Features of Gothic Literature in Shirley Jackson's 'The Haunting of Essay

Features of Gothic Literature in Shirley Jackson's 'The Haunting of Hill House' - Essay Example Shirley Jackson’s book â€Å"The Haunting of Hill House† is easily characterized as a Gothic novel based on the presence of many of these characteristics within its pages. The story is basically that of a young woman who goes insane as a result of supernatural influences when she is invited to stay for a summer at a castle-like home located far from the next nearest seat of civilization in a dark and gloomy portion of the country. To explore how â€Å"The Haunting of Hill House† can be considered a Gothic novel, and thus begin to understand the concepts of Gothic literature itself, three elements of Gothic literature will be examined as they apply to the novel. The discovery of how the novel uses the concepts of the sublime, the castle and the Gothic psychomachy will reveal much about the common elements of Gothic literature. The idea of the sublime is not unique to Gothic literature, but the way in which it is applied often can be. The sublime refers to the presence of something that isn’t there, something intangible that is nevertheless felt. While often used in other texts to refer to something that is beneficial and ‘Godlike’, this concept also lends itself strongly to the Gothic novel. This is because the idea of the sublime can be heavenly as easily as it can be founded on the concepts of hell. With the Gothic novel’s concentration on the supernatural and the idea of ghosts, the sublime translates into the novel as the sense of an otherworldly presence that might or might not be discernable to the characters. Within Jackson’s novel, the idea of the sublime is pushed to its ultimate level without losing its meaning. This is particularly evident in the many instances that Jackson allows something to happen that remains forever unknown to the reader and to many of the other characters as well. During their stay at Hill House, all four of the primary characters begin to