Horrace Walpole, 4th Earl of Orford was an English art historian, man of letters, antiquarian and Whigpolitician. He is now largely remembered for Strawberry Hill, the home he built in Twickenham, south-west London where he revived the Gothic style some decades before his Victorian successors, and for his Gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto. Along with the book, his literary reputation rests on his Letters, which are of significant social and political interest.
The Gothic can also refer to a revival in architecture, whereby the buildings became over-the-top and embodied extreme emotions and excessiveness. Gothic architecture is often associated with medieval buildings. It used to be a big part of society, and some would actually send their children off around the would to become educated in culture and also to receive a sense of thrill.
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The Gothic is a quest for atmosphere and to create emotion... Specifically the feeling of thrill, fear and the sublime (the feeling that you can't pull your eyes away). It was a dark and terrifying period, which was paired with harsh laws and enforced by torture. The very interesting thing about The Gothic is that it always touches on contemporary fears, for example, the supernatural, corruption, etc.
Key motifs within The Gothic:
- Strange places
- Clashing time periods
- Power & constraint
- A world of doubt
- Terror Vs. horror
- Sexual power
- The uncanny
- The sublime
- Crisis
- The supernatural & the real
Prominent features:
- Terror (psychological & physical)
- Mystery
- Supernatural (ghosts/haunted houses/architecture/castles)
- Darkness
- Death
- Decay
- Doubles
- Madness
- Secrets
- Hereditary curses
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