Why We Should Read Gothic Literature

There are 169,518,829,100,544,000,000,000,000,000 ways of playing the first ten turns of a game of chess. (Carl Sagan, Cosmos) That sounds complicated until you compare it to Gothic literature. Our favorite 18^th and 19^th century authors present complex, often troubled characters that suffer sensational, often racy, depressing dramas. Gothic pieces are overwhelming, and can make us experience unpleasant emotions and question our own happiness. It was, and continues to be criticized for these reasons, but many forget to look at the genre's positive attributes. Gothic literature helps us exercise our minds by making us determine our own truths. It reminds us that everything is subjective. As Satan declares in Paradise Lost,"The mind is its own place and in itself can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven." (Milton 10) Thus, we need to broaden our perspective, think critically, and use our own judgment not only when reading, but also when analyzing real-life situations. Structurally, it often uses frame narratives, narrators, glossators, and multiple perspectives, which remind us that truths are different for everyone. Extreme emotions, a common feature of the Gothic, can easily manipulate us. Experiencing this shows us we need to closely examine rhetoric to make sure we're influenced by logic, not emotions. We practice this while reading Gothic literature, and can apply it to our real-life situations. Gothic literature forces us to rely on our intellects, and to use reason to find our own truths. This exercises our minds and helps us look critically at situations in our own lives. We can evidence this by examining Gothic plot structures and the Gothic's use of extreme emotional appeals, in Paradise Lost, Frankenstein, Letters Written in France, in the Summer of 1790,and "The Tyger. "

Gothic literature forces us to remove ourselves from the story and think critically about what we read, because we are quick to side with our protagonist, whether that protagonist is in the right or wrong. John Milton's Paradise Lost is an excellent example of this sympathizing weakness. He writes, "Nor what the potent Victor in His rage can else inflict do I repent or change." (Milton 6) In this passage, God is portrayed as an angry authority figure, and Satan a failed, yet determined, opponent. "Potent" means that God is all-powerful, which puts Satan at an unfair disadvantage in their struggle. We are taught that it is noble to fight fairly. Thus, God is here portrayed without that socially expected dignity, and Satan is the victim. "Victor" is capitalized, which tells us that God's identity comes absolutely from his conquest, which has a negative connotation (God is supposed to represent all things good, not competition.) Satan vows to keep to his course, which makes him brave and steady, characteristics we tend to admire. Reading this, we sympathize with Satan, the epitome of evil. We see here how easily we can be manipulated by simple semantics. Thus, in situations with a single protagonist, we need to distance ourselves from their story and analyze the situation with reason. This literature forces us to rely on our own minds to draw a reasonable conclusion.

Gothic literature reminds us that there are multiple sides to every story, and forces us to delve deeply into the causes and morality of each situation before forming a well-reasoned conclusion. Let's take, for example, the opposing perspectives of Victor Frankenstein and his creature in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. In this case, we have two protagonists that we could easily side with if we didn't hear the other's story. On one hand, the creature is a murderer. On the other, Victor fails as a parental figure, leaving his tabula rasa to be formed by whatever comes his way. Who is to blame? The creature says to Victor, "The mildness of my nature had fled, and all within me was turned to gall and bitterness. The nearer I approached to your habitation, the more deeply did I feel the spirit of revenge enkindled in my heart." (Shelley 107) Here the creature argues that he used to be good, but, facing the world alone, became miserable and succumbed to addictive hatred. Without a teacher, he is guided only by his emotions. If we read this alone, we would blame Victor. However, Victor, too, gains our sympathy: "The cup of life was poisoned for ever." (143) Victor is miserable and hopeless, and knows that he will never again enjoy life, because the creature's evil "poisoned" him. If we only read this, we would side with Victor. However, we need to consider both sides before coming to a conclusion. With multiple perspectives presented, we are reminded that everything is subjective and that we must delve deeper into the situation, looking at causes, methods, outcomes, morality, etc, to come to the most logical conclusion. This forces us to exercise our minds, and can even carry over into analyzing real-world, contemporary situations. Thank you, Gothic literature.

