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Tessa Buckman

Prof. Sarah Sillin

ENG372

March 7, 2019

Gothic Literature in the Antebellum Era

Although not widely recognized till the 19th century, gothic literature started growing in the 18th century. With themes of a gloomy setting, supernatural spirits, and intense emotions, gothic literature took the world by storm for its unique themes. Some of the most popular gothic pieces were written in the 18th century and became the inspiration for many future pieces. Gothic became popular due to its use of both romance and a sort of terror, two genres not typically put together. People found it to be an interesting combination that was full of unexpected twists and turns that kept readers engaged. To this day, gothic literature is still prevalent and influenced by earlier writers.

Some of the most popular writers, such as Edgar Allen Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne, produced pieces of literature that are still talked about today. Poe is known for his gothic poems and short stories that commonly focus on a gloomy setting and romance. Works like A Dream and The Raven have become widely recognized and used as examples for great gothic pieces. Poe’s work is also popular in the poetry world, without focusing on gothic themes, because of this his gothic style works its way into average literature without being focused on. Another popular author is Nathaniel Hawthorne. He is known for writing gothic novels, one of them being “The Scarlet Letter” which follows a female character as she is banished from her community due to adultery and has to raise her odd child. “The Scarlet Letter” shows vivid use of supernatural beings and romance throughout the story. Another unique theme brought up in these stories is the idea of strong, or independent, female characters. Because of this we can start seeing the progression of women in literature, and more specifically within gothic pieces.

Female writers started becoming more popular and accepted during this time. Writers like Emily Bronte and Emily Dickinson shared a deep interest in gothic literature. Bronte is the author of a popular gothic novel, called Wurthering Heights. This book heavily emphasizes the idea of forbidden romance and other gothic themes such as intense emotion. Dickinson wrote short poems that also portray intense emotion. Although her poems were published after she died, readers can see the influence of gothic literature within her works. Poems such as I heard a Fly buzz—when I died and I’m Nobody, Who Are You? offer an outlet for readers to connect their emotions to. These poems are an easy way for readers to learn about gothic literature because they can relate their own emotions in a shorter piece that can be deeply analyzed in different ways. Both Bronte and Dickinson offer literature by women that does not focus on them being women, but instead focuses on gothic as a genre.

While gothic literature began and will continue on beyond the antebellum era, this time was very influential. During this time a fairly new genre was expanded on and became popular due to its unique appeal. Writers like Poe, Hawthorne, Bronte, and Dickinson all offered a new view and stories within this genre. Poe and Hawthorne heavily influenced future literature with their works, while Bronte and Dickinson started to change the gothic literature world for women. Due to their talents, they were able to leave a positive impact on this genre through their own work and also by influencing others. With the most common theme being intense emotions, these pieces explore how people feel beyond the natural state of a human. Each piece of work is an example of the growth gothic literature faced during these times.

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Mentioned in my timeline post, Emily Bronte created a widely talked about piece of literature. The story follows a complicated love story that holds many gothic themes such as intense emotion, an eerie castle, romance, an a sense of mystery in many aspects. I chose the quote pictured below to focus on because it emphasizes the idea of intense emotion between Heathcliff and Catherine. Their relationship is complicated from the beginning because Heathcliff is Catherines adopted brother, but they start feeling romantic feelings towards each other. Eventually they marry others but Catherine dies in childbirth. In this quote Heathcliff is turning his sorrow into a confession of love for her, and proclaiming his need for her. He portrays intense emotion for Catherine even though they are related and since she has already died.

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Emily Dickinson became a popular poet after her death in 1886, but wrote many poems throughout her life. Most of her poems weren't found particularly popular to the public and the few poems she had published when she was alive were edited. After her death many poems were found that she had written throughout her lifetime. Although her poems became popular after her death, many of her poems were written in the antebellum era and often spoke about strong emotions, which is a popular them in gothic literature. Poems like "I heard a Fly Buzz-" and many others spoke of eery and strong emotions and often left a lot of room for thought. While she wasn't as known for her poems in terms of the gothic style, many of her poems have underlying gothic themes within them.

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Nathaniel Hawthorne is well-know American novelist who writes things from poems to novels. Partially known for his relations to the Salem Witch Trials, through his great grandfather. Beyond this Hawthorne wrote many pieces of work that include gothic themes. This poem, The Ocean, has 16 lines and explores the depths of the ocean. One of the most prominent gothic themes in this particular poem is the gloomy setting. The first two lines lead readers to create images in their heads about the dark, deep ocean. Throughout the poem there is an underlying eerie tone that instill a sense of uneasiness to the readers, just as gothic literature should.

