Discussing Gothic Factors Of The Dickens’ Later Novels

Charles Dickens, a critical realist of the Victorian Age, also a great writer in the history of international literature. His creation reflected the social reality of the United Kingdom, and reproduced the changes in the city of London. The latter time is the peak of his creative writing, along with the gradually deepening social awareness, he focused on criticizing the darkness of parliamentary politics, the corrupt of ruling class, the evil of money-oriented society, the sufferings of the masses. His novels had a strong critical and realistic tendency, but also had romanticism, particularly reflected in the use of gothic elements. Throughout his writing career, more than a dozen works had strong gothic features.This thesis is divided into four main parts:The first part discusses Dickens’s love for gothic, then analysis why his novel rendering Gothic style from the view of literary tradition and influence of personal factors. Exploring the effects of literary tradition that can not be ignored in Dickens’creation. Probing how author’s personalities and life experiences affecting acceptance and inheritance for his literary tradition.The second part of Dickens’novel investigates the characteristics of "horror" in gothic art presentation. Discussing from two points, one is from environment, and the other is from circumstance. On the one hand, exploring how the scene serving for a narrative environment, guiding and rendering a specific emotional atmosphere. On the other hand, researching how the confusing plot layout evoking the readers’interest, triggering aesthetic pleasure and emotional joy.The third part is around the features of "weird" to explore the world of gothic, from the view of layers of suspense, a variety of perspective conversion, symbolism, dreams and other aspects such as exaggeration to show Dickens’weird world. Through discussing a real deep structure under the weird surface, pointing out the weirdness is a technique to express artistic features; reality is the real intention of the work.The forth part analyzes Dickens’deep implication of gothic character features from both perspective of incompletion and dehumanization. The purpose of Dickens magnifying characters’ weird personality flaws was to satirize and criticize depraved social atmosphere.Dickens used perfect writing skills to show a complete gothic world, he described a "horror" and "weird" world to inspire the readers’ imagination and curiosity, he tried to criticize human moral defects and social ills, while using his works to wake up virtues deep in our hearts, and completing the transformation of society, at last guiding people to the great civilizations.