Narrative Perspective
First-person narration – creates intimacy, unreliability, or
psychological fear.
Third-person narration – may distance the reader or present
events as inevitable.
Shifts in perspective – can create uncertainty or destabilise truth.
Unreliable narrator – often central to Gothic ambiguity.
Why it matters in Gothic:
Subjective narration can blur madness vs reality, a common Gothic
theme.
Opening and Closing Structure
In medias res openings (starting mid-action)
Foreshadowing in the opening
Circular endings or unresolved endings
Climactic endings where tension peaks
Gothic effect:
Beginnings may establish unease immediately, while endings often
leave ambiguity or dread.
Build-up of Tension
Examiners often reward discussion of how the extract escalates fear.
Look for:
Gradual increase in danger or threat
Delayed revelation
Withholding information
Rising emotional intensity
This often follows a pattern:
1. Calm / normality
2. Suspicion
3. Disturbance
4. Horror or revelation
Structural Shifts or Turning Points
Moments where the passage changes direction.
Examples:
Discovery of a hidden object or room
Appearance of a supernatural figure
, Realisation by the narrator
Sudden violence or death
These moments often function as mini-climaxes within the extract.
Contrast
Structural contrasts are very common in Gothic texts.
Examples:
Safety → danger
Light → darkness
Civilisation → wilderness
Reason → madness
These contrasts help emphasise the intrusion of the uncanny into the
ordinary.
Pace and Narrative Speed
Look at how the writer controls the speed of events.
Examples:
Slow descriptive passages to build suspense
Rapid action sequences during moments of terror
Short sentences for panic or urgency
Changes in pace often mark key dramatic moments.
Withholding and Revelation of Information
A key Gothic structural technique.
Writers may:
Delay explaining events
Hint at secrets
Reveal key information gradually
Leave some mysteries unresolved
This keeps readers in suspense and uncertainty.
Framing Devices
Some Gothic extracts are part of a framed narrative.
First-person narration – creates intimacy, unreliability, or
psychological fear.
Third-person narration – may distance the reader or present
events as inevitable.
Shifts in perspective – can create uncertainty or destabilise truth.
Unreliable narrator – often central to Gothic ambiguity.
Why it matters in Gothic:
Subjective narration can blur madness vs reality, a common Gothic
theme.
Opening and Closing Structure
In medias res openings (starting mid-action)
Foreshadowing in the opening
Circular endings or unresolved endings
Climactic endings where tension peaks
Gothic effect:
Beginnings may establish unease immediately, while endings often
leave ambiguity or dread.
Build-up of Tension
Examiners often reward discussion of how the extract escalates fear.
Look for:
Gradual increase in danger or threat
Delayed revelation
Withholding information
Rising emotional intensity
This often follows a pattern:
1. Calm / normality
2. Suspicion
3. Disturbance
4. Horror or revelation
Structural Shifts or Turning Points
Moments where the passage changes direction.
Examples:
Discovery of a hidden object or room
Appearance of a supernatural figure
, Realisation by the narrator
Sudden violence or death
These moments often function as mini-climaxes within the extract.
Contrast
Structural contrasts are very common in Gothic texts.
Examples:
Safety → danger
Light → darkness
Civilisation → wilderness
Reason → madness
These contrasts help emphasise the intrusion of the uncanny into the
ordinary.
Pace and Narrative Speed
Look at how the writer controls the speed of events.
Examples:
Slow descriptive passages to build suspense
Rapid action sequences during moments of terror
Short sentences for panic or urgency
Changes in pace often mark key dramatic moments.
Withholding and Revelation of Information
A key Gothic structural technique.
Writers may:
Delay explaining events
Hint at secrets
Reveal key information gradually
Leave some mysteries unresolved
This keeps readers in suspense and uncertainty.
Framing Devices
Some Gothic extracts are part of a framed narrative.