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The Ocean by Nathaniel Hawthorne | Poetry Foundation

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Revisiting Poe, gothic themes are a heavily noted idea within his pieces. Much of what Poe wrote revolved around gothic themes and are what got him recognized and remembered as a writer. Specifically, in "A Dream" there is emphasis of the supernatural, a dismal setting, and a sense of romance. These three themes within gothic writing were brought to life by Poe's words. His ability to create images with his words in his poems created a new world to be explored. By emphasizing these techniques Poe wrote poems that held readers focus because of the overwhelming sense of mystery.

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Gothic has existed a while before, and long after, the antebellum era. But the antebellum era had produced some classics that we still talk about today. Around the beginning of the era, 1817, a couple notable gothic writers had published literature that started other trends. During this time John Polidori wrote the first vampire story, which paved the way for many after. Mary Shelley publishes Frankenstein, which happens to also be science fiction as well as gothic. Jane Austen writes a gothic story, Northanger Abbey, which references to earlier gothic stories and becomes memorable in this genre. Popular Edgar Allen Poe focused on psychological centered gothic poems and stories. Emily Bront contributes to a sub-genre of gothic, "Female Gothic" with her book Wuthering Heights. These are only a few of the popular gothic writers that got recognition in this era.

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Spine-chillers and suspense: A timeline of Gothic fiction

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From the publication of The Castle of Otranto to House of Leaves, a timeline of important events in the history of Gothic literature.

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In the antebellum era Poe was one of many poets to become recognized for his works. Poe was mostly known for writing romantic and gothic pieces. Through poems and short stories Poe wrote about morbid and grim experiences. Some of his most famous pieces of work are "The Raven", "The Fall of the House of Usher" and "The Tell-tale Heart". Common gothic themes found within his poems and stories are murder, torture, and romance. Although Poe is most known for his gothic pieces, it was not necessarily a genre he favored. He simply wrote gothic pieces to please the public and make money since he was only relying on his writing as a source of income.

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The following brief summaries are designed to quickly give readers an idea of what each story is about. Find something of interest then take a trip into Poe's imagination...

Summaries are listed in alphabetical order:

Comedy about being drunk

Yes, Poe actually wrote a few comedies. Of course, he had a weird sense of humor. In this story, the narrator meets a strange little character and they go off to have adventures. When reading the broken dialog in this story, it helps if you pretend to read it like a drunk person.
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Newspaper story about balloon travel

This story appeared in the New York Sun in 1844 and claimed to have details about a group of men that successfully crossed the Atlantic Ocean in a new type of balloon. Although it looked like a real story, it was completely ficticious, created entirely from Poe's imagination.
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Horror story about teeth
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Horror story about a cat

A drunk man kills his cat and it comes back to haunt him. In Poe's usual style, the narrator of the story is the killer and we see things through his eyes. Quite a horrific tale.
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A story of revenge
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Man vs. Nature, Adventure Story
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A love story

A beautiful love story. In many ways, it parallels Poe's life and his love for his wife, Virginia. The question is, who does the person at the end of the story represent?
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Talking with a dead man

A man dying from tuberculosis asks his friend, the narrator of the story, to hypnotize him just before death. The event is witnessed by two doctors and a medical student. The results are interesting to say the least.
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An old house and its secrets
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A search for pirate treasure

If Poe lived today, he could have been a hacker! In this story, two friends and a servant go on a hunt for the fabled buried treasure of Captain Kidd. Through his character named William Legrand, Poe explains how to decode an encrypted message. Using Poe's technique, you can actually solve cryptograms and substitution ciphers! Besides being a great "Sherlock Holmes" type adventure story, it gives an insight into Poe's intelligence.
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A midget seeks revenge

Are you looking for a short story about a crippled midget who seeks revenge on those who mistreat him and make fun of him? This is that story. And it was written almost 200 years before Game of Thrones
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Procrastination and confession

A great little 5 page story about human nature. The narrator talks about how we can stand on the edge of a cliff, knowing it will be suicide to jump off, yet we wonder what it would be like. There is also a great paragraph about procrastination. Poe's character in this story is a murderer who is fighting the urge to confess his crime.
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A poetic discussion

Another very short piece that isn't really a story but a discussion about music, the nature of God and the universe, and finally, a beautiful and poetic visualization of life and death. "Fay" means fairy, or elf.
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A haunting supernatural tale

Probably my favorite Poe story. The narrator of the story describes his beautiful wife, Ligeia. She was tall and slender with pale skin and long black hair. She dies and he is heartbroken. Some time later he decides to move on with his life and he remarries. Strange things start to happen as the narrator thinks more and more about his first love, Ligeia...

Wait for a rainy night, turn off all the lights and light some candles before you read this story. Poe does such a great job of describing the surroundings in this story, you can easily place yourself there.
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How to follow someone

A man is sitting in a coffee shop, watching all of the different kinds of people moving through the streets. A particluar old man catches his attention and he decides to follow him to learn more about him...

