How Does Harding Create Horror In Florence And Giles?
How does John Harding use gothic techniques to create horror in Florence and Giles?
Horror permeates much of Harding's beguiling novel Florence and Giles (2010). In a retrospective first-person narrative foretold by young didactic protagonist Florence, Harding's richly textured novel attempts to masterfully create horror through various gothic techniques. For example, Harding employs recurring weather motifs to compel his audience 'It was December now and we'd have had a lot of snow' says Florence (Harding, 2010, p.109). The weather also tempts the reader to speculate the novel's plot. With a focus on Florence, this paper will argue that Harding is successful by using gothic techniques to capture horror for his audience. Set in Fin de siècle …show more content…
Before beginning to make an analysis of how Harding experiments with specific gothic techniques to precipitate horror, one must first understand some key critical ideas about the two sub-genres. While Trednnick argues that 'Neo-Victorian fiction is a contemporary type of literature that engage through Victorian themes, characters and settings' (Treadnnick 2011,p.181 cited Hadley), the characteristics of both genres however, has been debated by many of Harding's contemporaries in gothic studies . In her 2013 article, Neo Victorianism : An introduction, Smith delineates the historical and social relationship between Neo-Victorian literature and horror fiction and argued that it is mandatory for both to have ' metafictive aims' (Smith, 2013, p.1). Smith's argument is legit because there are many inter-textual references to literature and music in the novel to create horror. For example, this can be seen when Florence visits Theo's house and 'a bust of Beethoven' (Harding, 2010,p.27) is in the background . Not only does the incredibly intense music influence the ominous tone of the passage to create an increasingly horrifying ordeal and suspense for the reader, it also gives Florence an opportunity to reflect on her friendship with Theo 'He's a fascinating boy' (Harding, 2010 , p.28) says Mrs Hoovier but Florence declares to the audience that ' it wasn't a word that i’d have used for him' (Harding, …show more content…
and Glaser, S. (2010). Simulacra and simulation. Ann Arbor, Mich.: Univ. of Michigan Press.
De Young, M. (2010). Madness. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co.
Dever, C. (1998). Death and the mother from Dickens to Freud. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Dinter, S. (2012). The Mad Child in the Attic: John Harding’s Florence & Giles as a Neo-Victorian Reworking of The Turn of the Screw. Neo Victorian Studies, [online] pp.63-70. Available at: http://www.neovictorianstudies.com/past_issues/5-1%202012/NVS%205-1-3%20Dinter.pdf [Accessed 8 Nov. 2014].
Falkenberg, M. (2005). Rethinking the uncanny in Hoffman and Tieck. Oxford: P. Lang.
Franzen, M., Robbins, D. and Sawicki, R. (1989). Reliability and validity in neuropsychological assessment. New York: Plenum Press.
Goodrich, G. (2010). Adventures with apples and snakes. [S.l.]: Authorhouse.
Harding, J. (2010). Florence & Giles. London: Blue Door.
Hoffmann, G. (2005). From modernism to postmodernism. Amsterdam: Rodopi.
Marshall, G. (2007). The Cambridge companion to the fin de siècle. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Murphy, M. (2007). Proust and America. Liverpool (Eng.): Liverpool University
Horror permeates much of Harding's beguiling novel Florence and Giles (2010). In a retrospective first-person narrative foretold by young didactic protagonist Florence, Harding's richly textured novel attempts to masterfully create horror through various gothic techniques. For example, Harding employs recurring weather motifs to compel his audience 'It was December now and we'd have had a lot of snow' says Florence (Harding, 2010, p.109). The weather also tempts the reader to speculate the novel's plot. With a focus on Florence, this paper will argue that Harding is successful by using gothic techniques to capture horror for his audience. Set in Fin de siècle …show more content…
Before beginning to make an analysis of how Harding experiments with specific gothic techniques to precipitate horror, one must first understand some key critical ideas about the two sub-genres. While Trednnick argues that 'Neo-Victorian fiction is a contemporary type of literature that engage through Victorian themes, characters and settings' (Treadnnick 2011,p.181 cited Hadley), the characteristics of both genres however, has been debated by many of Harding's contemporaries in gothic studies . In her 2013 article, Neo Victorianism : An introduction, Smith delineates the historical and social relationship between Neo-Victorian literature and horror fiction and argued that it is mandatory for both to have ' metafictive aims' (Smith, 2013, p.1). Smith's argument is legit because there are many inter-textual references to literature and music in the novel to create horror. For example, this can be seen when Florence visits Theo's house and 'a bust of Beethoven' (Harding, 2010,p.27) is in the background . Not only does the incredibly intense music influence the ominous tone of the passage to create an increasingly horrifying ordeal and suspense for the reader, it also gives Florence an opportunity to reflect on her friendship with Theo 'He's a fascinating boy' (Harding, 2010 , p.28) says Mrs Hoovier but Florence declares to the audience that ' it wasn't a word that i’d have used for him' (Harding, …show more content…
and Glaser, S. (2010). Simulacra and simulation. Ann Arbor, Mich.: Univ. of Michigan Press.
De Young, M. (2010). Madness. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland & Co.
Dever, C. (1998). Death and the mother from Dickens to Freud. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Dinter, S. (2012). The Mad Child in the Attic: John Harding’s Florence & Giles as a Neo-Victorian Reworking of The Turn of the Screw. Neo Victorian Studies, [online] pp.63-70. Available at: http://www.neovictorianstudies.com/past_issues/5-1%202012/NVS%205-1-3%20Dinter.pdf [Accessed 8 Nov. 2014].
Falkenberg, M. (2005). Rethinking the uncanny in Hoffman and Tieck. Oxford: P. Lang.
Franzen, M., Robbins, D. and Sawicki, R. (1989). Reliability and validity in neuropsychological assessment. New York: Plenum Press.
Goodrich, G. (2010). Adventures with apples and snakes. [S.l.]: Authorhouse.
Harding, J. (2010). Florence & Giles. London: Blue Door.
Hoffmann, G. (2005). From modernism to postmodernism. Amsterdam: Rodopi.
Marshall, G. (2007). The Cambridge companion to the fin de siècle. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Murphy, M. (2007). Proust and America. Liverpool (Eng.): Liverpool University