| rdfs:comment | - Gothic novels have formed a part of horror and science fiction literary exploration from the 18th century onwards with Horace Walpole's novel The Castle of Otranto considered to be the first "gothic" novel. "Gothic literature is devoted primarily to stories of horror, the fantastic, and the “darker” supernatural forces." Novels such as Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Bram Stoker's Dracula highlight these elements. One of the elements considered to be a part of gothic fiction is its setting, in an antiquated space such as a "a castle, a foreign place, an abbey, a vast prison, a subterranean crypt, a graveyard, a primeval frontier or island, a large old house or theatre, an ageing city or urban underworld...a factory, laboratory...some new recreation of an older venue...an overworked spacesh
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| abstract | - Gothic novels have formed a part of horror and science fiction literary exploration from the 18th century onwards with Horace Walpole's novel The Castle of Otranto considered to be the first "gothic" novel. "Gothic literature is devoted primarily to stories of horror, the fantastic, and the “darker” supernatural forces." Novels such as Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Bram Stoker's Dracula highlight these elements. One of the elements considered to be a part of gothic fiction is its setting, in an antiquated space such as a "a castle, a foreign place, an abbey, a vast prison, a subterranean crypt, a graveyard, a primeval frontier or island, a large old house or theatre, an ageing city or urban underworld...a factory, laboratory...some new recreation of an older venue...an overworked spaceship, or a computer memory". Within this space or combination of such spaces are hidden secrets from the past (sometimes the recent past) that haunt the characters psychologically, physically, or otherwise at the time of the story. These hauntings can take many forms, but they frequently assume the forms of ghosts, spectres, or monsters (mixing features from different realms of being, often life and death) that rise from within or sometimes invade it from other or alien realms. At this level the fictions often oscillate between the "laws of conventional reality and the possibilities of the supernatural". Gothic fiction often places heavy emphasis on its setting or atmosphere, using setting and filmic elements such as music and sound effects to build suspense and a sense of unease in the reader. It also can incorporate a romantic plot or sub-plot. Other key elements of gothic fiction that also flow into gothic horror (a sub-genre of the gothic) include literal transformations such as "loss of humanity" transformation of an individual into a beast-like being (such as werewolf). While this is mostly portrayed as a negative action, it is sometimes viewed as a liberating experience for the individuals, but this also leads to an ambiguous interpretation for these individuals, being both good and evil. Central characters are often revealed to have or be haunted by a second "unconscious" element to their personalities, or they have split elements of their psychological profiles that often attempt to resolve themselves throughout the piece. Women are often cast in these pieces as in distress or threatened by one of the central (usually male) characters. These female characters are typically framed as being a heroine in the piece, both drawing the readers in and making them sympathise with the female character.
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