The Gothic World of Anne Rice - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0879727071 ISBN 13: 9780879727079

Publisher: Popular Pr of Bowling Green State, 1996

Synopsis

Directly and in considerable detail this anthology argues for the serious study of the literary oeuvre of Anne Rice, a major figure in popular literature today. This writer of gothic fiction attracts not only great general interest among readers but also much serious scholarly attention among those who recognize in her work evidence of sophisticated characterization and intricate plotting. Such readers find allusions in Rice's work to that of Horace Walpole's The Castle of Otranto, to Ann Radcliffe's gothic romances, such as The Mysteries of Udolpho, and to Bram Stoker's Dracula, as do such present-day authors as Clive Barker, Robert R. McCammon, and Stephen King. The essays in this volume assert that Rice goes far beyond the conventions of the formula to examine important contemporary social issues. Like a handful of authors working in the horror genre, Rice perceives in its otherwise predictable narrative structures a way by which a larger, more interesting cultural mythology can be developed, as the editors of this volume point out. In short, Rice may be said to search for philosophical truth, examining themes of good and evil, the influence on people and society of both nature and nurture, "the conflict and dependence of humanism and science," as one essayist states.

About this title

About the Author:

Gary Hoppenstand is an associate professor teaching in the Department of American Thought and Language at Michigan State University. He has written numerous books and articles on a variety of topics ranging from American literature to popular culture studies.

Ray B. Browne is chairman emeritus of the Popular Culture Department at Bowling Green State University. He is the author and editor of more than fifty books on various aspects of American and world cultures.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.:

From dust jacket: The essays in this volume assert that Rice goes far beyond the conventions of the formula to examine important contemporary social issues. Like a handful of authors working in the horror genre, Rice perceives in its otherwise predictable narrative structures a way by which a larger, more interesting cultural mythology can be developed, as the editors of this volume point out.

About this edition

• Publisher: Popular Pr of Bowling Green State
• Publication date: 1996
• ISBN 10: 0879727071
• ISBN 13: 9780879727079
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 261
• Editor: Hoppenstand Gary, Browne Ray Broadus