This brought to her [Emilys, jf] recollection the veiled picture, which had attracted her curiosity on the preceeding night, and she resolved to examine it. […] She then hastily entered the chamber, and went towards the picture, which appeared to be enclosed in a frame of uncommon size, that hung in a dark part of the room. She paused again, and then, with a timid hand, lifted the veil; but instantly let it fall - perceiving that what it had concealed was no picture, and, before she could leave the chamber, she dropped senseless on the floor.
Whatever Emily, the main character in Ann Radcliffe’s novelThe Mysteries of Udolpho,might have perceived behind that black veil will not be revealed for several hundred pages. The reader is left baffled as to what caused Emily all this pain and has to resort to guesswork, only to find out that she had simply seen a wax figure, shaped like a human being who was tortured to death. Ann Radcliffe has become famous for this method, that is for “a sequence of evasions and withdrawls, condluding with long-subsequent explanations.”2Radcliffe developed the technique of the so-called ‘supernatural explained’ and became famous for this device; a device that was well received in her times and made her one of the most famous novelists of her age. Several editions of her books and a 500 pound salary paid by her publisher George Robinson, an immense sum for the time, might be proof.3Nevertheless Radcliffe’s novels and her technique of the supernatural explained have been and still are heavily criticised, not only by modern literary critics.
This term paper deals with Radcliffe’s method in her bookThe Mysteries of Udolpho.After a definition has been given the reception of Ann Radcliffe’s work throughout the decades will be discussed, before Terry Castle’s new approach “The Spectralization of the Other inThe Mysteries of Udolpho”will be introduced. Finally a conclusion will be drawn.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. What is the Supernatural Explained?
3. Contemporary Reception of Radcliffe’s work: Praise and Critique
4. Recent Reception of Radcliffe’s work: Praise and Critique
5. A new Approach: Terry Castle’s “The Spectralization of the Other”
6. Conclusion
Objectives and Topics
This paper examines Ann Radcliffe's literary device of the 'supernatural explained' within her novel The Mysteries of Udolpho. It investigates how this technique allowed Radcliffe to balance the popular Gothic demand for terror with the rational expectations of her contemporary audience, while also exploring modern critical perspectives that re-evaluate her work through psychoanalytic and cultural lenses.
- The definition and historical impact of the 'supernatural explained' technique.
- The evolution of critical reception, from contemporary praise to subsequent literary criticism.
- Terry Castle’s psychoanalytic interpretation regarding the 'spectralization of the other'.
- The intersection of late eighteenth-century attitudes toward death and memory within the narrative.
- The role of landscape as a moral benchmark and a tool for psychological distancing.
Excerpt from the Book
A new Approach: Terry Castle’s “The Spectralization of the Other”
Marilyn Butler states that „Ann Radcliffe was so much parodied that we assume she was easy to parody […]”33. Terry Castle, professor at the English department of Stanford University, California, seems to agree with this statement. She criticises that many only read the so called “famous” parts of the novel: Emily’s hostage in the castle. The description of the landscape and the journeys seem to have bored the critics so they merely labeled them “too long” and moved on. Castle tries to show in her essay “The Spectralization of the Other in The Mysteries of Udolopho” that the reader needs to take a closer look at the actual text to see all that is in there, the hidden presences, the preternatural language and the supernatural elements. “The supernatural is not so much explained in Udolopho as it is displaced. It is diverted – rerouted, so to speak, into the realm of the everyday.”34 Castle points out two aspects where this is especially true: The preternatural language and the hidden presences.
Radcliffe’s language already is a hint to this supernatural shift. After a rational explanation for every strikingly mysterious event has been given, the language still remains preternatural. “As Annette looked down from the corridor upon the hall […], she almost fancied herself in an enchanted place, and declared, that she had not met with any place, which charmed her so much, since she read the fairy tales; nay, that the fairies themselves at their nightly revels in this old hall, could display nothing finer […]”35 Annette, Emily’s dutiful servant, remarks that preternatural powers must have decorated the hall before Emily’s and Valancourt’s wedding.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter introduces the core literary technique of 'supernatural explained' in The Mysteries of Udolpho and outlines the paper's critical structure.
2. What is the Supernatural Explained?: This section defines the genre and the device, illustrating how Radcliffe systematically provides rational explanations for events that initially appear supernatural.
3. Contemporary Reception of Radcliffe’s work: Praise and Critique: This chapter analyzes how late 18th-century critics viewed Radcliffe’s work as a socially acceptable way to experience terror safely.
4. Recent Reception of Radcliffe’s work: Praise and Critique: This chapter contrasts early praise with later, harsher criticisms regarding the novel's length and perceived logical inconsistencies.
5. A new Approach: Terry Castle’s “The Spectralization of the Other”: This chapter explores modern psychoanalytic theory to argue that Radcliffe’s supernatural elements were not just explained away, but displaced into the everyday.
6. Conclusion: The conclusion synthesizes these findings, suggesting that Radcliffe's success was deeply connected to the zeitgeist of her era.
Keywords
Ann Radcliffe, The Mysteries of Udolpho, Gothic novel, supernatural explained, literary criticism, Terry Castle, spectralization, reception history, rationalism, 18th-century literature, romanticism, ghost stories, narrative technique, psychological terror, subconscious.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this paper?
The paper explores the literary technique known as the 'supernatural explained' in Ann Radcliffe's The Mysteries of Udolpho and traces how its reception has shifted from the 18th century to modern times.
What are the central themes discussed in the work?
Key themes include the rationalization of supernatural phenomena, the role of terror in Gothic fiction, the function of landscape in characterization, and the psychological concept of memory and ghosts.
What is the central research question?
The research investigates why Radcliffe's technique of the 'supernatural explained' was so successful during her time and whether modern reinterpretations, particularly Terry Castle’s, offer a more nuanced understanding of her work.
Which scientific methodology is applied?
The paper utilizes a literary-analytical approach, combining historical reception theory with modern psychoanalytic interpretations to re-evaluate the primary text.
What does the main body of the work cover?
The main body examines the definition of the 'explained supernatural', reviews contemporary and modern critical opinions, and applies Terry Castle’s 'spectralization of the other' theory to specific textual elements.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
The most important keywords include Gothic novel, supernatural explained, Ann Radcliffe, literary reception, and spectralization.
How does Radcliffe's method specifically function in her novels?
Radcliffe's method functions by presenting terrifying, seemingly supernatural events throughout the narrative, only to reveal logical, natural explanations at the very end of the story.
What does Terry Castle mean by 'the spectralization of the other'?
Castle suggests that for Radcliffe, the 'ghost' is not a physical spirit, but an internalised image of a person—living or dead—that is constantly present in the protagonist's memory.
- Quote paper
- Judith Forysch (Author), 2006, The Supernatural Explained in Ann Radcliffe's "The Mysteries of Udolpho", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/69262
