Although I was hesitant on which novel I should write my final paper about, I’ve finally decided to analyze The Castle of Otranto. Walpole fascinates the reader through his own ideas of a Gothic novel while underlining romance, and sacrificing while taking into account the presence of religion.

Throughout the novel, the reader is able to learn how everything has turned out to be against Manfred, the lord of the Castle. Walpole introduces the reader to the novel with a devastating opening scene of Manfred’s fifteen year old son, Conrod, as a large statue helmet falls onto his head on his wedding day to Isabella, crushing it, resulting in his death. Manfred’s attempt in passing power onto his son at a young age is countered by Conrod’s death promoting the idea of god’s rejection of power inheritance.It also suggested that in order for power to be inherited for becoming a lord of a castle, they must be old to inherit the power.

Furthermore, romance is strictly underlined when reading the novel. As a reader, it is easy to pickup on the fact that this is a romantic novel. As the relationship between characters grow to be more evident, it alerts the reader of Walpole’s attempt of creating the medieval romance illusion which I find to be amusing. Although it is a very old novel, it sounds much like a story that would or may happen in today’s era. Moreover, Manfred’s lust to gain power has led to his downfall and Walpole is able to portray this through the use of romance in the novel.

The question that is being raised when analyzing this novel is how does romance and religion shape the novel and how had it impacted the fate of characters? It is fascinating how The Castle of Otranto is considered to be the first Gothic novel and how Walpole set a benchmark for romance in novels.

Enduring the pain of giving birth is unimaginable. The pain is beyond the imagination to be able to picture how painful it is for women to go through birth labor. In The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentlemen by Laurence Sterne, Sterne creates the illusion to the reader of being a “witness” to Tristram’s birth in the first chapter. In the first two volumes, the reader is introduced to Tristram in the first 2 chapters just to realize he has yet to be born. In the footnotes, according to Julius Cesar, he argues that “This incision… no purpose to propose: Elizabeth Shandy might well have turned pale at the idea of undergoing a Caesarean section without anaesthetic but Sterne is once more satirizing John Burton, a rare example of contemporary obstetrician not wholly opposed to section, and who mentions some 18th century Irish examples of Caesarean births where both mother and child survived”.

Throughout the film we’re learning about Tristram’s life from the very start as a short comedy before his conception. Everything that occurred to him as a child was a mistake. During his parents’ sexual intercourse, the failure to rewind the clock chore before every sexual intercourse hints that his mother conceived him mistakenly. The rewinding of the clock to 12 every night connected with the sexual activity that drove both of Tristram’s parents making their sexual activity a lot more enjoyable. Forgetting to rewind the clock before his conception suggests that it was not meant to happen. Moreover, the mistake of being named Tristram, mistakenly circumcised after the window collapses on his closes shut on Tristram’s penis as he urinates out the window.

During Elizabeth’s birth labor, Walter insisted on having a doctor deliver the baby using a specific tool that he believed was the right path to delivering his son. He objected the idea of midwife delivering his baby. This holds true to the Cesar’s idea hence we learn that Walter is a philosopher that had high expectations of his unborn son. However, being delivered by doctor resulted in Tristram’s nose breaking. While his father looked upon it as a sign of being a successful person; it can be interpreted as another mistake or technically his second mistake. This proposes had the midwife deliver the baby, Tristram’s nose wouldn’t be broken. It also promotes the idea of his life being based off of a mistake. Or could it be looked upon as a sin from his early childhood. Thus, Julius’ argues that maybe had she had Elizabeth undergo a caesarean section this would had never happened.

Edmund Burke describes the difference between Clearness and Obscurity with regards to the passion in “A Philosophical Enquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas Of The Sublime and Beautiful” article.. He argues that the difference between Clearness and Obscurity is far more superior than just reaching the reader’s imagination. “It is one thing to make an idea clear, and another to make it affecting to the imagination. If I make a drawing of a palace, or a temple, or a landscape, I present a very clear idea of those objects; but then my picture can at most affect only as the palace, temple, or landscape would have affected in the reality.”. Burke is arguing that presenting the reader with an image can leave him with the same feeling he would get had the reader observed it from the same perspective in reality. He argues that what leaves a great impression of Obscurity to the reader is through verbal communication “The proper manner of conveying the affections of the mind from one to another, is by words”. I agree with Burke’s brief description of Clearness and Obscurity hence as a reader, I find myself imaging the details of a certain passage by an author, creating a sort of reality illusion, making me more engaged with the reading.

In the Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole, before reading the novel, the reader is able to grasp on the idea of the novel taken being somewhere during the medieval times. Hence the title “castle”, first thought that ran across my mind was a sort of defense of some kind. Walpole introduces the reader to the novel with a quick introduction of Prince of Otranto and his children, who Walpole described as ” the latter, a most beautiful virgin, aged eighteen, was called Matilda. Conrad, the son, was three years younger, a homely youth, sickly, and of no promising disposition”. This relates to the sublime of Burke due to the fact Walpole is able to manipulate the reader into thinking that the daughter is by far the most beautiful girl he laid eyes on. In comparison of the other novels we’ve read in class, I strongly believe that Walpole is able to set the illusion of reality and make better connection with the reader than the previous authors. For instance, “At those words he seized the cold hand of Isabella, who was half dead with fright and horror. She shrieked, and started from him, Manfred rose to pursue her, when the moon, which was now up, and gleamed in at the opposite casement, presented to his sight the plumes of the fatal helmet, which rose to the height of the windows, waving backwards”. Through this, the reader is able to learn about Isabella’s set emotions. Furthermore, this relates to the sublime described by Burke as Walpole alerts the reader of Isabella’s mental state and is able to visualize her condition.