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May 4, 2019 · Learn about the characteristics, history, and themes of Southern Gothic, a mode or genre of literature from the American South. Explore the works of Edgar Allan Poe, William Faulkner, Flannery O'Connor, and other influential writers in the field.
Common themes of Southern Gothic include storytelling of deeply flawed, disturbing, or eccentric characters who may be involved in hoodoo, [1] decayed or derelict settings, [2] grotesque situations, and other sinister events relating to or stemming from poverty, alienation, crime, or violence.
- Courtney Rodgers
- Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison. When the court wouldn’t remove “illegitimate” from Ruth Anne “Bone” Boatwright’s birth certificate, she became the bastard child of her South Carolina family.
- The Keepers of the House by Shirley Ann Grau. For seven generations, the Howlands have lived on the same Alabama land, building up the community around them.
- The Little Friend by Donna Tartt. 12 years after Robin was murdered in his front yard, Harriet Dufresnes is determined to spend her summer uncovering the truth of her brother’s killer.
- The Beguiled by Thomas Cullinan. At the height of the Civil War, a wounded Union soldier is found and brought to a girl’s boarding school in the remote Virginia woods.
Southern gothic, a style of writing practiced by many writers of the American South whose stories set in that region are characterized by grotesque, macabre, or fantastic incidents. Flannery O’Connor, Tennessee Williams, Truman Capote, William Faulkner, and Carson McCullers are among the best-known.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Apr 25, 2022 · Learn about the origins, elements and famous authors of Southern Gothic, a literary style that deals with the dark and grim past and present of the American South. Explore the themes of violence, oppression, decay, humor and supernatural in this bleak genre.
Learn about the literary style that combines gothic themes with a magical realist American South setting. Discover 10 stand-out books by William Faulkner, Zora Neale Hurston, Carson McCullers, and more.
315 books based on 477 votes: To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner, In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, As I Lay D...
