Ann Radcliffe
1764-1823
THE MYSTERIES OF UDOLPHO
(1794)
Though the deep
valleys between these mountains were, for the most part, clothed with pines,
sometimes an abrupt[1] opening
presented a perspective of only barren rocks, with a cataract[2]
flashing from their summit among broken cliffs[3],
till its waters, reaching the bottom, foamed along with unceasing fury; and
sometimes pastoral scenes exhibited their “green delights” in the narrow vales,
smiling amid surrounding horror. There herds and flocks of goats and sheep,
browsing under the shade of hanging woods, and the shepherd’s little cabin,
reared[4]
on the margin of a clear stream, presented a sweet picture of repose.
Wild and
romantic as were these scenes, their character had far less of the sublime, than
had those of the Alps, which guard the entrance of Italy. Emily was often
elevated, but seldom felt those emotions of indescribable awe[5]
which she had so continuously experienced , in her passage over the Alps.
Towards the close of day, the road wound
into a deep valley. Mountains, whose shaggy steeps appeared to be inaccessible,
almost surrounded it. To the east, a vista opened, that exhibited the Apennines
in their darkest horrors, and the long perspective of retiring summits, rising over each other, their ridges covered
with pines, exhibited a stronger image of grandeur, than any that Emily had yet
seen. The sun had just sunk below the top of the mountains she was descending,
whose long shadow stretched athwart the valley, but his sloping rays, shooting
through an opening of the cliffs, touched with a yellow gleam the summits of
the forest, that hung upon the opposite steeps, and streamed in full splendour
upon the towers and battlements of a castle, that spread its extensive ramparts
along the brow of a precipice above. The splendour of these illuminated objects
was heightened by the contrasted shade, which involved the valley below.
“There” said
Montoni, speaking for the first time in several hours “is Udolpho.”
Emily gazed
with melancholy awe upon the castle, which she understood to be Montoni’s; for,
though it was now lighted up by the setting sun, the gothic greatness of its
features, and its mouldering walls of dark grey stone, rendered it a gloomy and
sublime object. As she gazed, the light died away on its walls, leaving a
melancholy purple tint, which spread deeper and deeper, as the thin vapour
crept up the mountain, while the battlements above were still tipped with
splendour: From those too, the rays son faded, and the whole edifice was invested
with the solemn duskiness of evening. Silent, lonely and sublime, it seemed to
stand the sovereign of the scene, and to frown defiance on all, who dared to
invade its solitary reign. As the twilight deepened, its features became more
awful in obscurity, and Emily continued to gaze, till its clustering towers
were alone seen, rising over the tops of the woods, beneath whose thick shade
the carriages soon after began to ascend.
The extent and
darkness of these tall woods awakened terrific images in her mind, and she
almost expected to see banditti start up from under the trees. At length the
carriages emerged upon a heathy[6]
rock, and soon after, reached the castle gates, where the deep tone of the
portal bell, which was truck upon to give the notice of their arrival,
increased the fearful emotions that had assailed Emily. While they waited till
the servant within should come to open the gates, she anxiously surveyed the
edifice. But the gloom that overspread it, allowed her to distinguish little
more than a apart of its outline, with the massy walls of the ramparts, and to
know that it was vast, ancient and dreary.
From the parts
she saw, she judged of the heavy strength and extent of the whole. The gateway
before her, leading into the courts, was of gigantic size, and was defended by
two round towers, crowned by overhanging turrets, embattled[7],
where, instead of banners, now waved long grass and wild plants, that had taken
root among the mouldering stones, and which seemed to sigh, as the breeze
rolled past, over the desolation around them. The towers were united by a
curtain, pierced and embattled also, below which appeared the pointed arch of a
huge portcullis, surmounting the gates: from these the walls of the ramparts
extended to other towers, overlooking the precipice, whose shattered outline,
appearing on agleam, that lingered in the west, told of the ravages of war. –
Beyond these all was lost in the obscurity of evening.
While Emily
gazed with awe upon the scene, footsteps were herd within the gates, and the
undrawing of bolts; after which an ancient servant of the castle appeared,
forcing back the huge folds of the portal, to admit his lord. As the
carriage-wheels rolled heavily under the portcullis, Emily’s heart sunk, and
she seemed, as if she was going into her prison: the gloomy court, into which
she passed, served to confirm the idea, and her imagination, ever awake to
circumstance, suggested even more terrors, than her reason could justify.
(from The Mysteries of Udolpho, chapter V, vol. 2)
Setting, character, plot,
CONTENTS
- summarize in five lines the contents of the passage.
- Many artists and painters during the romantic age show a new, deep interest in nature. This new interest can be summarised in the picturesque vogue and in the sublime. Which of them is present here? Justify.
- The setting plays an important part in the atmosphere of the Gothic Novel
- How is nature presented?
- What is the role of nature in the passage?
- There is a great attention to nature in the gothic novels and throughout the romantic age. What aspects of nature are emphasised in this passage? Are they functional to the story? Why?
- The landscape, as seen by the heroine Emily, is the protagonist of this excerpt; two aspects of the landscape can bee seen. What are they? Which one is dominant? Why?
- What relationship can you see between nature and the human protagonist? What is the effect upon the reader?
- What are Emily’s feelings and emotions in her perception of nature.
- The reader may be brought to think that nature is a kind of mirror of Emily’s psychological situation. Can you find any parts in the text which may support this idea?
- Kant says that the sublime lies not in the object of perception but in the subject. Does the passage reinforce this idea or not? Why?
- How would you describe the general atmosphere of the passage?
- Light and darkness alternate in the description of landscape. Can they acquire a symbolic meaning?
- The use of language and vocabulary is fundamental in the creation of an atmosphere. Can you give examples from the text?
- Many words in the passage suggest the idea of the human mind which succumbs in the effort to grasp the immensity of nature. Can you find examples in the text?
- The narrator uses the words romantic, wild and sublime : have they got a special relation in your opinion?
- There is in the text an ambivalent, ambiguous portrayal of nature, how can you justify that?
- What idea of the sublime is dominant in the passage?
- Edmund Burke wrote that the sublime is a mixture of terror and pleasure. Is that true for Emily? Is that true for the reader also? Give reasons.
- Kant
distinguishes between matematic and dynamic aspects of the
sublime referring to size and power
- Imagination and reason have an important role in the psychology of the main character. What is their role in the
- Is nature presented by the narrator or through Emily’s eyes? Why? Give examples. What is the effect upon the reader?
BACKGROUND
SETTING
TIME
What moment of the day
is described in the passage? Has it got any meaning?
SETTING AND CHARACTER
CHARACTER
ATMOSPHERE
LANGUAGE
THEMES
THEMES
CULTURAL BACKGROUND
POINT OF VIEW
Nessun commento:
Posta un commento