Oral LLCE 1ère: The gothic at its origin

« Introduction: Hello, today we are going to analyze about how fear and the gothic are used to denounce social problems.

To answer this question, I'm going to use the imaginary scary thematic.

Firstly, I will talk about the origins of the Gothic then secondly, about its evolution I The gothic at its origin 1) the gothic was quite critical of the society of its time.

This can be seen in: The Strange Case of Dr.

Jekyll and Mr.Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson published in 1886. Analyse : The plot revolves around a highly reputable doctor who commits horrific acts, highlighting the darkness that the wealthier classes of the time can possess.

To avoid infringing on Dr.

Jekyll’s reputation and shocking people, the author creates an evil character as his alter ego.

Similarly, in "The Fall of the House of Usher," the house itself becomes more than a mere setting; it becomes an entity contributing to the constant unease of the short story.

Through details in the description, the author builds a frightening image around the house, challenging the reader's perception and adding to the overall sense of dread. “The house itself was incredibly old and it was greatly discolored by time.

Strangely, even though individual stones were ruined and crumbling (2), no portion of the house had fallen” There are also a heavy atmosphere and beautiful places which goes against the values of the time as we are going to see later. We find the feeling of fear, a rather imposing characteristic of the gothic: it is necessary to frighten in order to create a feeling of discomfort and questioning of the ethics of our societies.

We find this heavy atmosphere in The Tell Tall Heart. It is in a morbid atmosphere that we see the main character give in to a completely excessive madness.

And we understand that the place of the event is not insignificant because the author gives very precise descriptions of the house as if to leave us clues to his madness.

This is very typical of.... »