The Rise of Female Conscious and Gothic Genre in the 18th century
Introduction
It is worth noting that the Gothic genre is a fictional literature writing technique that combines both death, horror, and romance to bring out the intended goal of the writer. Historically, Gothic literature is said to have mushroomed around the 18th and 19th centuries. The popularity of the genre around this era was largely attributed to the mushrooming of many female writers in this literature field, whose writing was geared towards expressing the gender representation issue and sexuality. This led to the emergence of a sub-genre of Gothic n literature famously known as female Gothic. According to scholars, the term female Gothic was mainly used to describe the second phase of feminism ideologies in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is worth noting that the critics of this genre have tried to condense female gothic as a genre in literature. For instance, Haggerty, George, in his book The Failure of Heteronormativity in the Gothic Novel.” Heteronormativity in Eighteenth-Century Literature and Culture brings out the key shortcomings in the Gothic genre.
The author denotes that gender is so much propagated by incitement and portrayal of women as the weak creatures who are always that the mercy of male dominance. According to the author, the common trend of heteronormativity in the Gothic genre is monotonous and is always predictable (Haggerty 155). It gives the readers the perception that the female gender is a creature that needs to be rescued. In addition, the author cites that the monotony of describing the same theme of indifferent oppression context can be equated to a lack of creativity. The author stipulates that the ending for Gothic novels indicate a great failure in this style of writing of the genre itself (Haggerty 145). Through exploring Ann Radcliffe’s work, the author argues that the heteronormativity in all Gothic novels does not bring any creativity because it makes the readers get used to the monotony that marks the ending of all Fictional Gothic. For instance, the author explains that Gothic novels reached their peak after the sexual exploration scene. He argues that the marriage or relationship normalizing after the tribulation goes against the intrinsic aspect of mirroring the actual happenings in the society.
This makes the fictional Gothic very predictable. Furthermore, the author argues that the representation of the male gender as powerful and oppressors does not mirror the current source of gender violence in modern society. For example, the author says, Gothic fiction is all about sexual transgression” (p.132). Despite such argument by authors such as Haggerty, the important role played by this genre has made it remain relevant throughout history. The genre generally involved a description of women who were going through a distressful situation in this era. Some of the bad ordeal that the won went through as portrayed in their writings include imprisonment, rape, extortion, and forced marriages. This essay examines the development of consciousness and ideology through gothic literature in the 18th and 19th centuries. The essay examines how the gothic literature shaped the changes in the perception and treatment of women as a result of their conscious weakening in this century and the years that followed.
The origin of the term Female Gothic
The term female Gothic was introduced by Ellen Moers in her writing titled Literary Women (p.4). The author intended to bring on board how the 18th female literature writees applied certain terminologies to express their anxiety over the domestic malpractice that they underwent through. The term led to the outburst of various female writers who shared the same ideologies coming into the scene to write about the same opinion. This led to a movement of female writers who unitedly wrote about the societal injustices that women went through during this period (Moers 67). A book written by Clery on the genesis of `Gothic’ fiction explores the origin of the Gothic genre in the history of literature.
The author analyses various historical events that marked the growth of the fictional Gothic as a genre in literature. Key features include the societal, economic, and cultural condensation that women were trying to break out from. The author argues that the growth of fiction Gothic has not only been an important aspect of creative writing but also has key points of discussion in contemporary society. A book Price Fiona explores the pieces of writing of different women in history that contributed immensely to the subject of fictional writing by referencing a piece written on Northanger Abbey (Price 260). The author explores the different circumstances that occurred in the history of England, which motivated the women writers. This book gives an important role played by women in the history of fictional writing and its impact on the societal happening that marked the female gender reclamation era.
The article accounts for an important tool that has been used as a point of reference to appreciate the contribution of women writers in the field of literature. The book elevates women through recognizing their roles in the field of the Gothic genre at an era that women’s position in society was less appreciated. The authors highlight the great women in history who contributed to the betterment of society, such as Queen Elizabeth (Price 267). The authors show how the women’s urge to express their desires and shout to the world to listen to their please resulted in the mushrooming of various female writes who shared the same sentiments. Women such as Ann Radcliffe immensely continued the theme of female gothic during this era. This led to the institutionalization of female Gothic literature.
