Gothic fiction, often called Gothic horror, especially in the 20th century, is a type of writing that focuses on fear and eerie, mysterious settings. The name comes from the Renaissance use of the word "Gothic," which was used as a negative term to describe medieval and rough things. This term was linked to Gothic architecture and the Goths, an ancient group of people.
The first book labeled as Gothic was Horace Walpole’s 1764 novel The Castle of Otranto, later titled A Gothic Story. Other writers in the 18th century who contributed to the genre include Clara Reeve, Ann Radcliffe, William Beckford, and Matthew Gregory Lewis. The influence of Gothic themes continued into the early 19th century, appearing in works by Romantic poets like Samuel Taylor Coleridge and Lord Byron. Novelists such as Mary Shelley, Charles Maturin, Walter Scott, and E. T. A. Hoffmann also used Gothic ideas in their stories.
Gothic themes remained popular in Victorian literature, found in works by Charles Dickens and the Brontë sisters, as well as in stories by American writers like Edgar Allan Poe and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Later, Gothic fiction evolved through famous books such as Carmilla (1872) by Sheridan Le Fanu, Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886) by Robert Louis Stevenson, The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890) by Oscar Wilde, Dracula (1897) by Bram Stoker, and The Beetle (1897) by Richard Marsh. In the 20th century, Gothic fiction stayed influential, with writers like Daphne du Maurier, Stephen King, V. C. Andrews, Shirley Jackson, Anne Rice, and Toni Morrison contributing to the genre.
Characteristics
Gothic fiction is known for creating a sense of fear, the possibility of supernatural events, and the influence of the past on the present. Stories often take place in settings that remind people of the past, such as ruined buildings that show how temporary human achievements are and how history can change quickly. Common settings in the 18th and 19th centuries include castles, monasteries, convents, and crypts. The atmosphere is often tight and uncomfortable, and stories may include themes like revenge, imprisonment, and murder. Horrifying events in these stories often represent psychological or social problems. Gothic stories are usually complex and hard to follow, with elements like stories inside stories, different narrators, and tools like discovered manuscripts or added histories. Other features may include sleep-like or death-like states, being buried alive, doubles, strange sounds or silences, hidden family connections, unreadable writings, nighttime scenes, remote places, and dreams. In the late 19th century, stories often included demons, possession by evil spirits, ghosts, and other supernatural beings.
Gothic fiction is closely linked to Gothic Revival architecture from the same time. English writers often connected medieval buildings with a dark and scary time in history, when strict laws and strange rituals were common. Gothic stories focus on strong emotions, the excitement of fear and awe, and creating a mood, much like how Gothic Revival architects avoided the clear, logical style of the Enlightenment. Gothic ruins make people feel many emotions at once by showing how human creations fall apart and decay over time—this is why fake ruins were added to English parks to attract attention.
Including a Gothic building in a story has several purposes. It suggests the story takes place in the past, creates a feeling of being separated from the rest of the world, shows religious connections, and makes readers feel awe. The buildings often reflect the characters and events in the story. For example, in The Castle of Otranto, the castle has hidden tunnels that characters use to move secretly. These tunnels represent the hidden secrets about how Manfred came to own the castle and his family's history.
History
It is now the dead of night, when cemeteries seem to open and darkness spreads disease into the world. At this moment, I would drink hot blood and perform terrible acts that would make the day tremble in fear.
The elements that later formed Gothic literature had a long history by the time Horace Walpole created a fake medieval document in The Castle of Otranto in 1764.
The plays of William Shakespeare were also important for early Gothic writers. They used his works to give their stories more credibility and to show the public that Gothic writing was serious literature. His tragedies, such as Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Romeo and Juliet, and Richard III, included stories about the supernatural, revenge, murder, ghosts, witchcraft, and signs of future events. These plays, often set in medieval castles and filled with emotional intensity, greatly influenced early Gothic authors. Many Gothic writers quoted Shakespeare or referenced his works in their own writing.
Another major influence on Gothic writers was John Milton’s Paradise Lost (1667), especially his portrayal of the tragic character Satan. This character became a model for many Gothic villains and Byronic heroes. Milton’s version of the story of the fall and redemption, creation and destruction, is an important example for Gothic stories, as seen in Frankenstein.
