Castle of Otranto
...dropped from Manfred’s lips were, “Take care of the Lady Isabella.””. An interesting plot development occurs within the first 2 pages, urging the audience into a state of mystification, a key element of the Gothic genre. Another important contribution from the text is its literature and its application in the modern sense. The Castle of Otranto used words commonly found in English vocabulary, but with different meanings, especially when put in the context of Gothic literature. Words such as "enchantment" and "vision" convey mystery, while "affliction" and "wretched" illustrate fear and terror. These words that seemed to convey meanings that are unilateral in meaning have become bilateral. Thus, words that illustrate positive magical qualities such as "enchantment" and objective realities such as "vision" have now become words that depict horror and characteristic of the supernatural elements and events in the text. Moreover, the use of these bilateral terms increases the sense of disbelief in the audience, creating the abstract state required for the true gothic genre. Additionally the use of everyday common language in dialogue provides a way for the audience to be drawn personally into the story because it opened up a way for them to absorb the emotions easily. Finally, the setting in The Castle of Otranto plays a key element in the enjoyment of the gothic genre. Traditionally, the setting of a novel plays no integral role in the story, but in the case of the The Castle of Otranto it provides a key element to which the audience can assimilate to. In the text the majority of the story takes place in a lar...