Democracy and the American Gothic

af Michael J. (Milligan University Blouin

While the political undercurrent of the American Gothic has been firmly established, few scholars have surveyed the genre's ambivalent relationship to democracy. The American Gothic routinely undercuts centralised authority by exposing the dark underbelly of the status quo; at the same time, the American Gothic tends to reflect a widespread mistrust of the masses. American readers are too afraid of democracy - and not yet fearful enough. This concise Element theorises the democratic and anti-dem... (Læs mere)