|
(2015
midterm assignment) Sample Student Midterm Answers 2015 #2b: Short Essay (Favorite Term) |
LITR 4328 |
 |
Cyndi Perkins
The Gothic and American Horror
The most intriguing revelation I have had so far was
learning that Gothic literature was included in Romanticism. As a fan of horror,
I have always connected it with the fantastical. I assumed others love it for
the same reason I do which is to watch in terror as a masked psychopath chases a
not-so-bright girl as she chooses to run upstairs instead of out the front door
and then feeling of satisfaction that comes from seeing her get hacked up as due
punishment for making our sex appear hysterical and weak. I never associated it
with any deep, psychological meaning or importance and had no idea that we are
most likely subconsciously drawn to it for these reasons. In the first few weeks
of class I have had my eyes opened to the rich tradition of American Gothic and
how its success in our culture reveals a disturbing yet alluring attraction to
the things that go bump in the night.
Gothic literature often uses
haunted houses as the setting for the story. I have learned, however, recently
that since early American life lacked ancient buildings, the unexplored forests
became the scene chosen for working out our fears. These spaces are a reflection
of the haunted human mind often suffering from a guilty conscience after
committing some crime or due to anger or despair at some loss.
The
spaces can also be reminders of atrocities and crimes that have been committed
that demand to be acknowledged as well as punishment of the guilty. Shadowy,
dark characters can represent the unknown which typically plays on our greatest
fears. The gothic that is depicted in early American literature reminds us of
our past ignorance of nature and of other peoples that gave rise to the
superstitions of our ancestors. Stories of witches, ghosts, demons as well as
savages that inhabited the forest were always lurking to steal away a person’s
life and often, more importantly, their soul.
Obsessing over the unknown
allows us to name and describe it, enabling us to face it and strip it of its
power. For example, imbuing the dark forest of North America with familiar
satanic ideas somehow made it easier for our ancestors to understand and feel as
if they had a way to overpower it with their religion. For readers of
The
Legend of
Sleepy Hollow or
The Last of the
Mohicans, reading about the experience of
others with ghosts and savages may have not only exposed and therefore tamed the
fear of the unknown and the “other,” but assured them that these sinister
elements were within their control.
Also, the working out of hidden
secrets, dark passions, sinful acts and the exposure and punishment of crimes is
cathartic. This allows the reader to relate and vicariously work out their
issues whether it be something like the societal crime of genocide of the Native
Americans or exposing a secret so that it can hopefully be forgiven. For
example, in dealing with genocide,
The Last of the
Mohicans offered our ancestors a way in
which they could distinguish between good and bad Indians as well as be
reassured that they were right in fearing the savages and therefore could feel
justified in protecting themselves. Ironically, in our present culture we would
handle it in exactly the opposite fashion. An example of this would be the movie
Poltergeist in which the violation of an
ancient Indian burial ground causes the interlopers great suffering. We not only
recognize that we as a society had it coming for our past sins, but relish the
terror the sufferers are experiencing as possibly some sort of penance.
I understand now how the
American Gothic tradition naturally arises out of American Romanticism. During
the Enlightenment, the human imagination was disregarded and only scientific and
rational explanations were searched for in dealing with psychology.
Unfortunately, science can’t always explain away or sooth our fears. As a
response to the Enlightenment, the Gothic, as an extension of the Romantic,
endeavors to explain away and calm our fears and even offer warnings to us of
the pitfalls of human behavior. If we commit atrocities, we will surely be
punished. If we stray from civilization, demonic forces will be waiting to make
sure we never return. If we don’t deal with our animal desires or our
overwhelming feelings of loss or melancholy, then we can expect to have a
“haunted mind.” Now,
whenever I come across the gothic, whether in a novel or a movie, I will be
looking for the symbolic layer lurking beneath the surface.