Different scholars intentionally explored this literature field with an intention to explain the motivation that led to the mushrooming of women sharing the same ideology of expressing the societal ordeal brought forwards by women of this era (Price 269). The exploration of the sub-genre led to the popularity of the genre and its application as an important tool in the female movement during this era, as documented by Mary Shelley and the (Brontës Price 261). Analyzing the female gothic as presented during this era is important in explaining different injustices that were happening during this era, as presented in the pieces of literature that were written during the 18th century. These included domestic suppression of women, economic suppression, and sexual violence, as explored by various authors.
Carson, James, in his book “Enlightenment, popular culture, and Gothic fiction.” The Cambridge companion to the eighteenth-century novel explores the origin of Gothic to be associated with the era of women enlighten, which characterized the 18tth century (Carson 255). Through exploring the work of Ann Redcliffe’s Italian, the author brings up the cultural oppression that marked the eighteen-century era. By bringing on board the courage portrayed by the character in following inner feelings and desires, the author brings out an important aspect of the development of Gothic fiction as influenced by the urge to express these desires (Carson 255). The author champions Ann Radcliffe as the mother of female Gothic literature and her immense contribution to the awakening of the female consciousness. The author emphasizes that the Gothic piece of literature is characterized by the stereotype of the female gender, which has contributed to the growth of the genre.
Literature Review of The Female Representation Issues in This Era
Different authors have been able to successfully documented the role of gothic as a literature channel of portraying the societal pressures that women went through during the 18th and 19th centuries. The gothic literature has been largely documented to have led to the portrayal of female identity to their audience. The authors document that the ladies were able to highly identify with the genre because they were all on the same opinion that the female gothic writing was presenting the innermost ideologies that they could not utter with their words. Some of the key aspects that have been brought, which marked the key points in the development of female consciousness through the application of Gothic literature include:
Use of Gothic Literature to Express Cultural Oppression of the Female Gender
The female Gothic novels of the 18th and 19 centuries brought out various aspects of female oppressive actions that were being propagated by the male gender. In this novel, the women were shown as subjects of material figures and objects of desires whos biological role decided their purpose in society. The authors in the Gothic novels ‘allows the female characters to break free of oppression, sexual violence, and desires as a key presentation of the innermost desires of reaching through the societal subjectivism. The writer skillfully creates suspense within plots as they strive to make the readers become anxious and rejoined in them in their ideologies that they intended to pass across.
For instance, a book written by Fitzgerald, Lauren (p.98) explored the subject of gothic as a general and its role during this era. The author described how the genre was subject to a lot of gender biases, and its growth was basically central to the female movement and the desire to breakthrough. The author denotes that the Female gothic genre was the genre that assisted the female gender in discovering their efforts and strength in a way that they have never discovered before in history (Fitzgerald 100). The ability of women to speak to their fellow women and express their emotions has been commended for being an important aspect of women’s conscious development. Through the novel, the women were able to express their ordeal to the young, and the old, and the female gender rejoined together and found themselves connected with the same purpose of breaking through.
The author breaks down the constituents of the female gothic in literature as women ‘s Gothic, feminine Gothic, lesbian Gothic, and Gothic feminism (Fitzgerald 23). The author strives to explain the pain and the pleasure that came with the emergence and the growth of the gothic as literature. The author described how the different types of Gothic literature portray women as weak but strong creatures who emerged as heroines at the end of their ordeal. Even though some critics have criticized the characterization of the female gender as the weak and oppressed creatures, the author argues that this could not have been far from reality (Fitzgerald 102). In the feminine Gothic, the writer portrayed how women also played a big role in the suppression of their fellow women. This was portrayed through the writer bringing out how the husband of the characters would bring other women as a replacement to the wife, who is no longer considered to be important.
