u/devilbabyiris

Hey everyone!

I'm trying to get more into gothic lit since I've noticed I naturally gravitate towards and have enjoyed quite a few books in this genre. Still very much a novice and have been doing some research on the genre to start. I'm taking a self-learning route and created some general "research" questions for myself to get myself thinking about the genre as a whole while reading some selected texts. Wanted to get some feedback on them or if there are any other prompting questions I should be thinking about during this journey!

Thanks in advance!

Questions:

What classifies a novel as gothic literature?
What’s the difference between gothic and gothic horror?
How has the genre evolved over time? How do the sources of fear shift across eras — what haunts the characters, what kind of space traps them, and what’s actually generating the dread?
- For example what happens when the Gothic leaves Europe? The genre was born in England, rooted in medieval European architecture and history. When it moves to America, there are no castles — so what replaces them? (AI generated sub bullet)
What role have marginalized voices played in shaping the genre?

intro to gothic lit questions