It seems rather apt that the sun is absent today, as the Southern Spell fades and a new season is welcomed in. This month is Of Monsters and Men – it is an exploration of the monstrous in gothic fictions and realities. Before I reveal The Seven Gothic Signs you can use to easily identify… Read More Identifying the Gothic: The Seven Gothic Signs
The Truth about Frankenstein PART ONE OF TWO Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus is victim to a whole host of misconceptions. As we began this year with the 200th anniversary of the first publication of the novel (which took place on January 1st, 1818), and as today, February 1st, is the anniversary of Mary Shelley’s (1797 –… Read More Understanding Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’, Part 1
It all began with Edgar Allan Poe, the American grandfather of Gothic literature, who was born on this day (January 19th) in 1809. What I mean is that it all began for me; my interest in the Gothic started somewhere around the age of 7 or 8 when I happened to select “The Tell Tale… Read More Dissecting ‘The Tell Tale Heart’ by Edgar Allan Poe
Neither Porridge nor Clog-Dancing: The Virago World of Angela Carter [Castle Sarah Woodfine, 2005. Photo credit: Hannah, Generally Gothic, 2017] The white walls of Bristol’s Royal West of England Academy art gallery are lined with mystical, dark, dream-like artwork. A giant snow-globe, twin baby heads in a gravy dish, and a sculpture of a girl sleeping… Read More ‘Strange Worlds: The Vision of Angela Carter’ Exhibition
An Ongoing Attempt to Define the ‘Gothic’ In terms of the arts (particularly literature, but also film and music, as well as static visual art – you know, ‘art proper’), the gothic is commonly considered a trope, rather than a genre. A genre is a broad classification based on qualifiers such as subject matter, style,… Read More The Gothic: What?
Generally Gothic 