Date of Award
Fall 2021
Thesis Type
Open Access
Degree Name
Master of Liberal Studies
Advisor(s)
Dr. Jill Jones
Second Advisor
Dr. Lucy Littler
Abstract
In the realm of Gothic literature, the main characters typically involve a helpless woman in the clutches of her male assailant. Critics have long established that the traditional Gothic genre is considered a male-dominated discipline fixated on ideas of power, control, and submission. This essay argues that Shirley Jackson and Toni Morrison separate from this trope and invent the haunted heroine, a leading lady so haunted by the past, relationships, and emotions that through unique character development, insidious use of dread, and malicious paranormal occurrences create a nouveau dichotomy within Gothic literature. This essay is a close reading of two primary texts: Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House (1959) and Morrison’s Beloved (1987) to contend that the human condition is a haunted condition. Through their renaissance of Gothic literature, they force a mirror up to society and history, and by their work we are forced to face our own hauntings.
Recommended Citation
Danley, Mallory, "A Feminine Gothic Revival: The Haunting of Shirley Jackson and Toni Morrison" (2021). Master of Liberal Studies Theses. 100.
https://scholarship.rollins.edu/mls/100
Rights Holder
Mallory L. Danley
Included in
Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons, Literature in English, North America Commons