The Three S's of Terror-Gothic
Suspense, the supernatural, and sexuality in The Castle of Otranto and The Italian.
“When, after gazing for an instant, some new cause of horror seemed to seize all his frame, and he stood for some moments aghast and motionless like a statue.”
- Ann Radcliffe
On the surface, all gothic novels seem to follow a similar prose of the same puzzle pieces fitted together, but in different ways. Within this category are varying sub-categories, though, one of which being “terror-gothic.” This group stands apart from the others in that, rather than throwing gruesome scenes of blood and gore to its readers, it relies on suspense and the fear that instills in the reader.
Two authors that fall under this category are Horace Walpole and Ann Radcliffe, but there are still ways to compare the two, especially in their respective novels The Castle of Otranto and The Italian. Both Walpole and Radcliffe have written “terror-gothic” novels that heavily rely on suspense; however, they differ in their use of the supernatural and expression of human sexuality, specifically concerning threats made to the female body.
Terror Dependent on Suspense
Robert D. Hume expresses how “terror dependent on suspense is the modus operandi of the novels of Walpole and Radcliffe,” meaning that it is the well-established manner that these author’s write (285).
In the instance of The Castle of Otranto, Walpole elicits this sensation of suspense by creating multiple “what if?” situations, ranging from the proposed marriage between Manfred and Isabella to the unsolicited execution of Theodore. Radcliffe showcases this suspension through open-ended possibilities as well, yet hers are more sophisticated in its execution—these risks are vague and unsettling, and they can drag on for hundreds of pages.
An example of this lies in Radcliffe’s use of concealment in The Italian, specifically in the identity of Nicola di Zampari. Throughout most of the novel, Zampari is referred to as the “mysterious monk” who appears in the darkness to warn Vivaldi of his transgressions with Ellena and to turn others against the couple as well. As Edmund Burke explains, “when we know the full extent of any danger, when we can accustom our eyes to it, a great deal of the apprehension vanishes” (41). Radcliffe recognizes the suspense that a cloaked figure spewing out cryptic warnings elicits, and she exploited those emotions for her benefit.
Supernatural “Hands” and Monks
With this suspense, there also comes the element of the supernatural. Walpole’s novel is full of these features, starting from the very beginning when Conrad’s untimely death is caused by a helmet inexplicably falling from the sky.
This introduces the “invisible hand,” which is working to fulfill the prophecy previously stated in the novel: the castle as well as the lordship of Otranto “‘should pass from the present family, whenever the real owner should be grown too large to inhabit it’” (Walpole ch. 1).
Stefan Andriopoulos perfectly describes the purpose of this, explaining how “the supernatural agents are ‘agents of providence’ introduced into an already disordered narrative space to expose the villain Manfred and to reveal the true heir Theodore” (742). This “hand” is able to take on a character of its own in the novel, acting against Manfred’s attempts at avoiding the prophecy—it murders Conrad, distracts Manfred from capturing Isabella, interrupts Diego and Jaquez’s search for Isabella, halts Theodore’s execution with Frederic’s arrival, and so on.
In The Italian, Radcliffe also incorporates these supernatural elements that are commonly found in gothic novels; however, they are always explained in a rational, scientific manner.
Going back to the instance of the “mysterious monk,” Vivaldi believes it to be some sort of apparition, due to its concealed identity and ability to seemingly appear and disappear into thin air. Because of this, the figure of Zampari frightens both Vivaldi and the reader.
“Everyone will be sensible of this, who considers how greatly night adds to our dread, in all cases of danger, and how much the notions of ghosts and goblins… affect minds” (Burke 41).
For most of the novel, this follows the same supernatural premise as Walpole does in The Castle of Otranto; yet when the monk is revealed to be Zampari, rather than a ghost, it steers away from this. There are no “ghosts” or “goblins” in The Italian, but rather real people selfishly acting out in their own best interests.
Threats to the Female Body
Another way that Radcliffe deviates from the Walpolian style is through the expression of human sexuality, especially when regarding the threats to the female body.
In The Castle of Otranto, there is the obvious, imminent threat of rape. After Conrad’s unforeseen death, Manfred’s desperate attempts at avoiding the ancient prophecy are unraveled; with only a dead son and a daughter whom he dislikes, there is no one left to take over the castle. In his eyes, this represents the death of his lineage, and he grows obsessive in his efforts to evade the prophecy.