The Gothic also reminds us not to trust an arbitrary source, such as the speaker, but to rely on our own reasoning to analyze a situation. Edmund Burke's "The Tyger" is an excellent example of this. Burke writes, "Tyger Tyger, burning bright / ... / Could frame thy fearful symmetry?" (Burke 177) "Burning bright" describes a fierce vivacity. In the next line, an allusion is made to Hell. Thus, this creature is a vivacious, hellish one. That conjures up a terrible image. "Immortal hand" refers to God. In this question, the speaker is suggesting the Tyger is so horrible, he could not be a creature of God. "Fearful" is a straightforward indicator that this Tyger is both powerful and bad. From the first stanza alone, we are sure the Tyger is an evil creature. However, Burke made an illustration to go with the poem. In the illustration, the dreadful Tyger is smiling and cute; he seems to be smaller and less muscular than one would imagine a tiger. Finally, the Tyger is under a tree, before a beautiful sunset, not Hell. Comparing these two gives us pause - we assumed the speaker to be omnipotent, and to tell us the absolute truth, while there is obviously something askew about it. The speaker may be 100% sure he is correct, but, as Laird Hunt taught us, it is impossible to convey an entire truth. This teaches us that we can never rely on an arbitrary source of information. This knowledge is key when reading the Gothic, and can be applied to real life (for example, parents don't know everything).

Gothic literature reminds us that we are easily manipulated by powerful rhetoric, and that we must look critically at an argument before letting a skilled author define our opinions. Gothic literature often uses extremes, which work as strong emotional appeals to which we, as emotional beings, are dangerously susceptible. In Letters Written in France, in the Summer of 1790, Helen Maria Williams argues in favor of the French Revolution. She writes, "If the splendor of a despotic throne... let its baleful luster be extinguished for ever." (Williams 95) "Splendour" and "despotic" immediately unsettle us. When a despot experiences splendor, it is usually at the expense of his people. Her metaphor "shine like the radiance of lightning" puts together two terms we normally wouldn't associate. Radiance has a positive connotation, used to describe the glow of pregnant women or the shining sun. Lightning has a negative connotation, as it accompanies storms, and can be instantly destructive. Adding the strength of "radiance" to lightning creates a sublime image - this great but horrible image supports the monarchy, which terrifies us. She says "all around..." The use of "all" is an extreme. We imagine that every single citizen of France was in an atmosphere of "gloom and horror" under the monarchy. This is a robust, sublime immensity, which has an automatic effect on our psyche. Williams calls on heaven, the ultimate authority, to help their situation. This suggests that they are in the right, because heaven helps the Good. The extreme of this appeal is powerful and evokes strong emotion. "For ever" is similar to "all" in that it leaves no room for exceptions. It is absolute, which is impressive. These word choices are powerful and overwhelming, and work us into passionate agreement with her. This kind of reaction is dangerous, because it takes over reason. Because the Gothic is so extreme, and this type of situation arises frequently, we learn to look beyond the rhetoric, no matter how powerful it is, and analyze a situation with logic. This ability helps us in real life, as we are accosted by emotional appeals every day.

As humans, we're fans of expediency. We like the drive-thru, TiVo, and microwave ovens. However, it's a good idea to make an effort from time to time, to keep our brains from turning into mush. Gothic literature is the perfect solution. While it is dauntingly complex, it gives our minds a chance to fight past our sedation. We're able to go on a search for the truth, using our own reasoning and morals to reach a conclusion. While spoken by an untrustworthy source, Milton's words("The mind is its own place and in itself can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.") do have merit. The mind has awesome possibilities, and we should appreciate a chance to exercise it. While Gothic literature may be sensational and depressing, it forces us to think - that's merit. Gothic literature forces us to rely on our intellects, and to use reason to discover our own truths. This exercises our minds and helps us look critically at situations in our own lives. We evidenced this by examining Gothic plot structures and the Gothic's use of extreme emotional appeals, in Paradise Lost, Frankenstein, Letters Written in France, in the Summer of 1790,and "The Tyger."