11/24/2011

This is supposed to be the first ever "gothic novel," dating all the way back to the 1760s. Wow! It truly seemed like an interesting blend of a classic fairy tale and the works of Shakespeare. The story had elements that were both enchanting like a fairy tale, with its magical and mysterious aspects, and yet it also had a certain depth and complexity similar to Shakespeare's plays. It was fairly fun to read, not overly complicated, and thus quite easy to get into. The language used was not too archaic, which made it accessible even to modern readers. Overall, it was a pleasant literary experience that gave a glimpse into the early days of the gothic genre.

Honestly, I must say that I just found this to be such an absolute bore. I'm not someone who hates the classics by any means. However, this particular one was extremely confusing, messy, and dull. It simply failed to hold my attention at all. It didn't achieve anything that was remotely significant or meaningful to me. The characters, in my opinion, were incredibly bland and lacked any real depth or individuality.

The ending, I guess, was okay. I did like how the plot managed to tie together in the end to form a somewhat cohesive conclusion. But that's really about all there is to it.

I do understand that many of the characteristics and qualities of this book were very profound and revolutionary in the 16th century when it was first released. I truly respect the significant influence that this piece had on the development of gothic literature. However, from the perspective of a modern reader, this feels like an overly melodramatic and needlessly complicated novel that I can only rate as a 2/5 stars. Sorry

Having spent three years in Bloomington getting drunk with fiction writers, I feel that I came dangerously close to losing my ability to appreciate trash. But, thankfully, not so! _The Castle of Otranto_, by Horace Walpole, is not only trash, but ground-breaking, historical, trend-setting trash. It is lauded as the first Gothic novel in English (published, anonymously at first, in 1764). And what a remarkable heap of words it is!

_The Castle of Otranto_ is preposterous, both in content and structure. Nearly half of the "action" occurs in dialogue. Walpole seems to be attempting to capture the extreme reluctance of one nobleman, through speech, to trouble another nobleman, even if lives hang in the balance. A common interchange might run thusly:

Diego (a manservant): Oh, it was awful!

Manfred (lord of Otranto): What sawest thou?!

Diego: I didn't see anything!

Manfred: What?

Diego: Jaquez saw it.

Manfred: Where is he?

Jaquez (another manservant): Right here, my lord!

Manfred: What did you see?

Jaquez: It was horrible!

Manfred: What was it?

Jaquez: It was incredible!

Manfred: What was incredible?!

Jaquez: What I saw!

Manfred: Tell me what it was!

Jaquez: I can't! Holy crap!

Diego: I can tell you!

Manfred: But, I thought you didn't see it.

Diego: I didn't, my lord.

Manfred: Then how can you tell me what it is?

Diego: I heard it! Oh, awful!

Manfred: What did you hear, then?!

Diego: It was really, really loud!

And so on. The plot itself is ridiculous, full of stock characters, ridiculous reversals of fortune, and supernatural curses. But, I found I couldn't put it away. I put it down, absolutely, and frequently, but I couldn't quite put it away.

Manfred, the count of Castle Otranto, has arranged a marriage between his son, Conrad, and Isabella, a "virtuous virgin"-type from the next principality. The marriage has been hastily arranged at Manfred's behest, and nobody is sure why. But here, around the bottom of page 1, is where we get conflict: Conrad becomes crushed beneath a giant metal helmet that seems to have fallen from the sky. The man Manfred believes is the criminal (or necromancer, if you prefer), is imprisoned beneath the helmet. Then, Manfred tries to seduce the fair Isabella, in order to produce a new male heir. But wait! Didn't I mention that Manfred is married already, to the fair and virtuous Hippolita? What's to be done?

That brings you up to about page three. What unfolds from there is ridiculous, the kind of story a man hopped up on crack might shout to passersby from beneath a bridge. But it is, well, interesting, and though poorly written, and full of tropes, pretty inventive at the same time. It won't change your life, but if you're tired of books changing your life, this might be a nice pick for a rainy day.

