The Use of the Supernatural to Portray Political Issues in
Gothic Literature: A Study of Hamlet
and The Castle of Otranto
Introduction
The gothic genre is a very popular and well-known genre of literature, and is most easily
recognized by its use of the creepy, bizarre, or supernatural, such as haunted castles, mentally
disturbed narrators, and other similar elements. Another common element present in the gothic
genre is its use to make political statements, such as in the recent and very popular graphic novel
V for Vendetta, for example. The use of the gothic to make political statements has been in place
for several hundred years, and one political aspect that has often featured in gothic literature is
the issue of legitimacy/royal inheritance. Two gothic texts in which this issue plays a significant
role are William’s Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto. While
Hamlet is not typically considered a gothic text, as it was written before the genre really began, it
certainly has all of the defining features of a gothic text, and was in fact one of Walpole’s models
when he wrote The Castle of Otranto, which is universally acknowledged as the first gothic
novel. Both Shakespeare and Walpole were writing in times of political uneasiness, and their
unrest is portrayed in their works as issues of legitimacy that the main characters have to face
and work through. Both writers also use supernatural elements to better portray these political
events, such as ghosts and moving portraits. These supernatural and unrealistic elements are used
by Shakespeare and Walpole to better convey their political points, and also to “soften” their
polemical statements to avoid being accused of promoting treason against their respective
monarchs.
Shakespeare, Walpole, and the Development of Gothic
, The term “gothic” has taken on a variety of different meanings throughout the centuries,
and it is important to understand what this term meant in both Shakespeare’s and Walpole’s
times in order to better be able to see how their stories relate to each other, and how they both
contribute to the gothic genre. Our modern understanding of the term “gothic” is well-defined by
literary scholar M.H. Abrams as something that “develops a brooding atmosphere of gloom and
terror, represents events which are uncanny or macabre or melodramatically violent, and often
deals with aberrant psychological states” and “evokes chilling terror by exploiting mystery and a
variety of horrors’ (Abrams 78). The term carries completely different connotations today than it
did even one hundred years ago, of course.
The term “gothic” originally referred to the tribe of Goths, who lived in northern England
and held the first invasion against Rome in the mid-4th century, and thus contributed to the series
of events that led to the fall of the Roman Empire towards the end of the 5th century. For this
reason, the Gothics later came to be known as “barbarians” who stood in stark opposition to the
classical traditions of Roman and Greek culture (Townshend 67). The term “gothic”, then, as it
was understood during Shakespeare’s time, referred directly to this group of people, and to any
aspect of culture that might seem to model their “barbarous” nature. Richard Hurd, in his Letters
of Chivalry and Romance, talks about this concept: how the term “gothic” referred not only to
the primitive and superstitious people themselves, but also to a writer, for example, who might
use “primitive” or supernatural elements in his works that were similar to elements that were part
of the Gothic culture. Following this idea, Shakespeare would be considered a Gothic writer,
because many of his stories contain elements that could be seen as primitive or supernatural,
particularly his plays Macbeth and Hamlet, both of which contain many supernatural elements,
such as haunted castles, ghosts, and witches. Hurd believes that Shakespeare is at his best when
, uses these “barbaric” elements, rather than using classical Greek or Roman models. He says that
Shakespeare “is grater when he uses Gothic manners and machinery than when he employs
classical” (Hurd 266, qtd Townshend 67). This is the exact opposite of what many scholars of the
day felt about Shakespeare’s writing. They found him to be a rather uncultured writer, because of
these “barbaric” supernatural elements featured in his writing that were a part of the Gothic
culture.
Margreta De Grazia also discusses this idea in an article of hers, saying that any text
“written without classical models was considered ‘gothic’; that is, in the manner of the Goths,
the barbarian hordes who had destroyed the Roman Empire”, and that any who enjoyed such
texts harbored “vulgar tastes” (De Grazia 359). Shakespeare’s Hamlet, therefore, was considered
a gothic text in its own time because of its lack of classical elements and use of supernatural or
“barbarous” elements that showed a Gothic influence. In our times, Hamlet could be considered
gothic because of its “psychological depth and complexity” (De Grazia 355), and also because of
those supernatural elements present that have become the signature feature of our perception of
gothic.
The publication of Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto in 1764 began the shift in the
meaning of the term “gothic.” Scholars Fred Botting and Scott Wilson say that in writing “the
first Gothic story”, Walpole combined “the strands of historical setting (significantly, it is set in
the period of the Crusades), chivalric custom (tales of honour, knights, and patrilineal order), and
architectural style”; (Botting and Wilson 191). It is relevant to note that the full title of Walpole’s
novel is The Castle of Otranto: A Gothic Story. With the subheading, Walpole is referring to the
fact that his story takes place during the medieval period, around the time of the Crusades.