Alexander Pope also played a key role in shaping Gothic fiction. He was the first important poet of the 18th century to write in a true Gothic style. His poem Eloisa to Abelard (1717) tells the story of two lovers separated by religious vows, one living in a convent and the other in a monastery. The poem is filled with dark images, religious fear, and hidden emotions. Pope’s influence can be seen in 18th-century Gothic literature, including the works of Walpole, Radcliffe, and Lewis.
Development of Gothic aesthetics
Gothic literature is often described using words like "wonder" and "terror." These feelings help readers suspend disbelief, which is important for Gothic fiction. Most Gothic stories are taken seriously, even though they sometimes include dramatic or exaggerated events. Readers must imagine that there might be things beyond what they can see. This kind of imagination had been growing before Gothic literature began. As the world became more explored and maps filled in, people needed new ways to imagine the unknown. Clive Bloom believes this need for imagination helped make Gothic literature possible.
Many early Gothic stories were set in the medieval past, a common theme even before Horace Walpole wrote The Castle of Otranto in 1764. In Britain, people wanted to remember their shared history, leading to things like grand buildings and fake medieval events. This interest in the past helped society accept Gothic stories when they appeared in 1764.
Gothic literature often uses scenes of decay, death, and sadness to create its effects, especially in the Italian Horror school. However, these themes were not new. Earlier works, like those by Graveyard poets and Daniel Defoe’s A Journal of the Plague Year, already included images of corpses and churchyards. Even earlier, poets like Edmund Spenser created sad moods in their poems. These older works helped build the emotional foundation for Gothic fiction.
While Gothic literature shares some elements with earlier works, it needed something more to become fully formed. Clive Bloom says this was an aesthetic or philosophical idea that tied the stories together. Edmund Burke’s 1757 book, A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and Beautiful, provided this. Burke explained that the Sublime is a strong emotion, often linked to fear. To feel fear, people must not know everything about what scares them. This idea helped shape the emotional tone of Gothic fiction.
The rise of Gothic literature was also connected to political changes. Some researchers link its start to the English Civil War and the Jacobite rising of 1745, which happened close to the first Gothic novel. Political memories and fears from these events may have influenced early Gothic villains, who often represented defeated groups in society.
From Gothic settings like castles and forests came the subgenre called "female Gothic." Authors like Ann Radcliffe, Mary Shelley, and Charlotte Brontë helped shape this style, allowing women’s desires and experiences to be explored. At the time, women who read these novels often felt they had to hide their enjoyment. Gothic fiction gave women a way to express their mixed feelings about society.
Female Gothic stories often focus on a heroine fleeing a cruel father or searching for a missing mother. Male writers, however, usually focus on breaking social rules. The ghost story gave women writers a way to write about topics beyond marriage, allowing them to criticize male power and violence. Some authors, like Mary Robinson and Charlotte Dacre, wrote about strong, independent heroines who challenged traditional roles. Dacre’s Zofloya; or, The Moor features a bold female character who pursues her desires.
When female Gothic stories use the "explained supernatural," the fear comes not from ghosts but from real issues like rape, incest, or male control. These stories also show women’s dissatisfaction with their roles in society, their struggles with motherhood, and their fears of being trapped in marriage or abuse.
After the typical Gothic story, which often follows a character’s growth from youth to maturity, female Gothic allows readers to understand the limits of the supernatural. Characters like Adeline in The Romance of the Forest learn that their fears are not supernatural but natural. The heroine’s sensitivity makes her see the world differently, but she must face the reality of being a woman in a society that limits her.
The first book labeled "Gothic" was The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole in 1764. Walpole claimed it was a translation of a 16th-century manuscript. In the second edition, he admitted he was the author, adding the subtitle "A Gothic Story." This caused some readers to criticize him for writing a supernatural tale in a rational age. Walpole’s work inspired others, like Clara Reeve’s The Old English Baron (1778), which called itself a "literary offspring" of The Castle of Otranto. Other writers in the 1780s, like Sophia Lee and William Beckford, combined supernatural plots with realistic characters.
By the 1790s, Gothic novels were closely linked to Ann Radcliffe, whose popular and widely copied stories helped define the genre.
Other media
Literary Gothic themes have appeared in other forms of media. In the 20th century, Gothic horror films became popular again, including classic Universal Monsters movies from the 1930s, Hammer Horror films, and Roger Corman's series of films based on Edgar Allan Poe's stories. In Hindi cinema, Gothic elements were combined with Indian traditions, such as the idea of reincarnation, creating a unique "Indian Gothic" genre. This began with films like Mahal (1949) and Madhumati (1958). The 1960s television series Dark Shadows used many Gothic traditions, such as haunted houses, vampires, witches, tragic love stories, and themes of madness. In the early 1970s, comic books briefly featured Gothic Romance stories, including titles like The Dark Mansion of Forbidden Love and Haunted Love.