The author shows how the replaced ‘model’ would look down upon the first wife. This depicted the role of women in destroying fellow women during this era. The author shows how women have always been threatened by fellow women who are younger and more beautiful than themselves. This aspect of female cannibalism was mirrored to be the highest form of oppression that occurred in this society (Fitzgerald 102). Therefore, the female gothic genre came to existence as an effort of enlightening and communicating with fellow females to support and unite together in order to break the chain of male dominance. One of the most widely used as a point of reference when describing the rise of female consciousness with reference to Gothic literature includes Ann Radcliffe’s work. Her work has been widely used as an expression of the intrinsic aspect of the genre.
Ann Radcliffe’s work played a big role in portraying the development of the female and free consciousness during this period. Her work has been used to refer to a flashpoint of the presentation of the cultural anxiety status of women during this time. Different authors that followed her footstep has been commended for having sufficiently employed Radcliffe’s theme in their work. These included Frances Burney and Joanna Baillie. Ann’s work was a big inspiration to the women during her generation and even the generation that followed. For instance, for instance, Ann’s royalty for her article named The Mysteries of Udolpho (1794) and The Italian earned her the amount that had never been paid to any woman. This brought out different critics on the value of his writings and why it was considered that important. The demeaning nature of women in the society and the bold step taken by Ann in pursuing her career acted as a great vision to the younger, older, single, and married women of this time (Bondhus 14).
It has been documented that Ann’s husband was given half of the contract because the women of this time were not allowed to earn such amount of money. The feminist writers who document the events that took place during the 18th century denote that even when sighing the contract, Ann’s husband’s signature came first. This implied that Ann, as a married woman, was not allowed to own any property. This has been documented in the Sadleir-Black Collection (Frank, 287). Ann, as a woman and role model in Gothic literature, has been used to describe the economic suppression that the women of this time went through. The married and the single women were motivated by Ann’s ability to go beyond the norm and become the great woman that she desired. The manuscript and the novels that were written in the following years echoed the great work that was done by Ann as a female leader during this era. The 19th-century writers have a document that Ann formed a class that represented the true class that the female gender should fight to belong.
For instance, Scott’s literary biography of Radcliffe was an excerpt that acted as a great point of presentation of Ann’s influence and her role in the 19th-century era. Ann’s work and personality have been described as a true example to the characters brought about in the Gothic novels, which involves the characters breaking out. Consequently, the demonstration of Ann as an important personality during this era has been shown through the work of the role of Isabella in Keats’s poem entitled Isabella and the Pot of Basil (Hunt 38). Through all the struggle and the life miss-ups, the character is said to have thrived (Hunt 38).
Use of Gothic Literature to Express Sexuality
Scholars have documented that the 18th and 19th-century novels played a big role in bringing on the arousal of female sexuality and their desires. The authors have been able to bring out clearly how the theme of sexuality and breaking out of the sexual norms defined the key reason for the rise of women’s development. The theme of sexuality is denoted through various writings that explored the heteronormative agenda and the use of women as a material figure, and just sexual beings.in The Castle of Athlin and Dunbayne, the author shows how the suppression of female sexuality beyond was the subject of male power and evil motive (Radcliffe 98). As the desire of the women to break out from the sexually offensive and degrading practices that characterized this society, women began to explore their sexual desire.
These led to lesbianism hence the famous genre of Lesbian Gothic (Fitzgerald 78). The rise of female writers describing the lesbianism character w has been described to be inner feeling that the women were sexually suppressed by the domination of the males, and hence they could not express their sexual desires as they wished. Hence, lesbianism was an important aspect of demonstrating to the society that the female gender had an inner feeling which was not being satisfied by the male gender. Manpower, sexuality was mainly meant for satisfaction and race propagation (Radcliffe, 39). However, female sexuality was subjected to a lot of subjective biasness, which was considered and restricted to giving birth as the only significant of their biological existence.
An example entails In Castle of Otranto whereby Manfred’s insulated race propagation through documenting that ‘I will use the human means in my power for preserving my race; Isabella shall not escape me’ (Walpole).The word escape was used by the author to show the female gender ‘Isabella’ unwillingness to consent to the man’s sexual oppression, but she did not have a way of defending herself. The ability of the man to trap women has also been documented by Ann in her novel, The Italian. Ann narrates how Olivia was trapped to marry Schedoni through raping her (Radcliff 87). It is under the expression of such sexual evil and lack of satisfying female sexual desires that the various pieces of Gothic literature that led to the rise and development of female consciousness.
