As Geraldine recounts the strange details of her abduction to Christabel, something! is wrong, although it is difficult to say what exactly it is about Geraldine seems suspicious and contradictory in her stories, and although this seems to be the result of her distress, it arouses a feeling of distrust in the reader. .Something is wrong with this woman and her story. The supernatural is suggested again when the two women fall asleep together and Geraldine almost gives the impression of being some sort of seductress as she settles down to lie next to Christabel and says to her: "Au contact of this breast, a spell operates, / Who is the master of their word, Christabel! / You know it tonight, and you will know it tomorrow, / This mark of my shame, this seal of my sorrow” (Coleridge 257- 260). It already seemed like some sort of witchcraft surrounded Geraldine, so hearing her tell Christabel about it sparks even more fear into her intentions with the innocent girl. The supernatural element is constantly mentioned or hinted at, but never fully revealed. When Christabel wakes and "gathers herself from her trance", and later becomes aware of Geraldine's serpentine features such as "A serpent's little eye blinks dull and shy/And the lady's eyes they narrowed in her head/ Each one shrank until it became a serpent's eye/ And with a little malice, and more fear/ To Christabel she looked crooked! (Coleridge 573-577). Even the way Léoline seems so easily entranced by Géraldine suggests that she is of the supernatural, a sort of mermaid. Even scarier is the idea that she could be supernatural, but the fact that this is never mentioned in the poem. It would be less frightening to know for sure whether she is an evil supernatural entity or just appears as such. Such a haunted setting, the supernatural Geraldine with her deception, Christabel's imprisonment under the spell and the castle are all typical features of the Gothic aesthetic. Using similar features of the Gothic aesthetic as "Christabel," John Keats's "St. Peter's Eve Agnes" is a love story between two young lovers. The poem uses strong gothic imagery to create an atmosphere for the poem. Madeline is a young girl in love with Porphyro, the son of her family's enemy. Before going to bed one night, Madeline decides to try a ritual on the eve of Saint Agnes whereby a young virgin's lover will come to her while she sleeps. That same night, Porphyro, with Angela's reluctant help (at his own expense), sneaks into Madeline's room in order to observe her beauty as she sleeps. When Porphyro wakes Madeline from her dream, she becomes confused at Porphyro's sudden change between the dream version of Madeline and him in reality. He then convinces her to run away with him, and they will never see each other againnever his family. Here again, the presence of superstition and the appearance of the supernatural with the tradition of the eve of Saint Agnes and the knights visiting in dreams. With high hopes of receiving a visit from her lover, a virgin will go to bed without supper, be naked and lie down facing heaven. Madeline, along with the other girls, willingly follow this superstition because they are so eager and desperate to interact with their lovers. The atmosphere is also created for the Gothic aesthetic as the narrator describes "The sculpted dead, on either side, seem to freeze,/Imprisoned in black, purgatorial rails:/...To think how much they can suffer in hoods and frozen mail” (Keats 14-18). Darkness, ruin and decay are represented by the worn statues, frozen in time and space, blackened and cursed. This draws on the Gothic as an image of the medieval. As before, the presence of the supernatural is questionable, not absolute but sufficient to reflect on its existence. Madeline ends up dreaming of Porphyro, so is it really superstition or was there really an intervention on the part of Saint Agnes? It's even questionable with Angela, who reluctantly allows Porphyro into Madeline's chambers, against her better judgment and wishes. She regrets letting him in and, at the end of the poem, she ends up dead. Is this perhaps a supernatural intervention punishing her for allowing a man to enter the bedroom of a naked virgin while she dreams? It is enough to ask the question of the possibility of the supernatural. The narrator even suggests a supernatural element in Madeline and Porphyro themselves: "They slide, like ghosts, into the great hall;/Like ghosts, to the iron porch, they slide" where the repeated use of "ghosts ” suggests that they actually passed into the supernatural, leaving the natural world entirely (Keats 361-362). It could even be argued that they have actually become ghosts, supernatural creatures, suggesting certain psychological repercussions of their premarital encounter. Maybe Madeline ran away in her mind with the dream version of Porphyro, or maybe she and Porphyro passed into a supernatural existence. Such psychological characteristics, questioning reason, are also part of the Gothic aesthetic. Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre, more commonly associated with being a feminist text due to its timing and influence in this area, has a storyline that revolves around the possibility of the existence of the supernatural. When Jane Eyre is hired as Edward Rochester's new parish housekeeper, she begins to fall in love with him and strange events occur in the house. Since the story is told from Jane's point of view, the reader is only aware of what she knows. Several times during the night, Jane wakes up with the feeling that someone is in her room and watching her; she even catches a glimpse at one point, but doesn't know who or what she witnessed. In some parts of the castle, Jane hears “the last sound I expected to hear in such a quiet region, laughter, struck my ear. It was a curious laugh; distinct, formal, joyless. I stopped: the noise only ceased for an instant; he started again, stronger: because at first, although distinct, he was very weak. It happened with a loud chime that seemed to awaken an echo in every solitary room” (Bronte 158). The strange laugh follows Jane throughout the house, sometimes appearing at times when it seems false and suspicious. The reader becomes aware of a disturbing feeling associated with his presence. Jane ends up believing that it is the laughter of Grace Poole, a woman she believes to be “possessed by a devil”(Brontë 221). As soon as Jane thinks about it, the reader wonders about it too. Is she possessed by a supernatural monster? The story continues with feelings of apprehension and fear every time Jane enters certain parts of the house. Things get even scarier when Rochester's room is set on fire, and Jane thinks it was Grace's doing. The "demon" has now proven to be some kind of evil, and the rest of the