During the medieval period, the term meant the same as it would later mean in Shakespeare’s
Gothic Literature: A Study of Hamlet
and The Castle of Otranto
Introduction
The gothic genre is a very popular and well-known genre of literature, and is most easily
recognized by its use of the creepy, bizarre, or supernatural, such as haunted castles, mentally
disturbed narrators, and other similar elements. Another common element present in the gothic
genre is its use to make political statements, such as in the recent and very popular graphic novel
V for Vendetta, for example. The use of the gothic to make political statements has been in place
for several hundred years, and one political aspect that has often featured in gothic literature is
the issue of legitimacy/royal inheritance. Two gothic texts in which this issue plays a significant
role are William’s Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Horace Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto. While
Hamlet is not typically considered a gothic text, as it was written before the genre really began, it
certainly has all of the defining features of a gothic text, and was in fact one of Walpole’s models
when he wrote The Castle of Otranto, which is universally acknowledged as the first gothic
novel. Both Shakespeare and Walpole were writing in times of political uneasiness, and their
unrest is portrayed in their works as issues of legitimacy that the main characters have to face
and work through. Both writers also use supernatural elements to better portray these political
events, such as ghosts and moving portraits. These supernatural and unrealistic elements are used
by Shakespeare and Walpole to better convey their political points, and also to “soften” their
polemical statements to avoid being accused of promoting treason against their respective
monarchs.
Shakespeare, Walpole, and the Development of Gothic
, The term “gothic” has taken on a variety of different meanings throughout the centuries,
and it is important to understand what this term meant in both Shakespeare’s and Walpole’s
times in order to better be able to see how their stories relate to each other, and how they both
contribute to the gothic genre. Our modern understanding of the term “gothic” is well-defined by
literary scholar M.H. Abrams as something that “develops a brooding atmosphere of gloom and
terror, represents events which are uncanny or macabre or melodramatically violent, and often
deals with aberrant psychological states” and “evokes chilling terror by exploiting mystery and a
variety of horrors’ (Abrams 78). The term carries completely different connotations today than it
did even one hundred years ago, of course.
The term “gothic” originally referred to the tribe of Goths, who lived in northern England
and held the first invasion against Rome in the mid-4th century, and thus contributed to the series
of events that led to the fall of the Roman Empire towards the end of the 5th century. For this
reason, the Gothics later came to be known as “barbarians” who stood in stark opposition to the
classical traditions of Roman and Greek culture (Townshend 67). The term “gothic”, then, as it
was understood during Shakespeare’s time, referred directly to this group of people, and to any
aspect of culture that might seem to model their “barbarous” nature. Richard Hurd, in his Letters
of Chivalry and Romance, talks about this concept: how the term “gothic” referred not only to
the primitive and superstitious people themselves, but also to a writer, for example, who might
use “primitive” or supernatural elements in his works that were similar to elements that were part
of the Gothic culture. Following this idea, Shakespeare would be considered a Gothic writer,
because many of his stories contain elements that could be seen as primitive or supernatural,
particularly his plays Macbeth and Hamlet, both of which contain many supernatural elements,
such as haunted castles, ghosts, and witches. Hurd believes that Shakespeare is at his best when
, uses these “barbaric” elements, rather than using classical Greek or Roman models. He says that
Shakespeare “is grater when he uses Gothic manners and machinery than when he employs
classical” (Hurd 266, qtd Townshend 67). This is the exact opposite of what many scholars of the
day felt about Shakespeare’s writing. They found him to be a rather uncultured writer, because of
these “barbaric” supernatural elements featured in his writing that were a part of the Gothic
culture.
Margreta De Grazia also discusses this idea in an article of hers, saying that any text
“written without classical models was considered ‘gothic’; that is, in the manner of the Goths,
the barbarian hordes who had destroyed the Roman Empire”, and that any who enjoyed such
texts harbored “vulgar tastes” (De Grazia 359). Shakespeare’s Hamlet, therefore, was considered
a gothic text in its own time because of its lack of classical elements and use of supernatural or
“barbarous” elements that showed a Gothic influence. In our times, Hamlet could be considered
gothic because of its “psychological depth and complexity” (De Grazia 355), and also because of
those supernatural elements present that have become the signature feature of our perception of
gothic.
The publication of Walpole’s The Castle of Otranto in 1764 began the shift in the
meaning of the term “gothic.” Scholars Fred Botting and Scott Wilson say that in writing “the
first Gothic story”, Walpole combined “the strands of historical setting (significantly, it is set in
the period of the Crusades), chivalric custom (tales of honour, knights, and patrilineal order), and
architectural style”; (Botting and Wilson 191). It is relevant to note that the full title of Walpole’s
novel is The Castle of Otranto: A Gothic Story. With the subheading, Walpole is referring to the
fact that his story takes place during the medieval period, around the time of the Crusades.
During the medieval period, the term meant the same as it would later mean in Shakespeare’s
