The Castle of Otranto and The Mysterious Mother
Um þessa rafbók
Published on Christmas Eve, 1764, on Walpole’s private press at Strawberry Hill, his Gothicized country house, The Castle of Otranto became an instant and immediate classic of the Gothic genre as well as the prototype for Gothic fiction for the next two hundred years. Walpole’s brooding and intense drama, The Mysterious Mother, focuses on the protagonist’s angst over an act of incest with his mother, and includes the appearance of Father Benedict, Gothic literature’s first evil monk.
Appendices in this edition include selections from Walpole’s letters, contemporary responses, and writings illustrating the aesthetic and intellectual climate of the period. Also included is Sir Walter Scott’s introduction to the 1811 edition of The Castle of Otranto.
Um höfundinn
Frederick S. Frank is Professor Emeritus of English, Allegheny College, Meadville, PA. His books include The First Gothics: A Critical Guide to the English Gothic Novel (Garland, 1987) and The Poe Encyclopedia (Greenwood, 1997).
