Within Gothic writing it may be seen that there is a strong connection between authors’ use of setting and characterisation. It may be argued that the relationship between this pair is the source of the Gothic elements within the narrative. This can be seen within Emily Bronte’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ in which setting is used to build characterisation thus allowing the sublime nature of the setting to be symbolic of characters. Similarly, Carter uses conventional gothic settings within her collection of short stories, ‘The Bloody Chamber’, to characterise the supernatural creatures within the narrative. Indeed, Cater also uses setting to form a sense of unreality to the tales, thus increasing believability of these creatures by setting the narrative apart in both time and space from the readers own perspective. Although, it may be argued that the gothic nature of Christopher Marlowe’s play ‘Doctor Faustus’ due to the structure of the play being that of an exploration of the protagonist’s character and it’s setting being relatively limited.
Within ‘Wuthering Heights’ it may be seen that Bronte clearly characterises individuals according to the setting in which the inhabitant. The Earnshaw family, most significantly Catherine and Heathcliff, are depicted as being excessively passionate and ‘wild’, to the extent that they appear almost as ‘devils’ who’s ‘chief amusement was to run away on to the moors all day’. This naturalistic and almost supernatural presentation can be seen as being mirrored by their home, Wuthering Heights. From Lockwood’s first visit to the Heights, Bronte creates the image of the house being embedded within nature, to such an extent that it almost appears hellish. This is due to her descriptions of thee ‘atmospheric tumult to which its station is exposed to’ and by Heathcliff’s ‘almost diabolical smile’. Thus, Bronte’s presentation of Wuthering Heights can be seen as being symbolically mirrored within its inhabitants. In contrast, the inhabitants of Thrushcross Grange, the Linton’s, appear isolated from their natural surrounds and can be seen as being symbolic of the societal expectations of the Victorian era. The house is presented as being ‘a splendid place, carpeted with crimson’ which is separated from the Yorkshire moors in which it is set by a large garden. This then can be seen as being symbolic of the house distance from nature, which is reflected within the Linton family who appear ‘naïve’ and ‘timid’. Therefore, it may be seen that Bronte uses of pathetic fallacies to form characterisation within the narrative, which it may be seen gives rise to the gothic nature of the novel. This is due to the unions between this two binary opposite family’s potentially being seen as a transgression against the expectations of society due to the incompatibility of the Earnshaw family to assimilate into the cultural hegemony of the Grange. This may be seen as Bronte questioning the patriarchal nature of society during the Victorian era.
Furthermore, it may be seen that Bronte’s use of character names may be seen as forming a gothic setting to the novel. Within the narrative, names of characters are repeated and reused, none more so than that of Catherine who shares the name with her daughter. In fact, during Lockwood’s second visit to the Heights, Catherine is presented as having three names: ‘Catherine Earnshaw, Catherine Heathcliff, and Catherine Linton’. Not only can this be seen as an encoded version of the structure of the novel, but also it may be seen as emphasising the isolated nature of the setting of the novel. By Bronte using a limited number of names she creates a sense of detachment from society, which is emphasised when Lockwood notes how both houses are ‘completely removed from the stir of society’. Therefore, this may be seen as fulfilling a typically gothic setting due to its distance from society, a common narrative technique within gothic writing. Indeed, it may be seen that this setting would have matched that of Bronte’s own up bring in a rural area on the Yorkshire moors.
Similarly, Angela Carter also uses an association between characters and setting to form gothic elements within her collection of short stories ‘The Bloody Chamber’. Within the tale of ‘The Werewolf’, Cater also uses a pathetic fallacy to portray the harsh nature of the characters within the narrative. The people of the ‘north country’ live in ‘cold weather’ and as a result have ‘cold hearts’, yet also appear to be extremely superstitious due to the fact that, to them, ‘the devil is as real as you or I’. Not only does this portray the callous nature of the characters but also distances the narrative from reality due the apparent normality of the supernatural within the setting. Therefore, it can be seen that Carter uses an association between character and setting to form supernatural elements within her tales.
Indeed, in the tale of ‘The Lady of House of Love’ Carter’s presentation of the a traditional gothic setting appears to match that of the supernatural vampire. Carter’s portrayal of the Countess’s chateau appears to fulfil that of a conventional gothic labyrinth due to it’s ‘worm-eaten beams, cobwebs…winding staircases…endless corridors’. Indeed, this imagery is mirrored by the Countess herself who is described as being a ‘haunted house’. Therefore, Carter’s use of characterisation and setting can be see as forming the narrative of the tale to fulfil the ‘gothic eternity of the vampires’. However, it may be seen that Carter inverts the gothic elements of the tale due to the Countess’s ‘horrible reluctance of the role’ of gothic villain. This presentation may be seen as a example of Carter’s feminist intentions for the collection due to the way in which it criticises how the female protagonists is entrapped within the confinements of the her masculine ‘ancestral crimes’. This may be seen as Carter commenting upon the way in which paternal figures control and dictate the lives of women, and by doing so limiting their freedoms. Although, this may in fact be seen as embodying the conventional portrayal of women within gothic literature due to the Countess being portrayed as the victim of masculine cruelty.
On the other hand, it may be seen that within Christophe Marlowe’s play ‘Doctor Faustus’, the interaction between character and setting is not used to form the gothic elements of the play. Within the play there is a minimal variance in setting, the majority of which takes place in Faustus study. Although, Marlowe does often move the narrative to the palaces of Dukes and Emperors, even to the Vatican, yet it may be seen that is do for the purpose of the creating the sense of a large world, filled with characters, rather than to highlight gothic elements within the narrative. Indeed, it may be that the play itself is a constant exploration of the morality of Faustus decision to sell his soul ‘for four-and-twenty years of vain pleasure’. Therefore, it may be seen that the play is set within Faustus mind due to the fact that even the bathos scenes of the play appear to be intend to provide a different perspective upon the central question of the play. Indeed, Faustus’s attempt ‘to gain a deity’ can be seen as a gothic transgression against god so it may be seen that the gothic elements of the play arises from Marlowe’s use of structure and development of character, rather than that of the interaction between character and setting. Although, the contextual setting of the play being in the German town of Wittenberg can be seen adding to the gothic nature of the play. This is due to the the religious writer Martin Luther having been the Doctor of Theology at the university of Wittenberg thus almost mirroring Faustus who was ‘graced with doctors name’ at the university himself. Martin Luther was famous for his influence on the Protestant reformation and his questioning of traditional religious practices. Therefore, it may be seen Marlowe’s use of contextual setting for the play emphases it’s sense of gothic transgression due to the associations between Wittenberg and religion questioning.
Overall, it may be seen that elements of he gothic are formed from authors’ use of the interaction between character and setting. However, it may be argued that this is not the only factor that leads to the creation of the gothic but it is also derived by the exploration of characters and the presence of the supernatural within the narrative.
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