Through the female Gothic literature, women of this generation successfully showed utilization of the pieces of literature as a tool of awareness and expressing the various ordeal that women went through at the mercies of males. In all the Gothic novels, the authors indicate that women had no choice but to succumb to male sexual desires, which was not out of consent but under duress. Another key sexuality issue that was brought out in the novels includes the marriageability of a woman being determined by her virginity. The women protested the condensation of female marriageability by using the ability to be a virgin as the main aspect considered. According to characters brought out in the novels, the female suffered from rape and sexual violence, yet they were still expected to be virgins.
Use of Gothic Literature in Expressing Economic Oppression
It is worth noting that Gothic literature was widely used in spearheading economic change. According to the authors such as DeLucia, JoEllen in the book “From the female gothic to feminist theory of history: Ann Radcliffe and the Scottish Enlightenment.” In the Eighteenth Century, the author brings out the era of women enlightens as being characterized by great economic awakening. The rise of the female Gothic writer was a great contribution to the appraisal of the economic status of the women in this era (DeLuci 101). The scholars have mentioned that through the writings, the women highlighted various economic injustices that characterized this cultural setting. The inability of the woman to work because they are considered homemakers were one of the factors that made the women in this era unhappy.The opportunity of following the footstep of key people as Ann Radcliffe, who was a great writer, mother, and wife, gave the women the notion that they could achieve their dreams irrespective of them being in the family set up (DeLuci 102).
The author explores the role of Ann Radcliffe’s work in explaining the social and cultural event that marked the Scottish society in the eighteenth century. The author examines the usage of Scottish poetry and Ann Radcliffe’s work to brings out the contribution of the poetry to the understanding of the social and economic empowerment of women during the eighteenth century. This brings an important event that marked women’s social progress encompassed with the theories of development. The authors who have written on similar opinions mentioned the economic oppression of women and denial of women to participate in making the economic decision was a factor that was highlighted largely in the female Gothic literature (Bondhus 23). Bondhus, in his book, highlighted the role played by Ann Radcliffe as a key figure in the enlightened period. Her position as a career woman has been described as an important aspect that contributed to the rise of the awakening of women during this era.
Analysis of Findings
From the discussion above, it is clear that the rise of female Gothic was spearheaded by social, cultural events that took place during the 18th and 19th centuries. One of the significant factors that have been noted in history is the fact that the rise of female Gothic writers coincides with modern feminism. The 18th century saw the mushrooming of women across different ages who wrote about the different aspects of the society that was bothering them (Burgess 393). These aspects came to be term as the key factors that led to the radicalization of the women of this era. Women strongly opposed the male dominance and oppressive actions that they felt that they were being subjected to. As discussed above, one key important figure that rose during this era include Ann Radcliffe’s. Ann, who lived during this era, wrote various fictional novels that have been termed by scholars as key factors in the conscious awakening of women. Her famous book about The Mysteries of Udolpho, and The Italian, marked the beginning that draws the interest of various writers in this field (Bondhus 13).
Ann, who was a professional lady, a mother, and a wife, earned herself a reputable position in the eyes of the women of this generation. Her novel inspired many people as it also acted as a voice through the gender stereotypic nature of this society that could be called out. Jane Austen was another important female writer of this era who wrote a Gothic parody Northanger Abbey that expressed the aspect of female awakening during this era (Price 266). Radcliff endeavored to write her fictional work with the intention of developing female leaders. As described in the cultural setting of this society, the rise of the nascent consumer culture led to the increasing literacy among the female. The high increase in the number of literate women gave them an opportunity to participate in public policies in a male-dominated society.
The increase in the rank of women in society motivated other women who saw these writers be a key aspect of inspiration (Price 262). Different women came on board to express their grievances through Gothic literature. Gothic literature has been described as a platform that gave the women the power to say what they wanted, how they felt without speaking it loudly. This platform allowed for different women with a similar view to joining into these ideologies that were being passed through the novel. Female authors were able to establish their literary prowess in the market place. The Gothic literature became common in all the British libraries. Ann Radcliff and Charlotte Smith were part and parcel of this important literacy movement that utilized the Gothic genre as their platform of communicating societal upheavals.