Rock music in the 20th century also included Gothic elements. Black Sabbath's first album in 1970 had a dark, unique sound and is considered the first "goth-rock" record. However, the first use of the word "gothic" to describe music was for The Doors in 1967 by a critic named John Stickney. Other early influences on gothic rock included Marc Bolan, the Velvet Underground, David Bowie, Brian Eno, and Iggy Pop. Critic Simon Reynolds later called Kate Bush's 1978 song Wuthering Heights—inspired by Emily Brontë's novel—a "Gothic romance" in four-and-a-half minutes. Gothic rock as a music genre began in late 1970s England with Bauhaus's song Bela Lugosi's Dead (1979). This was followed by Joy Division's album Unknown Pleasures (1980) and later by bands like The Cure and Siouxsie and the Banshees, who added more Gothic features to their music. Gothic themes from writers like H.P. Lovecraft influenced bands in genres such as black metal, thrash metal (e.g., Metallica's The Call of Ktulu), death metal, and gothic metal. For example, King Diamond's music often includes horror stories, theatrical performances, and themes of Satanism and anti-Catholicism.
In role-playing games (RPGs), the 1983 Dungeons & Dragons adventure Ravenloft involves players fighting a vampire named Strahd von Zarovich, who mourns his lost love. This adventure is considered one of the best RPG experiences and inspired a fictional world called Ravenloft. The World of Darkness RPG series is set in the real world but includes supernatural creatures like werewolves and vampires. It includes games like Vampire: The Masquerade, Werewolf: The Apocalypse, and Mage: The Ascension, allowing players to explore many Gothic-punk stories. The game My Life with Master uses Gothic horror to show abusive relationships, placing players in the role of followers of a powerful, cruel leader.
Many video games include Gothic horror themes. The Castlevania series features heroes fighting vampires, werewolves, and other Gothic monsters in a castle, with a final battle against Dracula. Games like Ghosts 'n Goblins parody Gothic stories. Resident Evil 7: Biohazard (2017) is a Southern Gothic version of the survival horror genre, where players explore a haunted Southern plantation. Resident Evil Village (2021) is a Gothic horror sequel where a hero searches for his kidnapped daughter in a mysterious village filled with vampires, werewolves, and other monsters. The Devil May Cry series mixes Gothic horror with action, following a character named Dante as he battles demons and explores haunted places. Gothic themes appear in the story, such as the past influencing the present and the struggle between Dante and his twin brother. The game also includes Female Gothic elements, like the character Lady, who seeks revenge against her abusive father. Bloodborne takes place in the Gothic city of Yharnam, where players fight monsters like werewolves and vampires. The game later shifts to Lovecraftian horror, which involves cosmic horror. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt includes Gothic elements like ghosts, haunted houses, and cursed beings in its Hearts of Stone expansion.
The popular card game Magic: The Gathering includes a world called Innistrad, which is inspired by Gothic horror from northeast Europe. Its characters include vampires, ghosts, and werewolves.
Film director Tim Burton, influenced by classic Gothic movies like Frankenstein and The Phantom of the Opera, creates Gothic-style films. Modern Gothic horror films include Sleepy Hollow, Interview with the Vampire, Underworld, The Wolfman, From Hell, Dorian Gray, Let the Right One In, The Woman in Black, Crimson Peak, The Little Stranger, The Love Witch, Nosferatu, and Frankenstein.
The TV series Penny Dreadful (2014–2016) brings together classic Gothic characters in a psychological thriller set in Victorian London. The Oscar-winning Korean film Parasite has been described as "Revolutionary Gothic." Recently, the Netflix series The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor have used Gothic traditions in modern horror stories.
Scholarship
Educators who study literature, culture, and architecture value the Gothic genre as a way to explore the early development of scientific certainty. As Carol Senf explained, "the Gothic was… a response created by writers and thinkers who felt restricted by a confident view of the world and understood that the influence of the past, the irrational, and violence still affects the world." In this way, the Gothic helps students examine their uncertainty about the confidence of modern scientists. Scotland is home to what was likely the first postgraduate program to study the Gothic genre exclusively: the MLitt in the Gothic Imagination at the University of Stirling, which began accepting students in 1996.