For Wednesday: The Castle of Otranto: Preface to the First & Second Edition (17-25), and Chapters 1-2

Answer TWO of the following…

1. Walpole engaged in a cunning act of Gothic marketing in the Preface to the First Edition, writing that “Belief in every kind of prodigy was so established in those dark ages, than an author would not be faithful to the manners of the times, who should omit all mention of them” (18).  How does the First Preface try to ‘frame’ the story to the reader, and considering that this is a fraud, why did he feel it was necessary to make the story a work of the ‘dark ages’? 

2. The Castle of Otranto, as discussed in class, was riding the wave of the ‘sensibility’ movement, which was all about the expression of strong emotions of love, pity, awe, joy, and terror.  How does sensibility color the narrative, either in the emotions of the characters, or the twists and turns of the story itself?  You might also consider how it supports Goya’s maxim that “the sleep of reason produces monsters.” 

3. As the Preface to the Second Edition informs us, Shakespeare was a major influence on Walpole’s novel.  Where do we see the Shakespearean influence (perhaps more his plays than his Sonnets)?  For example, Shakespeare modeled most of his plays on old histories or romances, yet modernized them for his audience.  How might Walpole be doing much the same thing?  Are there other links between Walpole’s characters, situations, themes, or language?  Consider specific works of Shakespeare you have encountered—Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, King Lear, Othello, etc. 

4. In Chapter II, Jerome (the monk) is hiding Isabella from Manfred’s lecherous intent.  Manfred orders Jerome to give her up with the statement, “I am her parent…and demand her” (53).  Why might we consider The Castle of Otranto a work about the relationship between parents and children, or perhaps the older and younger generation?  How does this theme run through the first two chapters, and create moments of Gothic anxiety about filial obligations—and in the passage quoted here, even a hint of incest?  (Freudian scholars have a lot to say about this work!)