1. How is the Romantic notion of the Sublime reflected in the ideological, conceptual and linguistic construction of the texts under consideration in this Romanticism reader? Discuss one or two examples...
2. Go online and see if you can find out anything about what really happened at the Villa Diodati that fateful summer in 1816...
3. How many fictional accounts (film and other narrative media) can you find about that? Provide some useful links, including Youtube clips (hint: for a start try Ken Russel Gothic on Youtube).
4. Discuss the links between the Villa Diodati "brat-pack" and the birth of Gothic as a modern genre with reference to specific texts by the authors who gathered there and subsequent texts (e.g. The Vampire >> Dracula, etc).
3. How many fictional accounts (film and other narrative media) can you find about that? Provide some useful links, including Youtube clips (hint: for a start try Ken Russel Gothic on Youtube).
4. Discuss the links between the Villa Diodati "brat-pack" and the birth of Gothic as a modern genre with reference to specific texts by the authors who gathered there and subsequent texts (e.g. The Vampire >> Dracula, etc).
How is the romantic notion of the sublime reflected in the ideological, conceptual and linguistic construction of the texts under consideration in the romanticism reader? Discuss one or two examples
ReplyDeleteThe romantic notion of the sublime links to the idea that writing the applies large emotional terminology can provide a stronger and more evocative emotional response for the reader. Sublime was originally viewed as the power to provoke ecstasy through writing (Llewellyn & Riding, 2013). While the premise of using fear, danger or some other suitably gargantuan feeling to incite a reflected response in the reader may seem rather obvious today, the conception of the use of the sublime largely effected how artists produced their works.
The notion of the sublime links heavily with the ideological views of romanticist artists and their works. The romanticist ideology grew from the counter perspective of the generation before, with their ideology heavily promoting music, art and intellectual development (McGann, 1982). As the romantics greatly promoted art, the ideology placed a large emphasises on emotion and emotional reaction. Understanding this makes understanding how and why the inception and application of the sublime plays such a large part in the works of the romantics. In “Manfred, A Dramatic Poem” the use of strong emotive language is liberally applied along with a thematic choice to incite strong resonance with the reader. Conceptually, the notion of the sublime laid the groundwork for many of the artistic endeavours of the romantics, as the concept of the sublime itself began with the romantics. Sublime was not known to artists before the romantic period, so it is arguable that the notions conception and the conception of romantic works are one in the same (Vine, 2013). The linguistic construction of the notion of the sublime displays the strength of the emotional ideology of the period. Manfred, a Dramatic poem’s linguistic construction fills each line with powerful and emotive language. The use of rhyme is too applied to further add to reader engagement and a greater overall reader resonance with the piece. The romantics liberally applied the notion of sublime and it is apparent in all their works, arguably it was this notion that itself underpinned the whole styling of the romantic generation.
References
Llewellyn, N., & Riding, C. (2013, January 09). The Art of the Sublime. Retrieved from https://www.tate.org.uk: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/research-publications/the-sublime/the-romantic-sublime-r1109221
McGann, J. J. (1982). Romanticism and Its Ideologies. Studies in Romanticism, 573-599.
Vine, S. (2013). Reinventing the sublime : post-Romantic literature and theory. England : Sussex Academic Press.
2. Go online and see if you can find out anything about what really happened at the Villa Diodati that fateful summer in 1816...
ReplyDeleteThere were many contributing factors that led to the creation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Over the summer of 1816, Shelley was keeping the company of Lord Byron (George Gordon Bryan) a fellow author himself, it was Byron himself who is partly responsible for the creation of the Frankenstein idea. Shelley, Byron and Percy Shelley (Mary’s husband), Byron’s doctor and some unnamed others spent the Summer holed up in the Villa Diodati. The Summer of 1816 was to be known as the year without Summer, this was due to Mt Tamboro, Indonesia erupting in April the previous year. This eruption cast a layer of volcanic ash over Europe and Asia, along with plummeting temperatures and a lot of rain. The volcanic eruption caused the party at the Villa Diodati to remain mostly indoors for their stay, they spent their nights indoors talking about literacy, animation and many other topics. Having a Doctor join in on these conversations offered a different point of view from what the writers could contribute. The combination of the science and the raw creativity can be held partially responsible for the creation of Frankenstein and other renowned pieces that came out of this stay. The story of Frankenstein itself was said to come from one night, when the group stayed up telling old ghost stories, the poem by Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s ‘Christabel’ was said to give Mary nightmares that gave her the idea to write Frankenstein. Although there are many different variations of what really happened that summer in 1816 they all seem to follow a similar fate.
3. How many fictional accounts (film and other narrative media) can you find about that? Provide some useful links, including Youtube clips (hint: for a start try Ken Russel Gothic on Youtube).
Here are some fictional accounts based loosely around story of the Summer of 1816 in the Villa Diodati. I found it hard to find novels and film about the creation of Frankenstein, due to the fact that most novels and films are adaptations of the original Frankenstein.
Gothic – Ken Russel
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8qH_3qk_dY&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DN8qH_3qk_dY&has_verified=1
Haunted Summer- Ivan Passer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQwwVThTuZM
Rowing with the Wind – Gonzalo Suarez
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rowing_with_the_Wind
The Villa where the idea of Frankenstein was created Villa Diodati now can be visited and hosts writers workshops for those interested.
http://www.villadiodati.com/
Reference List:
https://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/mary-shelley-frankenstein-and-the-villa-diodati
https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/arts-and-books/sumer-1816-frankenstein-shelley-byron-villa-diodati
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8qH_3qk_dY&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DN8qH_3qk_dY&has_verified=1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQwwVThTuZM
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rowing_with_the_Wind
http://www.villadiodati.com/
2. Go online and see if you can find out anything about what really happened at the Villa Diodati that fateful summer in 1816...
