Warm up

Oh my Goth !

A style of architecture that was popular/prevalent in western Europe during the middle ages / between the XIIth and XVIth centuries (and revived in the XVIIIth and XIXth centuries) and that is characterized by pointed arches, high ceilings, thin and tall walls or columns, and large windows / as opposed to Romanesque architecture.

Numerous examples of this style can be found in France (cathedrals: Notre-Dame de Paris / Reims, Saint-Denis Basilica, Vézelay Abbey, Mont-Saint-Michel…) and in England (Westminster Abbey in London, colleges in Cambridge and Oxford, Canterbury Cathedral…)

A style of writing (especially novels) or films that describes strange or frightening events that take place in mysterious places (Tim Burton’s films are often described as gothic);

An adjective related to the ancient Goths, a Ger-

manic people that overran the Roman Empire in the early centuries of the Christian era / known for their barbarous behaviour.

A style of type/lettering with broad vertical downstrokes used in medieval western Europe

A type of rock music marked by dark, often apo-calyptic and morbid lyrics;

Him Bauhaus

Sisters of mercy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=op7uPg4Pi6I

A style/subculture whose fans / members/ performers wear mostly black clothing, use dark dramatic makeup, and often have dyed black hair

− gothic works are peopled by strange and frightening characters: vampires, monsters, ghosts, people buried alive, headless horsemen who are often represented in stylized /elaborate, dramatic attitudes/postures (claw-like hands, fierce looks, etc) and outlandish attire

+ events take place in mysterious and scary places: haunted chambers, corridors, castles, sinister houses, dark woods.

− dramatic effects are achieved in gothic works by means of contrasts, emphasis on darkness and the colour red / blood

graphic/vivid/striking/appealing representation of mystery and horror;

− the gothic genre has spanned several centuries (works and artists presented on these pages range from the XIXth to the XXIth centuries) and has evolved from classics to more modern and contemporary reinterpretations with striking combinations (Tim Burton adapting an early XIXth century work, Marilyn Manson wearing a top hat together with platform shoes, a Goth holding a “classic” umbrella)…

Similar paradoxical phrases can be found in the quotations: from Dracula “a deliberate voluptuousness which was both thrilling and repulsive”, from J.C. Oates’ Haunted “evil is not always repellent but frequently attractive”.

What most of the documents tend to show is that mystery, danger and evil arouse fear, repulsion and horror but also a sort of fascination/attraction and ultimately strong emotions/ thrills /sharp feelings of excitement which can indeed be delightful, that is to say exhilarating and pleasurable.

For instance, both the excerpt from Dracula and the picture of the vampire gripping a young woman’s neck combine elements that are intended to elicit fear and horror (the danger of being bitten, possibly killed, when at the mercy of a vampire) but they are also fraught with sensuousness / have strong sensory appeal (with the eroticized figure of the helpless woman in the picture and the vivid evocation of the narrator’s arousal when the fair girl’s lips touch his throat).

When writing Frankenstein, Mary Shelley was aware that she would delight her readers by making them witness and experience the mystery and dangers of science turned evil / she would “awaken thrilling horror”.

She knew that readers would enjoy powerful reading material that would make them “dread to look around, curdle their blood and quicken the beatings of their hearts”.