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Full Description
The haunted house of American fiction is an iconic union of setting and theme with an enduring presence in popular culture that traces its lineage to the early English Gothic novels. Blurring the boundaries between past and present, the living and the dead, the haunted house--synonymous with the dark side of domesticity--challenges accepted notions of reality and wields a special power over the reader's imagination.
Focusing on the work of H. P. Lovecraft, Richard Matheson and Stephen King, this critical work offers a fresh perspective on one of the most popular motifs in American fiction. Case studies demonstrate how these authors have kept the past alive while highlighting the complexities of modern society, using their ghostly tales to celebrate and challenge 20th century American history and culture.
Contents
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Preface
Introduction: The Haunted House Motif in Popular American Fiction
One. "The changeless, legend-haunted city of Arkham": Cosmicism, Regionalism and Liminality in "The Dreams in the Witch House"
Two. "Behind the barricades of silence": Haunted Suburbia in A Stir of Echoes
Three. "A ghost in his life?": The Legacy of the 1950s Marriage in Earthbound
Four. "Protecting the hotel was his job. He was the caretaker": Masculinity, Class and Capitalism in The Shining
Five. "Going places with the Young in Heart": Haunted by Nostalgia and the Past in Christine
Six. "It's my house, isn't it?": Memory, Identity and Haunting in Bag of Bones
Conclusion: Return of the Repressed: The Future of the Haunted House Motif
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