ReplyDeleteIn order to fully understand what really happened in the summer of 1816 one must look at the history and world events prior. A year before, in Indonesia, Mount Tamboro erupted. The blast obscured the sun, it caused heavy rainfall and temperatures to drop. It caused crop failure, it became darker earlier in the day. Bird would roost at midday and candles were lit by midday as well. People on the other side of the globe would not have understood what was causing this assuming perhaps the supernatural was interviewing. All of these factors created a perfect backdrop for the telling of terrifying, gothic stories. 1816 was called the year without summer. Prior to arriving in Villa Diodati, Mary Shelley travel through bleak, wintery landscapes. “Never was a scene more awfully desolate” Shelley wrote. She describes a similar location for the backdrop of Frankenstein. Because of the terrible weather, Mary Shelley, Lord Byron, and John Polidori all stayed indoors. During their time inside they decided to read stories such as Fantasmagoriana. It wasn’t until Lord Byron’s suggested they write their own ghost stories. The house was dark and cold and only the flashes of lightning and the flicker of candles lit the room. The loud clashing of the storm surrounded them. This was when Shelley, at 18 years of age wrote Frankenstein. The idea came to her in a dream. Byron wrote Vampyre which later was the inspiration for Bram Stock’s Dracula. This work is still being used to this day. Just last year another retelling of Frankenstein was produced.
Reference List
https://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/mary-shelley-frankenstein-and-the-villa-diodati
BBC Production of what happened.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VM1D_xUjuOE
3. How many fictional accounts (film and other narrative media) can you find about that? Provide some useful links, including Youtube clips (hint: for a start try Ken Russel Gothic on Youtube).
ReplyDeleteThe events of the fateful summer at the Villa Diodati in 1816 became a very famous part of the romantic’s notion and the story sparked the creation of films and other narrative media. A well-known film based on the story of that summer is the 1986 film ‘Gothic’ directed by Ken Russell. The film is set in 1816 at Lord Byron’s Swiss lakeside chateau. Byron was joined by his guests including Percy Bysshe Shelley; his fiancée Mary Wollstonecraft and her half-sister Claire and lastly his private doctor John Polidori ("Gothic (1986)," 2017). The warm summer evening is spent sharing ghost stories with the group under the influence of experimental compounds that were provided by Byron’s personal doctor ("Gothic (1986)," 2017). Throughout the night the horrifying stories and the reality of the group begin to mix ("Gothic (film)," 2017). The film Gothic recounts the actual events that happened at the Villa Diodati however they have a small twist making the film a more fictional account of the events that happened.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=haS7s4MI0mI – (Gothic, 1986 Trailer).
Following the 1986 film ‘Gothic’ came the film ‘Haunted Summer’ in 1988 directed by Ivan Passer. Similar to the actual events the film is based on and the film ‘Gothic’, ‘Haunted Summer’ is set in the Summer of 1816. Lord Byron is accompanied by fellow authors Mary Shelley and Percy Shelley who begin to engage in some very philosophical conversations ("Haunted Summer (1988)," 2017). However, being isolated the situation deteriorates in drugs, sex and mind games. The film is another fictional version of the events that actually occurred when Lord Byron, Mary Shelley and Percy Shelley, with Lord Byron’s ex-lover and his doctor John Polidori spent summer at the Villa Diodati by Lake Geneva ("Haunted Summer," 2017). In an attempt to kill the dullness of summer, the group each try to come up with the best horror story, it is here that Mary Shelley’s world famous book ‘Frankenstein’ came to life ("Haunted Summer (1988)," 2017). Although the film ‘Haunted Summer’ takes the events of what actually happened and turns them in to fiction, the important of the original story are highlighted, and the film becomes another in the collection of the notion of the romantics.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG-rJuyfvxM – (Haunted Summer, 1988 Trailer).
3. Continued.
ReplyDeleteAlso in the year of 1988 the film ‘Rowing with the wind’ became another fictional account of the events of the fateful summer of 1816. The film follows a similar plot to the previously mentioned two films in terms of the main storyline and the characters that include Lord Byron, Percy Shelley, Mary Shelley and Mary’s stepsister Claire Clairmount and lastly Lord Byron’s physician John William Polidori. The film takes place at the Villa rented by Lord Byron on Lake Geneva in Switzerland. Each of the friends are challenged by Lord Byron to create and write a horror story ("Rowing with the Wind (1988)," 2017). It is here of course that Mary begin to create her novel ‘Frankenstein’. Unlike the two previously mentioned films, ‘Rowing with the wind’ sees Mary imagining the monster she created becoming real, and so for the next six years after the summer spent at Lake Geneva Mary believes that the creature of her imagination is the cause of the tragedies that befall those around her. Claire has the baby of Lord Byron but the two drift apart and she is barred from seeing her daughter. The friendship between Lord Byron and Percy Shelley continues and the Shelley’s move near Pisa ("Rowing with the Wind," 2017). This fictional account of the events that occurred takes a very different approach to recounting the events, in terms of the aftermath of the summer in 1816 is explored.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92U3orszabY (Rowing with the wind, 1988 Trailer).
References.
Gothic (1986). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091142/
Gothic (film). (n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_(film)
Haunted Summer (1988). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0095280/
Haunted Summer. (n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haunted_Summer
Jackson, K. (2016, May 17). The haunted summer of 1816. Retrieved from https://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/arts-and-books/sumer-1816-frankenstein-shelley-byron-villa-diodati
Rowing with the Wind (1988). (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093840/
Rowing with the Wind. (n.d.). Retrieved June 12, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rowing_with_the_Wind