Taken out of historical context, The Castle of Otranto is a truly captivating escape. It immerses readers in a world of knights, beautiful maidens, mysterious curses, enchanting magic, powerful dynasties, intense rivalries, and spine-chilling terror. As Horace Walpole himself argued in one of his introductions, this novel was an attempt to establish a brand-new gothic style of writing. In this regard, it can be considered a comic thriller. It presents the most realistic reactions to completely imaginary actions, and cleverly injects comedy to counterbalance the otherwise grim tragedy.

However, when taken in historical context, the novel seems to be a response to some formative events in Walpole’s life. His nephew, Henry Seymour Conway, had recently been exiled due to political actions, and this exile deeply shook up his uncle. It was in this emotional atmosphere that Walpole penned The Castle of Otranto, in which a tyrant is ultimately unseated by a man he wrongly accused. The correlations between his life and the novel don't stop there. After conducting some research, Walpole’s several introductions begin to read like frantic attempts to obscure what truly lies at the novel’s core.

Does this change the way we read the novel? Not to a great extent. Most importantly, the tale remains a thrilling one. It's a fun and exciting romp that has opened the door for today’s numerous suspense and fantasy writers.

Do I recommend it? Without a doubt. It's not only fun but also historically significant, offering plenty to think about.

Would I teach it? Perhaps. It holds historical value, and Walpole also incorporated elements from Shakespearean drama, providing ample material for discussion.

Lasting Impression: It's a mystery from the middle ages, filled with magic and wonder. And the personal significance it holds for Walpole casts it in a somewhat darker light, adding an extra layer of depth and intrigue.

This classic was truly terrible. You know those fancy introductions where big shot professors rave about how brilliant the work you're about to read is? Well, in the introduction to this book, the guy actually tells you right there that he's sorry, but this is a really bad book.

The dream origin of The Castle of Otranto has been mentioned more often as an explanation for its shortcomings than as a cause for enthusiasm. From the start, its wildness invited derision, with wooden characterisation and the amateurish self-indulgence of its supernatural effect.

The author claims that the only reason to read this is not because it's any good but because it was the first - the first Gothic novel. Well, there's another reason - it's short. That's a very good thing. Any longer and you'd be launching yourself over a vast precipice with a wild unearthly howl.

The story is about Manfred, lord of an Italian castle, whose feeble son is getting married that day. But then a servant rushes in to say there's been a nasty accident. Manfred goes to check it out and behold, his child is dashed to pieces and almost buried under an enormous helmet.

This helmet is really big. I was keen to discover how it fell on top of his son - where do gigantic helmets come from? This is not something that happens every day. But (spoiler alert) we never find out. Anyway, they drag the dead son away. A little later, there's an uppity peasant who irritates Manfred, so he puts the giant helmet to another use. The peasant is kept prisoner under the helmet itself, which Manfred orders his attendants to raise and place the young man under it, declaring he should be kept without food.

That's the way Manfred rolls. If you annoy him, he'll trap you underneath a giant helmet that has only just appeared.

The next thing that happens is that Manfred has a brainwave. The woman his son was going to marry is a hot babe, so he thinks - hey, I just realised that an inexplicable giant helmet appearing from nowhere and crushing my son to death is a sign that I should divorce my wife and marry this hot young babe who was going to marry my son! Now that I think about it, it's obvious!

When presented with this change of plan, Isabella, the bride-to-be, is not impressed. Words cannot paint the horror of her situation. But Manfred then proceeds to use a bucketful of words anyway. When Manfred's wife is informed of his plan to divorce her, she likewise is unimpressed, but her maidservant offers some salty advice.

Oh madam, said Bianca, all men use their wives so, when they are weary of them. And later, a bad husband is better than no husband at all. So you can't write her down in the list of great feminists.

Now I thought the mad twists of giant body parts and improbable escapes and duelling and stabbing the wrong person was going to make this a fun read. After all, Manfred comes out with lines like Have done with this rhapsody of impertinence and Thou shalt experience the wrath with which thou darest to trifle, which is excellent and something I'll be using myself when I next get a snooty waiter. Actually, everyone has a very laborious way with words - sample dialogue: "Impede me not, or thou will repent having provoked my resentment." "Thy purpose is as odious as thy resentment is contemptible."

