The gothic and the sentimental are two of the most prominent, and most frequently disparaged, modes of modern literary expression. Since the 18th century, when each emerged as a highly popular form of fictional narrative, gothic stories of haunting and possession and sentimental tales of emotional connection have been told, re-told, reinvented, and reinterpreted countless times. Just as frequently, the gothic and the sentimental have been criticized for their apparent excesses and artificialities. In this course, we will sample the history of these two robust traditions of literary expression and some of the significant critical and theoretical perspectives that have been called on to understand them. We will consider the ways these literary styles have evolved over time and examine some of the critical explanation for their development. We will also discuss some of the possible explanations for why, in modern and commercial societies, the gothic and the sentimental have been such persistent forms of expression and possible reasons why, despite their enduring popular appeal, they have often been objects of critical disdain. |