Mary Wollstonecraft was also a key personality that came up during this era (Price 271). Mary Wollstonecraft’s The Vindication of the Rights of Woman was published in the same year that Ann’s work on The Mysteries of Udolpho was published. Writers have cited various similarities between the two works of literature. the author aimed at enlightening the middle-class women of the 18th century. Wollstonecraft brought forward the notion that the middle-class women were taught to believe that they were naturally weak, and their place was in the kitchen. Her Gothic literature challenged these women to take positions outside the kitchen and follow their dreams. In her books, she encouraged women to be strong a cultivate emotional maturity. In her book title the Vindication of the Rights of Woman, the author encouraged women to be rational and not be stopped by emotional and be critical at analyzing the factors that affected them (Price 269).
The author has been commended for being one of the women in this century that wrote so much about emotional intelligence in her Gothic fiction books. For example, she was able to successfully instill the courage and the need for the women to follow their dreams and not be oppressed and enclosed in marriage as the end goal in life. Just like Wollstonecraft, Ann believed that female imaginations ought to be tapped into and nurtured (Price 262). However, the two females writers believed that female imagination should be driven by rationality in order for the women to lead effective lives. From this analysis, it is clear that the female Gothic literature played a big role in the rise and awakening of female conscious and psychological development.
Conclusion
In summary, taking a critical review of the growth and the development of the gothic genre, its role in the awakening era of women cannot be underestimated. The 18th and 19th century has been described to have resulted in great conscious awaking, which made the women extend their imagination and used Gothic fiction as a platform for expressing their desires. The rise of the different genres, such as feminism, has been pointed out to have been contributed by the need of the women to become leaders and follow their dreams. Different females, such as Ann Radcliffe, who had played an important role in stimulating women’s imagination in this era has been mentioned to be the mother of Gothic literature.
Ann and other writes become the leaders who spearheaded the rise of women in leadership. Through expressing the various social, cultural factors such ss economic oppression, sexual violence among other oppressive cultures, these women continued to portray gender representation and the freedom of the female gender that is enjoyed in the contemporary world. Female Gothic is still relevant in modern literature art and theatre. Different women have been able to bring on board the need for women to stand and fight their emotions and strive to succeed just as had been documented by the Gothic writers in the 18th and 19th centuries.
Work Cited
Burgess, Miranda J “Domesticating Gothic: Jane Austen, Ann Radcliffe, And National Romance,” Lesson of Romanticism: a critical companion pp392-412,1998
Bondhus, Charlie. “Sublime patriarchs and the problems of the new middle class in Ann Radcliffe’s The Mysteries of Udolpho and The Italian.” Gothic Studies 12.1 (2010): 13-32
Carson, James P. “Enlightenment, popular culture, and Gothic fiction.” The Cambridge companion to the eighteenth-century novel (1996): 255-76.
DeLucia, JoEllen. “From the female gothic to feminist theory of history: Ann Radcliffe and the Scottish Enlightenment.” The Eighteenth Century 50.1 (2009): 101-115
Moers, Ellen. Literary women. Doubleday, 1976.
Haggerty, George E. “The Failure of Heteronormativity in the Gothic Novel.” Heteronormativity in Eighteenth-Century Literature and Culture. Routledge, 2016. 145-164.
Walpole, Horace. The castle of Otranto. Penguin, 2001.
Hunt, William Holman. Isabella and the Pot of Basil. 1988.
Fitzgerald, Lauren. “The Female Gothic: Then and Now.” (2004).
Frank, Frederick S. “Gothic Gold: The Sadleir-Black Gothic Collection.” Studies in Eighteenth-Century Culture 26.1 (1997): 287-312.
Price, Fiona. “A great deal of history”: Romantic women writers and historical fiction.” Women’s Writing 19.3 (2012): 259-272.
Radcliffe, Ann Ward. The castles of Athlin and Dunbayne: a Highland story. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme and Brown, 1811.
The genesis of `Gothic’ fiction E. J. Clery, 2002, pp21-pp39