Dickens once called her his 'darling Scheherazade,' so of course I had to check out Elizabeth Gaskell's "Gothic Tales." Overshadowed in today's literature classes by her contemporaries George Eliot and the Bronte sisters, Gaskell was a popular author in her time. This brilliant collection shows the reason. Reading the title, I was expecting, "I see dead people" stuff layered with poetic nineteenth-century language. The first story, "The Old Nurse's Tale," does deal with that- a creepy little girl haunting the moors (Cathy Earnshaw, anyone?). But the tales are 'Gothic' in that they deal with the dark side of human nature more than the supernatural. Gaskell with her intense, beautiful prose, explores the themes of oppression, hatred, and general human cruelty in this collection. At times, the reading gets a bit weighed down with her liberal use of local dialects and, for the stories taking place in the 17th and 18th centuries, I kept getting a headache weeding through the 'thees' and 'thous.' But that's minor compared to the impact these tales had on me- Summary of my favorites as follows: Lois the Witch- this is the most disturbing and powerful of the stories- taking place in Salem during witch-hunt time, the story follows the main character as she's accused of withcraft in a town that's teeming with Puritan zealotism and sexual repression, the two things that give rise to the witchcraft hysteria. In a way, I was saddened to realize that this story still resonates today, as every generation has its own witch hunts. The Poor Clare- This story does have a bit more of a supernatural feel to it- a doppelganger shows up as a result of a curse (go to Wikipedia to look up the word). Interesting stuff. The story had to do more with the theme of sin and salvation, and extreme ascetism as a cure for bad deeds. I can't say I necessarily agree with that remedy, but hey, Gaskell was a minister's wife. The Grey Woman- Taking place around the French Revolution, the story follows Anna, the German daughter of a miller, when she marries, as she calls him, "a beautiful and effeminate Frenchman." This one turns into a truly terrifying tale when we find out the Frenchman's secret and his danger to Anna. I think this tale is one that especially captures marriage of earlier centuries as essential traps for women. The Doom of the Griffiths- Can a curse peter down through the generations? I took this one as Gaskell's take on the story of Oedipus and various Greek tragedies. If you can brave through the sometimes heavy-handed language, I think this collection of tales is one that must be on everyone's "Classic Lit" bookshelf.
Elizabeth Gaskell is a name that never really strikes much confidence in me. Ever since I had to read North & South for one of my English Literature courses at university, I've shied away from any of her other works because I hated it so much (an uncommon opinion on the internet it seems). However, anything with 'Gothic' in the title usually does draw me in, and I had bought this book from one of my secondary reading lists, so decided I might as well give Gaskell another go.I'm glad that I put in the time and effort to read through this collection of short stories, because I enjoyed them a lot more than my previous venture into Gaskell's work. Although not all of the stories were to my taste, there was plenty here to pique my interest. I particularly enjoyed The Old Nurse's Story, Lois the Witch and The Grey Woman, particularly the latter which I was surprised at in terms of the way the story unfolded (which I felt to be quite daring).There were a myriad of topics approached in this collection, everything from sexual freedom and expression to murder to theft to the Salem witch trials, even local legends. If you as a reader like any of these things and are, like me, drawn to the term 'Gothic' in a book, then there will definitely be something in it for you.However, I do find Gaskell's writing style to be a little stodgy and difficult to get through, something I don't usually have much of an issue with in relation to the literature of the Victorian era. This made it difficult for me to pick the book up after periods of putting it down, hence the reason it took so long to finish.I'm glad I did get around to this book though as there were some gems within, and maybe I won't give up on Gaskell just yet.
What do You think about Gothic Tales (2001)?
I didn't finish all of the stories in this collection, but enough to consider it read (I skipped around). The back of the book comments on how its a study of the suffering of women (often at the hands of men), and this is a fair-enough description. Some of the stories are incredibly powerful, others bogged down in ornate language and dull plots. At least one, though, made me catch my breath and worry about falling asleep. And that, for a horror story almost 200 years old, is pretty much a success.
—Christie
My first Exposure to Elizabeth Gaskell was the show Cranford, which I followed up with the show Wives and Daughters. I bought this book because it had that wonderful word Gothic in the title. I don't know what it is about gothic tales that fascinate and draw me so.Maybe it's all those romantic tales you read as a child. Maybe it's those Scooby Doo episodes where there's some poor normal (but beautiful) girl that lives in a haunted house or with an overbearing (but incredibly wealthy) relative. I don't know.This collection of tales had stories that had an X-Files supernatural feel to them; others that remind you of Jane Eyre; and even one superb story that brings the Salem witch trials to life. Mrs. Gaskell takes you from Yorkshire to Sussex to pre-Revolutionary Massachusetts to Bavaria. These are well worth effort and I really enjoyed them.
—Kirsten *Dogs Welcome - People Tolerated"
This collection includes:1.tDisappearances2.tThe Old Nurse’s Story3.tThe Squire’s Story4.tThe Poor Clare5.tThe Doom of the Griffiths6.tLois the Witch7.tThe Crooked Branch8.tCurious, If True9.tThe Grey Woman The first two stories were fine but didn’t grip me particularly, and Curious, If True was an unusual tale about a party attended by fairy tale characters. But I enjoyed the remaining stories very much, particularly The Doom of the Griffiths, and possibly my favourite, Lois the Witch.
—Mrsgaskell
