Gothic Elements in Poe’s Selected Short Stories

Abstract

Edgar Allan Poe is best known for his gothic creations, macabre and gloomy tales. He combines different elements of Gothic to his most of the stories. This thesis has portrayed Gothic elements of Poe’s selected short stories. Gothic stories are dominated by fear, terror, mystery and suspense and explores the themes of loss and dark settings. For the preparation of this thesis, different scholarly sources relevant to the topic have been taken as the research methods. Both print and online sources have been reviewed for this purpose. As the theoretical tool, insights of gothic form and fiction have been collected from various sources. But this thesis will fundamentally rely on different theorists and their illustrations. This study is especially concerned with the three selected short stories with a theme of gothic haunts, madness of characters, atmosphere of terror and fear of death.

The Gothic arouse extreme emotions and the atmosphere of horror. There are gloomy settings, darkness and color symbols that terrify the readers. It also deals with supernatural, Gothic imageries and themes. This thesis attempts to explore and question how skillfully Poe’s creativity is seen in Gothic genres with its violence and chilling situations. The research is focused on his literary works and gothic variations found in his fictional texts. Poe wisely uses Gothic literature to show fear inherent in the faces of people and investigates human emotions. His short stories have the Gothic qualities like: madness of character, atmosphere of terror and dread that show his ability to build suspense with blood-curdling scenes. The above all facts about the Gothic elements have been apparent in Poe’s major gothic tales. There are significant gothic elements like terror, horror and mystery of suspense prevalent in three short stories of Poe.