Kats seminar

In my most recent seminar with Kat, she discussed more Victorian historical context and Gothic Horror literature and its origins.  I found the seminar interesting and informative but also a lot to take in, In response to the seminar I have already begun to collect research on Queen Victoria and the Industrial and French revolution as this is something that influenced the rise of Gothic Horror novels and literature. 

Notes from the seminar -

- The key themes of Victorian Gothic Horror are; Sinister, Supernatural, Horror Medevial, Architecture style 

- The Georgians fell in love with Gothic Horror and became obsessed with Death
-Key Motifs in In Gothic Horror are; 
-Sexual Power
-Strange Places
-Clashing time periods
-Power and constraints 
-The Uncanny
-The Sublime
-Crisis
-The Supernatural and the real terror and wonder
(The above factors are elements to consider when creating research and Gothic horror character)

-Many Gothic Horror Authors were inspired by architecture (Gothic) and also the place time and landscape of a building and place
-Women in 19th and 18th century were portrayed as vulnerable in Gothic Horror novels and 'Forced into situations'
-The Uncanny term from Sigfred and Roid, Uncanny moments for readers of the novel (Uncanny, 'figures that are not quite normal').
-The Sublime is terrifying, awesome and chaotic
-The Supernatural and the real are ghosts, devils, naturalistic explanations
- Authors found architecture inspiring and scary as the castle itself becomes a character, an unescapable labyrinth, 'unavoidable situations' 

The above notes discuss how many Authors of Gothic Horror Novels became inspired when writing their novels and also creating their inhumane, terrifying characters in their novels, which were actually loosely based on their environment they live in and the people that interact with in real life.

-Monastries and castles (Religion and architecture) both become labyrinth; Darkness, trap doors, scenarios with no maps, scenarios of imprisonment, claustrophobia and being buried alive (Edgar Allen Poe) 
-Castles, Gothic,Dracula all creates an image 

Something I found most interesting about this seminar was that I learnt how lots of different authors had stories and fears stemmed from Gothic architecture, locations and even their own personal issues. This makes Gothic Horror literature become much more deep and psychological then just forming and creating a character based off of something already terrifying, its as if these Authors created these horror characters from their own personal anxieties, fears and issues. For me I feel that this makes the novel more disturbing and scary as it is inspired by something real and something that creates real scared, disturbed, spooked emotions.

Meanings 
- Socially means persistence of the past
-Phycological means you cannot escape yourself and we are doomed to explore the labyrinth, this recesses on ones mind
-'Finding our fears' phycological and social issues

There was a new approach towards nature and the wild power of nature, sublime nature is best enjoyed at a distance, etc art as it is wild and dangerous.

-Powers, constraints and nightmares 

Ann Radcliffe the mysteries of Uldopho 18th century Author, this author was very popular with young girls who were discouraged to read these type of novels

-Britain's obsessions with Gothic Horror was boosted by the French revolution, creating more anxiety, terror and scandal, corruption of civilisation
-French and industrial revolution impacted on the boost of Gothic Horror novels also,
Change of landscapes, brought new anxieties, factories were worked in day and night 
- Science, factories, electricity science destroyed wonder and spiritual dimension because of explanations 
-Mind control 'Independent of the body', mind became the greatest terror, etc 'Jekyll and Hyde', 'Confessions of an Opium Eater'. 

-People had to move to the city and live and work, the city boosted new anxieties to the working class etc violence, robbery. This conveyed Gothic Novels portraying anxieties through characters
-Queen Victoria was obsessed with death, she mourned for over 40 years when her husband Prince Albert passed away, only dressing in Black

Victorian Mourning Traditions -

-Curtains were drawn 
-Clocks were stopped at time of Death 
-'Wake', Bodies were watched at all times until buried
-Photographs and dead masks were produced of the dead 
-Houses were filled with momentos 
-Victorian post mortem photography, Dressing and photographing dead people
- Gothic Revival is about celebrating the 'past' death
Victorian Spirit Photography
- Using double exposure to create spirit like effects in photographs