ENG 102

06 May 2013

Southern Aspects of Gothic Literature

Southern gothic writing is a sub genre of the gothic writhing that was originated and most popular during the 1800s in Europe. Southern gothic is unique to American literature in the way that it relies on supernatural, ironic, or unusual events that guide the plot (wisegeek.org.) Unlike gothic style it uses the tools not for the purpose of suspense, but to explore the social issues, and reveal the cultural character of the American south (people.duke.edu.)
It is considered to be “Grotesque” which displays a character whose negative qualities allow the author to highlight unpleasant aspects in southern culture. Its defining feature is that it symbolizes problems created by the established pattern and then questions the established pattern’s morality and ethical justification (wisegeek.org.)
Some of the other specific features that this style of literature has, is its freakishness; being an outsider; imprisonment; violence; and even the sense of setting in which it takes place(wisegeek.org.) There is usually an important character that is set apart from the world by some kind of negative way, or disability (wisegeek.org.) Some characters may not follow the established cultural pattern but in the end they are considered heroes. Some kind of difference allows them to see a new way of doing things that help bring people to the dark side. When speaking of imprisonment, it is both literal and figurative (wisegeek.org.) Sometimes jail can just mean that, or the character could live in what’s considered to be fate’s prison. The sense of place is important when discussing the southern gothic style for it will always be a clear rural area in a southern setting such as an old small town, mansion or a creaky front porch with a rocking chair (wisegeek.org.)
The Southern Gothic author usually tends to avoid maintaining the stereotypes such as the contented slave, the southern belle, the chivalrous gentleman or even the righteous Christian preacher (wisegeek.org.) Instead the writers tend to use the classic style of gothic writing such as a damsel in distress, or the heroic knight, and portray them to be what they consider a more realistic manner (people.duke.edu.) It is not likely that the ending of these stories will produce a “happy ending” but one that leaves you gasping in disbelief from the real life situations and possibilities of truth that are twisted. Most of the characters are transformed into a spiteful, reclusive, or mentally unstable person with ulterior motives (people.duke.edu.) Southern Gothic writing takes the innocence out of the story, leaving the raw truth of possibilities.
Some of the most notable writers of the southern gothic style were Flannnery O’Connor, Eudora Welty, and William Faulkner. These writers were fascinated with elements that Gothicism revealed about human psychology, and how the dark underlying motives pushed the limits of what society views as “normal.” It was believed that southern literature represents a major effort to redefine the relationship of southern writing, and the South itself to the larger world (people.duke.edu.)
Flannery O’Connor was a Roman Catholic writer who lived in the south and used concepts of free will, original sin, and the need for spiritual redemption. In the story “A Good Man is Hard to Find” lies a powerful message of Christian theory, which is that humanity was created with free will – the freedom to choose to obey or to disobey however, and this fall allowed sin and corruption to enter the world. Thus, a “good man” –one who is perfectly upright—is not simply “hard to find” but impossible to find; all have sinned and fall short of the glory of god, says the Bible (Romans 3.23.) Because of that first disobedience (original sin), humanity stands in need of redemption—A reuniting with god—which, according to Christian theology, comes through Jesus Christ (Kirszner&Mandell405.) Flannery O’Connor’s works revealed a rich and layered imagination, which was perfect for southern gothic writing. She quoted once “Anything that comes out of the south is going to be called grotesque by the northern reader; unless it is grotesque, in which that case it is going to be called realistic (New Georgia Encyclopedia.org.) She is able to sum up her perception of her characters and things that are natural. “The trees were full of silver-white sunlight and the meanest of them sparkled.” Which meant even the meanest people could sparkle, when touched by a kind of holy madness and beauty (Kirszner&Mandell405.) Another writer that shares the style of southern gothic is William Faulkner. He is known for his unique style in what is called stream of consciousness. He was bold in the fact that he brought attention to social issues that many Americans writers left in the dark, including slavery, the good old boys club, and Southern aristocracy (nobelprize.com.)
For many years, the pre—Civil War South was idealized as a land of prosperous plantations, large white houses, cultured and gracious people, and a stable economy based on farming (Kirszner&Mandell244) Central to the myth of the Old South was an adherence to the code of chivalry and a belief in the natural superiority of the white aristocracy, led by men who made their fortunes by owning and running plantations that depended on slave labor (Kirszner&Mandell244.) Once the South lost the Civil War, the idealized image of the Old South fell by the wayside, making room for the New South, which, like the North, was industrialized. In this story, Faulkner contrasts notions of the Old South and its decaying values with the newer ideas and innovations of the post-Reconstruction South (Kirszner&Mandell244.) Faulkner created many characters based on real people he had grown up with or heard about (nobelprize.org.) In the story “A Rose For Emily” Faulkner displays many aspects of what southern gothic literature exemplifies such as an old dark mansion, death, mystery, bizarre events and of course the crazy miss Emily herself. He has suited the part of the damsel in distress but then transforms her into Emily the southern gothic heroine who is a necrophiliac, and is mentally damaged. William Faulkner was able to capture the complexities of both the religious beauty and the deep dark past (nobelprize.org.)
Another influential writer of the Southern Gothic literature is Eudora Welty. Eudora Welty became famous for her stories that were straight from the heart of the American south. She based most of her fiction work on life in southern towns and villages (eudorawelty.org.) The people were depicted as dreamers, eccentrics, and close-knit families. She had the ability to reveal rather than explain mystery, which is what draws you in to her work. Reynolds price states that “Eudora is not the mild, sonorous, ‘affirmative’ kind of artist whom America loves to clasp to it bosom,’ but is instead a writer with “a granite core in every tale; as complete and unassailable an image of human relations as any in our art, tragic of necessity but also in comic (Eudorawelty.org.”) Her sharply observed characters sometimes are presented with great humor, but always with sympathy and clarity (Eudorawelty.org.) During the 1930s, the years of the Great Depression, poverty and unemployment were widespread but were especially severe in isolated rural areas of the South. For the black population living in this poor and undeveloped region, difficult economic conditions were made worse by the system of segregation that prevented them from voting, receiving a good education, or enjoying the same rights and privileges as their white counterparts, Hoping to improve their situation, many African-American families left the South and moved into northern and Midwestern cities where there were better opportunities for education and employment (Kirszner&Mandell502.) Others like Phoenix Jackson in “A Worn Path”, remained in the South in an atmosphere of residual racism and oppression.
She quoted “Of course any writer is in part all of his characters,” “How otherwise would they be known to him, occur to him, become what they are?” In the story “A Worn Path” Eudora Welty is able to transfer the racism and oppression happening in that time through her character Phoenix Jackson (Kirszner&Mandell pg.502.)
All three of these writers embrace the writing style of Southern Gothic literature. They all use notable features to set them apart from the rest, displaying their southern gothic “grotesques,” with empathy to the characters they create. People are drawn to the deeply flawed characters, which in a sense give them the opportunity to open their eyes to realism. These characters, who pose some cringe inducing quality, but still hold the balance of good traits, highlight unpleasant aspects in southern culture, without moralizing (people.duke.org.)
They have observed numerous life situations happening around them, and were able to see the ugly truth of life that people are too afraid to recognize. This style of writing confronts those issues by giving the outcomes that are completely unexpected. There is much to be learned about Southern Gothic writing, and how fascinating it is, tipping the scale of physiological aspects that are hidden, and deemed “unrealistic” vs. what is considered to be normal, and “realistic.”