Sir Walter Scott introduces The Talisman, second in his group of books comprising his Tales of the Crusade, explaining how he selected the topic for his novel. The Talisman, as indicated by the title, focuses on a charm or amulet… Read More ›
gothic romance
Analysis of Charlotte M. Yonge’s The Heir of Redclyffe
Supposedly, Charlotte M. Yonge was challenged by a friend to write a story about a hero with a flaw requiring reform who does not triumph through strength or talent, but rather proves his heroism through forbearance and forgiveness. She accepted… Read More ›
Analysis of Charles Reade’s Griffith Gaunt
Charles Reade, a playwright as well as a novelist, became well known for his attacks against human injustice and his pleas for compassion through his fiction, of which Griffith Gaunt became a strong example. Reade’s fiction proved melodramatic and dealt… Read More ›
Analysis of Maurice Hewlett’s The Forest Lovers
The Forest Lovers was the first of several romance novels by Maurice Hewlett, who began writing of knights in medieval settings at a time when such books were at the height of popularity. He prepared readers for all the hallmarks… Read More ›
Analysis of Charlotte Smith’s Emmeline
Like all Charlotte Smith’s novels, her first, Emmeline, contained strong autobiographical elements. Through fiction, Smith found a way to protest her situation as mother to a large brood of children with a profligate husband who had abandoned the family. According… Read More ›
Analysis of Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto
Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto proved crucial to the development of Gothic fiction. As indicated by the book’s subtitle, Walpole (1717–97) designed it to provide readers with a romance incorporating a dark, moody villain, an endangered heroine, a hero… Read More ›
Analysis of Walter Scott’s The Bride of Lammermoor
Sir Walter Scott based his novel The Bride of Lammermoor, second in his Tales of My Landlord series, on a true tragic love story about a Scottish family named Dalrymple, supported by fictional accounts, poetry, and popular ballad versions. He… Read More ›
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