Qualities of Southern Gothic Literature

This post if for freshmen only.

Southern Gothic

Literary Tradition

Gothic literature is fiction in which strange, gloomy settings and mysterious, violent, often supernatural events create suspense and terror. Southern gothic literature uses gothic motifs to explore social issues and reveal the cultural character of the American South.

Following are a few characteristics of gothic and southern gothic literature:

1. The gothic novel tries to evoke chilling terror and gloom by exploiting mystery and horror. Gothic is about haunting and possession.  We are supposed to feel a chill at some point in the story, and this emotional response is in part the point of the gothic experience. Paradoxically, this fear is a source of pleasure.  "Tis so appalling--it exhilarates," Emily Dickinson says in a poem.
2. In a Gothic work, there is usually confusion about good and evil. What does ‘good’ actually mean? What about ‘evil’? And how can we tell the difference?
3. Gothic reveals a fear of institutions, such as religion, education, or marriage.
4. Gothic shows the dark and hidden side of things. It rips open the lies and shows a world of cruelty, lust, perversion, and crime hidden beneath society’s rules and customs.
5. Gothic tears through censorship and explodes hypocrisies. It exposes the world as a corrupt, reeking place.
6. Gothic is a reaction to the conventional, common sense, and enlightened world. If society is supposed to be orderly and sensible, gothic shows how it really isn’t.
7. Southern gothic tips stereotypes on their side and kicks them in the gut. Sweet Southern belles are crafty and greedy, chivalrous gentlemen are sneaky and perverse, and righteous preachers are manipulative and evil.

Your task: We've tackled two short stories that can be considered Southern Gothic - "Good Country People" and "A Rose for Emily." We also viewed Night of the Hunter - again, classic Southern Gothic. Select one of the stories, and in a paragraph explain how one aspect of the story meets one of the criteria listed above.

Be sure that your response is thoughtful and thorough and includes a cited quotation. Keep in mind all of the elements of a good paragraph: topic sentence, set-up, cited quotation, explanation (claim - evidence - warrant). Write in formal third person. Post your paragraphs in the comments below. Include you name. you may comment on your peers' entries for extra credit.

The text for "A Rose for Emily" can be found HERE.  The text for "Good Country People" can be found HERE.

Night of the Hunter - Southern Gothic

This post is for freshmen only.

First, a review. Here are the criteria of Southern Gothic literature/cinema:


1. The gothic novel tries to evoke chilling terror and gloom by exploiting mystery and horror. Gothic is about haunting and possession. We are supposed to feel a chill at some point in the story, and this emotional response is in part the point of the gothic experience. Paradoxically, this fear is a source of pleasure. "Tis so appalling--it exhilarates," Emily Dickinson says in a poem.


2. In a Gothic work, there is usually confusion about good and evil. What does ‘good’ actually mean? What about ‘evil’? And how can we tell the difference?


3. Gothic reveals a fear of institutions, such as religion, education, or marriage.


4. Gothic shows the dark and hidden side of things. It rips open the lies and shows a world of cruelty, lust, perversion, and crime hidden beneath society’s rules and customs.


5. Gothic tears through censorship and explodes hypocrisies. It exposes the world as a corrupt, reeking place.


6. Gothic is a reaction to the conventional, common sense, and enlightened world. If society is supposed to be orderly and sensible, gothic shows how it really isn’t.


7. Southern gothic tips stereotypes on their side and kicks them in the gut. Sweet Southern belles are crafty and greedy, chivalrous gentlemen are sneaky and perverse, and righteous preachers are manipulative and evil.

Here is your task:

1. Find a specific moment in the film that in some way illustrates one of these criteria.
2. In a thoughtful, thorough paragraph, describe in detail the moment of the film and connect it to one of the criteria.
3. Post your paragraph in the comments bellow.
4. Check other comments to make sure no one has previously discussed the moment of the film you are discussing. (No repeats!)

Is extra credit available? Yes. After you have posted your response, feel free to comment/respond to your peers and participate in an online discussion.

Here are some images from the movie that might help jog your memory: