January 25, 2017
To remind you that Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole is the first Gothic fiction will seem like a needless repetition because virtually everybody knows that. The Castle of Otranto was published in 1764 during the period called "Age of Reason".
The Castle of Otranto is built around Manfred's desperation to uphold his beloved status. The book begins on the wedding-day of his sickly son Conrad and princess Isabella.
The Castle of Otranto is built around Manfred's desperation to uphold his beloved status. The book begins on the wedding-day of his sickly son Conrad and princess Isabella.
Shortly before the wedding, however, Conrad is crushed to death by a gigantic helmet that falls on him from above. This inexplicable event is particularly ominous in light of an ancient prophecy "That the castle and lordship of Otranto should pass from the present family, whenever the real owner should be grown too large to inhabit it".
Manfred, terrified that Conrad's death signals the beginning of the end for his line, resolves to avert destruction by marrying Isabella himself while divorcing his current wife Hippolita, who he feels has failed to bear him a proper heir.
[THEME 1] The Castle:- The castle can be tagged one of the themes of the novel The Castle of Otranto. The title and the context of the story in totality give the castle another dimension. It can also be added that the castle is almost a hyperbole in itself. The disproportionate size of the castle has such a central and important role. The castle does not really continue reading>>>
[THEME 1] The Castle:- The castle can be tagged one of the themes of the novel The Castle of Otranto. The title and the context of the story in totality give the castle another dimension. It can also be added that the castle is almost a hyperbole in itself. The disproportionate size of the castle has such a central and important role. The castle does not really continue reading>>>