Gothic Realities

The Impact of Horror Fiction on Modern Culture

By: L. Andrew Cooper

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Paperback | 7 July 2010

At a Glance

Paperback
250 Pages

Age
18+

Dimensions(cm)
22.86 x 15.24 x 1.45

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Eighteenth-century critics believed Gothic fiction would inspire deviant sexuality, instill heretical beliefs, and encourage antisocial violence--this book puts these beliefs to the test. After examining the assumptions behind critics' fears, it considers nineteenth-century concerns about sexual deviance, showing how Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dorian Gray, and other works helped construct homosexuality as a pathological, dangerous phenomenon. It then turns to television and film, particularly Buffy the Vampire Slayer and David DeCoteau's direct-to-video movies, to trace Gothicized sexuality's lasting impact. Moving to heretical beliefs, Gothic Realities surveys ghost stories from Dickens's A Christmas Carol to Poltergeist, articulating the relationships between fiction and the "real" supernatural. Finally, it considers connections between Gothic horror and real-world violence, especially the tragedies at Columbine and Virginia Tech.

Industry Reviews

"astutely explores the ways that original fears regarding the corrupting influence of eighteenth-century Gothic texts continue to resurface in modern works and real life occurrences of horror.... Sophisticated and engaging from the start, Cooper's prose style makes for a lucid and enjoyable read"-Gothic Studies; "this book is both useful and provocative"-Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts; "Gracefully written...worth reading...valuable...a book that belongs on the shelves of anyone who is interested in the Gothic, in film studies, and in cultural studies as well as on the shelves of people who enjoy a well crafted argument."-Carol Senf, professor/associate chair Georgia Tech's School of Literature, Communication, and Culture. Author of The Vampire in Nineteenth Century English Literature and Science and Social Science in Bram Stoker's Fiction.

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