Gothic Writers - Annotated by Douglass H Thomson & Jack G Voller & Frederick S Frank (Hardcover)

About the Book

With its roots in Romanticism, antiquarianism, and the primacy of the imagination, the Gothic genre originated in the 18th century, flourished in the 19th, and continues to thrive today. This reference is designed to accommodate the critical and bibliographical needs of a broad spectrum of users, from scholars seeking critical assistance to general readers wanting an introduction to the Gothic, its abundant criticism, and the present state of Gothic Studies. The volume includes alphabetically arranged entries on more than 50 Gothic writers from Horace Walpole to Stephen King. Entries for Russian, Japanese, French, and German writers give an international scope to the book, while the focus on English and American literature shows the dynamic nature of Gothicism today.

Each of the entries is devoted to a particular author or group of authors whose works exhibit Gothic elements, beginning with a primary bibliography of works by the writer, including modern editions. This section is followed by a critical essay, which examines the author's use of Gothic themes, the author's place in the Gothic tradition, and the critical reception of the author's works. The entries close with selected, annotated bibliographies of scholarly studies. The volume concludes with a timeline and a bibliography of the most important broad scholarly works on the Gothic.

Book Synopsis

With its roots in Romanticism, antiquarianism, and the primacy of the imagination, the Gothic genre originated in the 18th century, flourished in the 19th, and continues to thrive today. This reference is designed to accommodate the critical and bibliographical needs of a broad spectrum of users, from scholars seeking critical assistance to general readers wanting an introduction to the Gothic, its abundant criticism, and the present state of Gothic Studies. The volume includes alphabetically arranged entries on more than 50 Gothic writers from Horace Walpole to Stephen King. Entries for Russian, Japanese, French, and German writers give an international scope to the book, while the focus on English and American literature shows the dynamic nature of Gothicism today.

Each of the entries is devoted to a particular author or group of authors whose works exhibit Gothic elements, beginning with a primary bibliography of works by the writer, including modern editions. This section is followed by a critical essay, which examines the author's use of Gothic themes, the author's place in the Gothic tradition, and the critical reception of the author's works. The entries close with selected, annotated bibliographies of scholarly studies. The volume concludes with a timeline and a bibliography of the most important broad scholarly works on the Gothic.

Review Quotes

?[a]cademic libraries and researchers will find that it offers much.?-Reference Reviews

?[A]n upper-level undergraduate, or perhaps a graduate student in need of a work mapping out the Gothic through its brief critical surveys and annotated bibliographies.?-SFRA Review

?Celebrating the literary gothic's academic revival over the past ten years, this volume's 54 essays discuss 18th- and 19th-century British authors associated with gothic in its heyday and includes entries for American, Canadian, and Japanese writers of the 20th century....Appropriate for reference or circulating collections in academic libraries.?-Choice

?Gothic Writers targets the needs of a "broad spectrum of users," from the undergraduate in search of a term paper topic, to the well-published researcher who has references to check or course syllabi to build. It even offers something to a reader who is simply curious about Gothic studies or may be encountering it for the very first time...always accessible and intellectually stimulating. Gothic Writers is excellent in all respects...it will be a welcome addition to reference shelves.?-Reference & User Services Quarterly

?Many of the authors found here are discussed in other resources...but no other work treats them in the context of current Gothic studies. Recommended for academic and large public libraries.?-Booklist/Reference Books Bulletin

?Recommended for academic libraries.?-Library Journal

?Recommended for academic libraries.??Library Journal

"Ýa¨cademic libraries and researchers will find that it offers much."-Reference Reviews

"ÝA¨n upper-level undergraduate, or perhaps a graduate student in need of a work mapping out the Gothic through its brief critical surveys and annotated bibliographies."-SFRA Review

"[a]cademic libraries and researchers will find that it offers much."-Reference Reviews

"[A]n upper-level undergraduate, or perhaps a graduate student in need of a work mapping out the Gothic through its brief critical surveys and annotated bibliographies."-SFRA Review

"Celebrating the literary gothic's academic revival over the past ten years, this volume's 54 essays discuss 18th- and 19th-century British authors associated with gothic in its heyday and includes entries for American, Canadian, and Japanese writers of the 20th century....Appropriate for reference or circulating collections in academic libraries."-Choice

"Many of the authors found here are discussed in other resources...but no other work treats them in the context of current Gothic studies. Recommended for academic and large public libraries."-Booklist/Reference Books Bulletin

"Recommended for academic libraries."-Library Journal

"Gothic Writers targets the needs of a "broad spectrum of users," from the undergraduate in search of a term paper topic, to the well-published researcher who has references to check or course syllabi to build. It even offers something to a reader who is simply curious about Gothic studies or may be encountering it for the very first time...always accessible and intellectually stimulating. Gothic Writers is excellent in all respects...it will be a welcome addition to reference shelves."-Reference & User Services Quarterly

About the Author

DOUGLASS H. THOMSON is Associate Professor of English at Georgia Southern University. He is the author of essays on English Romanticism and the novel.

JACK G. VOLLER is Associate Professor of English at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. His publications include The Supernatural Sublime: The Metaphysics of Terror in Anglo-American Romanticism (1994), along with articles on Poe, William Gibson, and funerary semiotics.

FREDERICK S. FRANK is Professor Emeritus of English at Allegheny College. He is the coeditor of The Poe Encyclopedia (1997) and the author of Through the Pale Door: A Guide to and through the American Gothic (1990), both available from Greenwood Press.