On Angela Carter’s Inheritance And Transcendence Of Female Gothic

As a literary genre,Gothic continues to develop and has far-reaching influence in the West,thus forming an independent school of fiction.At the beginning of the rise of Gothic literature,it is represented by male Gothic writers such as Horace Walpole,Edgar Allan Poe and Hoffman.Female Gothic is another branch of Gothic novels,It rose in the 18 th century and has a history of more than 200 years.In the 20 th century,western scholars introduced the female perspective into the study of Gothic literature and made a breakthrough in the field of gender and genre,so the study of female Gothic gradually developed as an independent research field.The representative writers of traditional female Gothic are Ann Radcliffe,Daphne Du Maurer and Emily Bronte,etc.Angela Carter occupies a place in the history of English literature and is also a representative figure of contemporary female Gothic,which plays a connecting role in the development of female Gothic.This paper will trace the tradition of female Gothic literature and systematically interpret Angela Carter’s Gothic texts from the perspective of the whole.It tries to explain that Angela Carter not only inherits female Gothic tradition,but also makes innovation and breakthrough,which opens up space for the further development of female Gothic literature.The thesis is divided into three parts: introduction,text and conclusion.In the introduction part,it focuses on the writing characteristics of Angela Carter and her representative Gothic works,summarizes the research status of Carter’s works at home and abroad,and determines the research direction and thinking combined with the female Gothic theory,laying a foundation for further exploring the inherent charm of Carter’s works.In the body part,the first chapter discusses Angela Carter’s inheritance of Female Gothic tradition from four aspects: theme,typical Gothic characters,terrible environmental atmosphere and common closed images in Female Gothic works;The second chapter further expounds Angela Carter’s Transcendence of Female Gothic from four aspects:broadening the expression scope of gothic theme,the open setting of story ending,the shaping of New Gothic characters and the integration of postmodern creative techniques into the novel;The third chapter discusses the causes of Carter’s Female Gothic thought.When Carter began to embark on the road of Gothic creation,she was influenced by Gothic predecessors,and drew nutrients from folklore,fairy tales and Shakespeare’s plays.Her admiration for Wilde’s aesthetics created her gorgeous style of writing.In the conclusion part,the author mainly summarizes the core point of the thesis.Carter’s female Gothic novels are profound reflections on the living conditions of women and gender relations in real life.She not only focuses on women’s anxiety and fear,but also subverts the relationship between men and women and creates a powerful female image.