novel leaves the reader in fear as to the next demonic crime. The reader shares Jane's fear and apprehension, not knowing for sure who or what is causing the violence. Especially since a worse attack could take place in the near future. Later in the novel, a visitor is attacked during the night, stabbed and near death. Jane obediently helps at Rochester's request, and it becomes apparent that Rochester does not find such violent events suspicious, suggesting that he has something to hide. Suspicion of him grows until it turns out that the culprit is not Grace Poole, but Rochester's own demented wife, a secret hidden from the world. Having gone mad years earlier, Rochester chose to hide her from the world and hired Grace Poole to care for her within the castle. The illusion of a supernatural element is broken, but fear remains in this dangerous and violent individual. So this is one of the times when what seems supernatural turns out to be natural. Having been the first true Gothic novel, Horace Walpole's The Castle of Otranto encompasses much of what is considered the aesthetic of the Gothic, from imagery, to architecture, to the psychological, to the supernatural, to terror. As a Gothic novel, it "is part of the new 'process literature' which reflects the mind of its creator" and it "attempts to arouse the imaginative sympathy of the reader" (Hume 282). Manfred is the owner of the castle and master of the land and his son is killed on his wedding day when a gigantic helmet falls from the sky. In an attempt to maintain control of his lands, Manfred attempts to divorce his loyal wife Hippolita for his late son's fiancée, Isabella. Isabella flees to a church to protect herself from the gruesome idea of ​​marrying her deceased fiancé's married father and receives help from a prisoner named Theodore. Otranto Castle begins with the sinister prophecy “That the castle and lordship of Otranto should pass from the present family, whenever the true owner should become too great to inhabit it” (Walpole 17). From the beginning, the novel seems set to unfold in a predetermined state of events, even if they are still unknown. The reader is informed of the direction the novel will take. The curiosity surrounding this strange prophecy brings an element of mystery to the novel. What does the prophecy mean? Where does it come from? Will this come true? Does this come from divine or supernatural intervention? Mystery and uncertainty produce feelings of apprehension and fear, all of which contribute to the construction of the Gothic aesthetic. What is unknown raises questions and demands answers. These questions keep the reader wondering throughout the novel. The atmosphere and setting of the novel also encompasses elements that form a Gothic aesthetic. The Gothic “is generally embodied in enclosed and haunted settings such as castles, crypts and convents” (Oxford Companion to English Literature). Titled after the location, Otranto Castle is the most blatant use of Gothic for the castle's presence. When the townspeople try to understand what happened to Manfred's son, they discover that Theodore "stole the helmet from the tomb of good Alphonse and smashed our young prince's brain with it", thus leading to thecrypt. The place of refuge for the fleeing characters naturally becomes the church; Both Isabella and Theodore use it to escape Manfred's wrath. The three structural elements that represent the Gothic aesthetic are used by Walpole at Otranto. Since it is the pioneering work of the genre, it is evident that its examples of these three elements are those from which later writers drew inspiration. Manfred himself encompasses archaic notions of the Gothic as he ruled the country with the hand of tyranny, controlling everything, retaining power for himself and for his legacy. Alfred Longuiel's definition applies perfectly to Manfred insofar as “the adjective “gothic” is used as a defined and recognized synonym for barbarian. Most often, this usage is linked to ignorance, cruelty or savagery, qualities associated with the vision inherited from the Renaissance of the Middle Ages” (455). Manfred is a cruel and selfish ruler, concerned only with preserving his family's name on the throne. He does not care about the cost of power or the consequences of his actions on others. He is the embodiment of barbarian rule. It is because of his tyrannical ways that the story unfolds the way it does, as the consequences of all his actions eventually catch up. Manfred had even impressed “Isabella's mind with terror, because of her causeless rigor towards such amiable princesses as Hippolita and Matilda” (Walpole 19). Terror is a common element of the Gothic aesthetic, used as an attempt to invoke morality. Manfred unjustly imprisons Theodore and sentences him to death, blaming him for the crushing death of his son. Such imprisonment is another common element of Gothic. Such "terror dependent on suspense or fear is the modus operandi of Walpole's novels...[it] holds the reader's attention through fear of a series of terrible possibilities" (Hume 285). Gothic images of ruin and decay are depicted. by the collapse of Manfred's power. His years of greed and tyrannical rule have returned for justice. The picture of decadence would not be complete, however, if Manfred himself suffered. After the loss of his only male heir, Manfred accidentally kills his own daughter, mistaking her for Isabella and stabbing her in a fit of jealous rage. This is the final piece of the collapse and after Manfred loses everything, power is restored to the rightful person, Theodore. The prophecy had stated that when “the true owner had outgrown the lordship, the new ruler would take possession. The irony lies in the fact that it was when Manfred had nothing left and lost his children that he became “too big” (Walpole 17). Walpole's Otranto “aimed for a medieval atmosphere by means of a medieval setting, solitary castles, haunted towers, underground passages, knights in armor, magic. But for the reading public, the salient feature of these stories seems to have been, not their Gothic setting, but their supernatural incident” (Longeil 458). Walpole's use of the supernatural mainly comes in the form of large pieces of armor that reappear frequently. His son is crushed by a giant helmet. One of the servants claims to have seen a giant foot in the gallery room, while another, Bianca, sees a giant hand appear in another part of the castle. These gigantic pieces of body and armor have spread fear and unrest within the castle household. Several occupants saw him, but no one can identify him. Its mystery remains one of the main mysteries of the novel. Other moments also suggest the supernatural; Earlier, Bianca claims to hear voices in the halls and determines that the castle is haunted. To a.