Manfred is quick to come to, what he believes to be, the best possible solution: that he instead wed his dead son’s fiancée. This conclusion is what leads to the extremely apparent threat of rape. Manfred chases Isabella through the corridors of the castle, pursuing her under the pretense of saving both his ancestry and his title. He claims that “‘I will use the human means in my power for preserving my race; Isabella shall not escape me,’” clearly alluding to his desire to have sex with her, with or without her consent (ch. 1).
Fortunately, Isabella is able to escape from his grasp and continues to do so throughout the novel; however, that threat only disappears at the novel’s conclusion when the prophecy comes true.
In Radcliffe’s The Italian, there remains the threat of rape, but it does not have to be explicitly stated for the reader to recognize this. As Allen W. Grove explains, this concept of rape has become a staple of gothic literature—it is in stories like The Castle of Otranto, Emmeline the Orphan of the Castle, and The Monk, which even depicts the act—and since all these previous authors have expressed this unambiguously, the newer authors do not have to.
“The conventions of the genre created by Walpole and his successors allow Ann Radcliffe to emerge in the 1790s as the virtuous queen of romance because she can talk about sex without talking about sex,” meaning that, since these authors set this foundation, Radcliffe can express the same, deviant themes without openly saying them (Grove 438).
An instance of this lies in the scene where Schedoni intends to murder Ellena. It sets the classic, gothic picture of a threatened act of rape—a defenseless woman, imprisonment by heinous men, a remote location—yet the proposed crime here is murder.
With these elements, though, there is also the addition of the dagger, which has been metaphorically used to represent the phallus. Once Ellena sees this dagger “peeping” under the curtains, she is quick to grow distraught:
“Emotions almost too horrible to be sustained, followed this discovery; she took the instrument, and gazed upon it aghast and trembling, for a suspicion of the real motive of Schedoni’s visit glanced upon her mind” (Radcliffe 147).
This scene, despite explicitly portraying an attempted murder, symbolically portrays this common theme of rape, and this claim can be expressed by Ellena’s reaction to the dagger.
There is also the matter of how Ellena’s life is only spared after Schedoni believes that he is her father. “When, after gazing for an instant, some new cause of horror seemed to seize all his frame, and he stood for some moments aghast and motionless like a statue” (142). In this moment, Schedoni notices the portrait around Ellena’s neck, and he recognizes himself in the miniature. He immediately wakes Ellena and asks who is in the portrait, to which she replies how it is her father. Schedoni is shocked that he almost murdered what he believes to be his daughter, and in the metaphorical sense, that he almost raped her.
Towards the end of the novel, it is revealed that Schedoni is actually Ellena’s uncle, and although he never actually stabbed—or raped—her, the possibility of it happening was still extremely prevalent.
Final Thoughts…
Horace Walpole and Ann Radcliffe fall under this category of “terror-gothic,” relying on suspense, seemingly supernatural elements, and the threats made to the female body to best tell their stories. In the instances of The Castle of Otranto and The Italian, these components blend to leave their reader’s both horrified and on the edge of their seats, not able to put the books down in favor of seeing where these stories take them.
With all these elements, the possibilities of where these stories will go are endless, and there is no telling how an author will decide to display them in their work.
Andriopoulos, Stefan. “The Invisible Hand: Supernatural Agency in Political Economy and the Gothic Novel.” ELH, vol. 66, no. 3, 1999, pp. 739-758, www.jstor.org/stable/30032092. Accessed 2 Mar. 2021.
Burke, Edmund. “A Philosophical Inquiry Into The Origin Of Our Ideas Of The Sublime And Beautiful.” P.F. Collier & Son Company, 1909-14.
Grove, Allen W. “Coming Out of the Castle: Gothic, Sexuality and the Limits of Language.” JSTOR, vol. 26, no. 3, 2000, pp. 429-446, www.jstor.org/stable/41299186. Accessed 26 Feb. 2021.
Hume, Robert D. “Gothic Versus Romantic: A Revaluation of the Gothic Novel.” Modern Language Association, vol. 84, no. 2, Mar. 1969, pp. 282-290, www.jstor.org/stable/1261285. Accessed 2 Mar. 2021.
Radcliffe, Ann. The Italian. Blackmask Online, 2001, http://public-library.uk/ebooks/50/37.pdf.
Walpole, Horace. The Castle of Otranto. Project Gutenberg, 1996, http://www.gutenberg.org/files/696/696-h/696-h.htm.