![]() ![]() His short story, “The Cask of Amontillado” (1846) is a good example. He replaced the presence of the supernatural with humans who become monstrous by giving in to illicit desires and soul-killing obsessions. Edgar Allan Poe, a recognized pioneer of detective fiction, has also been credited with developing the American Gothic aesthetic. Nineteenth century American authors put their own spin on the genre. Ann Radcliffe’s Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) further embedded Gothic sensibilities into the consciousness of European readers. The popularity of the novel marked Walpole as the father of Gothic fiction. The setting’s dilapidated castles, ghosts, incest, and exploration of taboos inspired- or spawned depending on your perspective- many works that mirrored the same themes. In 1764 English writer Horace Walpole used elements from Gothic architecture in his novel, The Castle of Otranto: A Gothic Story. The Gothic genre itself has lived long, traveled far and shape-shifted along the way. It makes visible problems we have with race, gender, economic inequality, corrupt leadership, etc., problems many in this country don’t acknowledge exist. Through stories of transgression and depictions of the grotesque, it evokes anxiety in the reader leaving them to question society’s institutions, religions, politics, familial and other relationships. Of Native Son, critic Irving Howe said, “The day appeared, American culture was changed forever…it made impossible a repetition of the old lies.” ( Library of Congress’ list of books that shaped America) Think about the impact books such as Richard Wright’s Native Son (1940) had on America. We should care because the stories we tell ourselves shape our society, and crime fiction is the second bestselling genre in the country. ![]() It’s no surprise that the Gothic is making its presence felt in the pages of crime fiction. More recently, Ozark and Love Craft Country have captured the imagination with its Gothic settings and characters. We see it in film, music, literature and on TV shows, where it continues to grow in popularity from the crumbling plantations of HBO’s True Blood, to the lush landscapes of Louisiana’s Oak Valley Plantation in the first season of True Detective. Elements of the Gothic permeate every aspect of American media. ![]()
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