The Castle of Otranto: A Gothic Story

by Horace Walpole

Book Overview

First published pseudonymously in 1764, The Castle of Otranto purported to be a translation of an Italian story of the time of the crusades. In it Walpole attempted, as he declared in the Preface to the Second Edition, "to blend the two kinds of romance: the ancient and the modern." Crammed with invention, entertainment, terror, and pathos, the novel was an immediate success and Walpole's own favorite among his numerous works. The novel is reprinted...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0199537216
• ISBN13: 9780199537211
• Release Date: January 2009
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.32 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 7.6" x 5.0"

Customer Reviews

Setting the Tone

"The Castle of Otranto" by Horace Walpole, is regarded as the first novel of the gothic genre. Indeed its short and simple story is filled with the supernatural, and what must nowadays count as caricatures for characters. The charm of the story lies within its historical relevance and what it brought to future stories within that genre, not in the story itself. Immediately the reader is introduced to the tyrannical prince of Otranto, Manfred, as he is about to marry his sickly son to the princess Isabella in a quest to secure his claim to the throne he may not be entitled to. When Manfred's son Conrad is struck dead, with no witnesses to his ghastly death, Manfred is at a total loss. He strikes upon the idea of marrying the young princess Isabella for himself; when he proposes the notion to Isabella, she is frightened and repulsed and runs away, seeking sanctuary within the castle's monastery. Then ensues Manfred's stalking of Isabella while trying to get out of his marriage to his extremely pious wife Hippolita, while all about the castle the servants and ruling family keep having dreadful visions. In the end these supernatural visions serve to bring justice to the rightful heir, a young man who unwittingly helps Isabella escape from Manfred's clutches only to fall in love with Manfred's daughter, Matilda. The theme is that of the sins of the father being visited upon the children (even generations later) and is not a new theme in modern literature, but an interesting choice and one that works with the supernatural means Walpole employs to bring it about. While "The Castle of Otranto" is a watershed in the gothic genre, it is by far not the best or most notable work of that period; yet without the blueprint laid meticulously out by Walpole, such greater stories may never have been written.

Otranto is a perfect place for ghosts and usurpers

Considered the very first book of Gothic Literature, Horace Walpole's 'The Castle of Otranto' stands on its own merits. It is not the kind of novel for those who expect a gory ghost story, closer to what we callterror today. The narrative is too subtle, filled with nuances that create a scary mood.The story is not very complicated: in the day of his wedding, Conrad, the son of the prince of Otranto, is killed in a very surreal way. While his mother, sister and bride are terrified, his father wants to divorce and marry the bride, so that he can have another son. This event will unchain a lot of ghosts' intervention and a dark truth will be found. And for such short book --actually a novella-- a lot of things happen.The events and characters are quite unrealistic, but this is where the fun of reading this book is. Not to mention the historical value of the narrative. More than a ghosts story, it is the tale of a man who usurped the throne, and the consequences he suffered. While the aftermath may not be quite realistic, usurping thrones was something quite common.The biggest barrier for a contemporary reader is Walpole's language. Not that it is florid, but it is written in the way people used to speak in the 18th Century. But while for some it is a discouragement, for other it is a joy --once we get used to it. His dialogues a descriptions easily flow. The way the writer creates the atmosphere is unforgettable. Castle is a place where ghosts seem to be, and Otranto's is a perfect place for them.Moreover, there is a very positive influence of Shakespeare on Walpole. Every now and then a Shakespearian quote pops up --mostly from 'Macbeth' and Hamlet'. 'Otranto' has even a theatrical format. Square brackets are used to indicate changing, like in a play.All in all, 'The Castle of Otranto' is a great novella, but it doesn't have a wide appeal. People who are used to contemporary gothic tales my found it very slow, but anyway, they should try and read, just to find out where it all began.

Outstanding!

If you like gothic novels, you will love The Castle of Ottranto. I have never read a book so quickly nor found myself so entirely engrossed as when I read this novel. It contains all of the gothic elements from catacombs to incest to hypersexuality to abused authority and of course to murder and guilt. This book is fantastic.

The First Gothic Novel

Written in the mid-eighteenth century (yes, that's the 1700s), Walpole set about to invigorate what he considered the boring literature of his time. What he started was, I'm sure, much more than he expected. This novel, full of blood-dripping statues, moving paintings, gigantic visions, and skeletal monks, is the first of what is now known as the Gothic genre. Melodramatic and intense, this is a marvellous book, though clearly not a modern novel. The themes might be shared with Anne Rice, but the level of the writing certainly isn't. Walpole is an educated man writing in the style of his time; don't be surprised that it doesn't read like our contemporary knock-offs. A must for lovers of literature as well as of fantastic fiction.

I found this book very good and a bit scary.

Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole I found that this book, was a very good book. It was so good that I felt that I was in the book. Throughout most of the book I was feeling cold shivers dancing up and down my spine, especially when Manfred chased Princess Isabella. The one part that I didn't like was when the son of the friar was wrongly accused of killing Conrad, and then threatened with execution. I also didn't like it when Matilda died.