Week One: Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen (5 pts)

     Northanger Abbey was a pleasant surprise from start to finish. From it's charming, albeit naive protagonist to it's many moments of humor, Northanger Abbey pokes fun at the Gothic genre without ever condemning it. Austen understood what this genre meant to it's readers, specifically the women, and refuses to talk down to them - even going so far as to make those who do within the novel look like total jerks. The many aspects of the Gothic genre are present throughout the novel, but never cross over into making what Catherine would truly expect from one of her books. 

    The book fulfills several genre requirements, setting events up to meet Catherine's expectations before  allowing reality to seep in. The characters surrounding Catherine fit into the predetermined roles of the Gothic novel. Catherine is our pure heroine. Henry is our hero while the General and James Thorpe act as the tyrannical patriarchs. Isabella, Catherine's "best friend," is there to assist the others in refusing Catherine agency in her day to day life. Outside of that, the book has it's "castle" in Northanger Abbey which is not as fearsome as Catherine expects, although she still uses it to ignite her imagination. There is an "surmise of such horror" in Catherine's suspicions of the General and the death of his wife which serves as the taboo subject matter so often observed in the genre. 

    Despite all of this, however, Catherine is wrong. She embarrasses herself in front of Henry and flees to avoid his family's ire after being questioned. There is no murder to be solved and the Abbey is not haunted by the late Mrs. Tilney. Instead, Catherine has to confront herself and grow as a person. Luckily, it all works out in her favor, but for a moment there things looked bad for our young protagonist. 

    Catherine's growth is the best part of this novel, aside from the bits that made me laugh. As someone who also had an overactive imagination and certain expectations of adulthood as I was growing up, it was hard for me to not like Catherine. She's naive and a bad judge of character, but, as someone just setting foot into adulthood, those are acceptable faults that many can relate to having. Even though the audience can catch on pretty quickly that Catherine is making some pretty hefty assumptions that will cause her trouble, they're still more concerned over her well being and happiness. So much so that Henry's confrontation was the emotional peak of the novel. The shame and domestic horror of the situation eats both at Catherine and the reader. There is no escaping these feelings which capture the sublime in the most unique sense. This confrontation is emotional and tense, but also very beautiful to witness. 

    Overall, Northanger Abbey proved itself to be a fun and interesting read. I've read other Gothic novels like Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein, so seeing a completely different take on the genre was refreshing.