But the last half of the book is just a horrible, tedious series of interminable arguments between the four or five gentlemen and ladies involved, all of them revealing they were the real Lord of Otranto because of their father had a giant foot or they were kidnapped by savage corsairs or they gave birth to a giant foot in a convent which can now be revealed as the real Lord of Otranto. Blah blah blah.

I think whatever Horace Walpole had taken when he started writing this thing, it had clearly worn off by halfway, and he should have bought some more.

WARNING: 1001 BOOK THAT THE WRITERS OF THE 1001 BOOKS LIST WANTED TO TORTURE YOU WITH BEFORE YOU DIE


(NB do not assume that said death will be unrelated to the reading of this book.... boredom kills, people.)


This book, though a short and light paperback, is very Shakespearian in style, metaphorically and allegorically weighty. I was lured into reading it because of its brevity. You see, on a whim sometime ago (Christmas 2009), I manfully pledged to read all the books on the 1001 books to read before you die list. It was like a premature New Years resolution for self-betterment. Instead of giving up booze or fags (cigarettes for you in the US), I decided to take up an expensive habit. Many books later, I tried to pseudo-cheat my way to a higher number of 1001 books by picking the shortest ones off the list, thinking I was clever. But as with Don DeLillo's The Body Artist and The Castle of Otranto, this kind of tactical cherry picking came back to bite me.

To say that this book can be difficult to read in places is a mild understatement. My knowledge of Ye Olde Lingo has vanished since I left A-Level English Lit behind. So, it was like being thrown back into curriculum reading without the advantage of a young, uncluttered mind.

First, strange things occur. Big helmets fall on people. Why? I have no idea. But it's a novel way to kill someone. The rest of the book is more serious. Was the helmet not meant to be comical? Oh.

Mostly, I liked that the female characters were at the center of the plot, which must have been unusual for the time the book was written. However, it's more their emotions, especially towards their men, that place them at the heart of the story, rather than their own characters and motivations. Their lives are controlled by the men around them (most of whom seem self-serving, self-aggrandizing, and unfaithful!).

Manfred gets extra evil points for trying to replace his wife with a younger model, using the lame excuse that it's for the country's best interests! Overall, I think I would have enjoyed this more if it were written as a screenplay and presented in the style of a Carry-On film. I don't know why, but it just had that kind of feel.

In conclusion, it's a fairly tiresome read. You might even find yourself hoping to be flattened by a giant helmet to end your misery.

I truly adored this very first gothic mystery novel that set the wheels of excitement in motion.

Wow! Just think about all those characters intricately interwoven with one another. There's the dark family secret lurking in the shadows, and the supernatural elements which, although a bit cheesy, still manage to create an eerie atmosphere.

Manfred's devious plans to marry Isabella and his arrangements for his daughter add another layer of complexity. Then there's Theorode and Jerome, and the significant role played by the Marquis.

This novel is a classic romance, almost like a blueprint for all other romances, but with those spine-chilling eerie elements and ghostly appearances.

Surprisingly, it's a very fluent read. When compared to other works from that era, which can be extremely tedious, this one stands out.

Horace Walpole's ingenious idea of claiming he found that manuscript and translating it from Italian into English is truly remarkable. No wonder it was a bestseller back then.

I can easily envision this novel being brought to life on any stage as a play.

I wholeheartedly recommend this novel to everyone who has a penchant for intrigues, spooky castles, and mysterious happenings. It's a genre classic that simply cannot be missed!

Back when this book first emerged, it was truly remarkable. However, the times were distinct then, and the available literature was far more limited compared to today. When I undertake the review of classic novels, I strive to strike a balance between what the book signified at the time of its publication and its impact on the readers, as opposed to how well it has endured the test of time and how it fares independently in the 21st century.

There is an abundance of melodrama in this work. If it were to be adapted into a movie that remained fairly faithful to the book, the resulting film would likely be rather cheesy. It would require a significant amount of editing to transform it into a decent movie or Netflix series.

Similar to many other classic books, this one has not aged gracefully. Nevertheless, it does possess merit as the inaugural novel of its genre. Consequently, if you are a devotee of Gothic literature, this particular book might be more to your liking.