This story really makes you think. Its a story that you'll want to read several times.
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Adventure at sea

This was the first story Poe received any money for. He entered it in a short story contest and won the prize. The narrator of the story is a passenger on a sailing ship. After several days at sea, they encounter a violent storm. The ship is being torn to pieces by the wind and the waves...
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The horror of the plague

The "Red Death" is a plague which has killed off half of the population. Prince Prospero gathers a thousand people from the knights and royalty. They seal themselves off from the rest of the world in an extensive castle, in an attempt to separate themselves from the horrible conditions on the outside. But, can they escape the Red Death?
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Conversation with a hypnotized dying man

After hypnotizing a dying patient, a doctor has a remarkable conversation with him about the nature of the universe, spirits, and God.
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A detective story

Poe invented the detective story with this tale. The main character is C. Auguste Dupin, a sleuth that solves crimes by deduction. Two women have been brutally murdered and it appears there was no way in or out of the room where the murders took place. How does Dupin figure it out? Who killed the women? (They didn't kill each other)

A reporter asked Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in 1894 if he had been influenced by the work of Edgar Allan Poe. The creator of Sherlock Holmes replied, "Oh, immensely! His detective is the best detective in fiction."
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A detective story

Poe's French detective Dupin helps solve another murder. But this time, Poe's tale is based on a REAL murder that took place in the New York area in 1841. Poe changed the names and moved the location to Paris but the details, characters, and quotes from the various publications are all real.
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A comedy with a moral

A short comedy, only a few pages long. The first part is a narrative about stories that do not have morals. You almost wonder if Poe is talking about himself. The narrator describes his friend Toby Dammit whose favorite phrase is, "I'll bet the Devil my head!" As the story continues, the narrator and his friend Dammit are out for a walk in the country. They come to an old covered bridge and as they are crossing it, a strange little man appears...
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What's in the box??

An artist boards a ship with his new bride, his two sisters, and a mysterious box. The narrator tries his best to figure out what's in the box.
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A tragic love story

A painter is so obsessed with painting the perfect portrait of his beautiful wife, that he does nothing else until it is finished. As an artist myself, I can relate to this story in more ways than one. It is very short, only a couple of pages, but definitely worth reading.
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A torture chamber

Another of Poe's more popular works. It's the story of a man's attempt to survive in a torture chamber during the Spanish Inquisition, one of the most deadly inquisitions in history. This isn't really a horror story. It's more of a suspenseful thriller. If you had been sentenced to death in a torture chamber, what would you do? and what's in the Pit?

Did you know the Spanish Inquisition ended during Poe's lifetime? We tend to think it happened in the Middle Ages, but torturing people because they wouldn't convert to Christianity officially ended in 1834, when Poe was 25 years old.
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About being buried alive
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A detective story

Purloined simply means stolen. A document of national importance has been stolen and the police can't find it or prove who stole it. Poe's character, C. Auguste Dupin, comes to the rescue, solves the crime and recovers the letter. It's great to read how the police go through all of their usual methods and are unsuccessful. Dupin comes along and figures it all out using the powers of deduction as his only weapon. Its like "CSI: Edgar Allan Poe".
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A dream

A short piece, only a couple of pages long, it is more like a dream than a story with real characters. It is full of symbolism and rich imagery. Very deep, very intense. I'd like to know what Poe was thinking when he wrote this. Was he trippin? Maybe he had been drinking Absinthe?
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A mummy speaks

An ancient egyptian mummy comes to life, but not to chase anyone around a tomb. This is a science fiction story, not a tale of horror. If you look carefully, you'll find a little sarcastic humor here and there. The mummy has a story of his own to tell, and its quite an interesting one, to say the least. Another example of Poe's fantastic imagination.
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A great little comedy about love at first sight

This is another of Poe's few comedies but it's a great one. The narrator of the story is a young man who is in love with an aristocratic woman. The story is about his pursuit of her and ends with a surprise.
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Inside an insane asylum

This is not a horror story. It's a strange and surprising little tale about a visit to an insane asylum. The narrator, traveling through the french countryside, decides to stop at a well known private "mad house". He has heard from his medical friends in Paris that this hospital uses a new technique to care for its patients. The cast of characters that Poe invents for this story is wonderful.
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A murderer's guilt
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Identical twins or something else?

The narrator of this story, who calls himself William Wilson, describes the events of his early life in school and the rivalry between himself and another person named William Wilson. As the story progresses, we learn of many similarities between the two Wilsons. Are they twin brothers? or something else?
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Brief Summaries of stories by Edgar Allan Poe

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The following brief summaries are designed to quickly give readers an idea of what each story is about. Find something of interest then take a trip into Poe's imagination... Summaries are listed in alphabetical order: Yes, Poe actually wrote a few comedies. Of course, he had a weird sense of humor.