Gothic fiction

genre or theme of fiction that combines horror and sometimes romance with an aesthetic of fear, death and haunting

Gothic fiction is a type of fiction which combines parts of both horror and romance. The genre is said to have started in England in 1764 with Horace Walpole's book The Castle of Otranto. The Castle of Otranto's second edition was subtitled A Gothic Story.[1] The idea quickly spread to other European languages.

A famous early example of gothic fiction is Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, in the early 19th Century.[2] Edgar Allen Poe's work and Bram Stoker's Dracula were written later.[3]

References change

  1. Kilgour, Maggie 1995. The rise of the gothic novel. London: Routledge.
  2. "Mary Shelley - Life, Frankenstein & Books". 6 May 2021.
  3. Bloom, Clive 2007. Gothic horror: a guide for students and readers. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.