I feel like I need to make one thing crystal clear right from the start: The Castle of Otranto is by no means a parody of overly exaggerated Gothic novels. At least, I'm fairly certain it isn't. After all, it's regarded as the very first Gothic novel, so it's highly unlikely to be a spoof. I have a hunch that an unsuspecting reader might jump to that conclusion, but that's not the case. In fact, it's unintentionally hilarious.

I truly wish I could say something positive about this book. However, I'm drawing a complete blank. The dialogue is abysmal and overly melodramatic. The story itself is completely outlandish, commencing with a colossal helmet plummeting from the sky and crushing some unfortunate nobleman. And it only gets more mind-boggling from that point on. What I can't fathom is how others read this book and determined that it was worthy enough to imitate its style. Granted, better works emerged later on, but nothing of great value originated here.

There are really only three reasons to read this book at all. Firstly, if you desire to read Northanger Abbey and wish to understand what Jane Austen was satirizing. Secondly, if you have an intense need to comprehend the roots of Gothic literature. And thirdly, if you enjoy reading bad books for the sheer amusement. Fortunately, it's extremely short (about 100 pages in the edition I read), so it won't squander too much of your precious time.

A reading like this is undertaken from the perspective offered by the knowledge that you are in the presence of a great classic, a work that gives rise to a literary genre and, ultimately, gives origin to the literature of terror. This alone is sufficient reason to be encouraged to read this short story.

We find ourselves in a web of power within a palace where a misfortune occurs after the sudden appearance of an inexplicable event. Due to the death of the heir prince and fearing the prophecies, the tyrant king will seek a way to prolong his legacy. However, inexplicable apparitions continue to occur that put the legitimacy of the throne in doubt.

The plot is typical of the era and is a succession of intrigues, secrets, hidden passions, and plot twists that keep you entertained at all times. And there are all the characteristics that will make the Gothic a genre to imitate. Castles, churches, secret passages, tyrants with cruel intentions, defenseless ladies, and valiant knights ready to face injustices. Ghosts, skeletons, apparitions, giants... all those details that will be repeated ad nauseam in the works that follow.

And although from the perspective of time that type of terror has lost its impact, it is still fun to recognize those moments when the spirits from beyond make an appearance to claim what is theirs.

The Castle of Otranto is one of those classic works whose importance and charm are read with enthusiasm. A must for the lover of the genre.

I am truly glad to have finally read the first Gothic novel!!

Certainly, the reader is presented with all the classic Gothic elements, complete with the accompanying clichés and stereotypes.

I have a great affection for the writing style and the intertextuality within the story. However, I am unable to rate this read as a 5-star one due to several factors.

The presence of sexism is quite noticeable, which detracts from the overall experience. Additionally, the insta love aspect seems rather forced and unconvincing.

The excessive emphasis on religion also feels a bit overdone at times. Moreover, the characters are somewhat stereotyped, lacking in depth and complexity.

Despite these drawbacks, the novel still has its merits, but these issues prevent it from achieving the highest rating in my opinion.

The “infant” of gothic novels, The Castle of Otranto, commences with an abundance of theatrics and progresses at a delightfully brisk pace.

It is a very concise and engaging book, replete with bizarre and supernatural occurrences, copious amounts of drama, a malevolent prince, graceful princesses (and perhaps one fickle princess), comical attendants, and mysterious strangers.

An ancient prophecy looms over the castle and its occupants, and the reader catches a glimpse of the prophecy materializing right in the very first chapter.

On numerous occasions, I found myself chuckling at some of the outlandish events and the dialogue itself.

“At that instant the portrait of his grandfather, which hung over the bench where they had been sitting, uttered a deep sigh, and heaved its breast.”

It is creepy, yet I can't help but wonder if Horace Walpole would have been gratified to know that scenes like this were also somewhat amusing (at least to this reader)!

In certain respects, this novel reminded me of a Shakespearean drama; I'm not sure if this was intentional or not, but after reading some of the reviews, I realize that I'm not alone in this perception.

Parts of this work were foreseeable, while other events were both astonishing and suspenseful.

I was completely unprepared for the ending!

If you have an interest in the gothic genre and in learning more about the impact this work had on later gothic novels as well as contemporary horror novels, then you should definitely take a look at The Castle of Otranto.