Outside a dark creepy and terrifying castle, a endless rain was falling , the infernal thunder was rumbling, darkness there and nothing more. The castle seemed to be sinister. I, Hannah was seventeen ans I had organized a mask ball with high school mates. All the girls from my Sunday-school class were coming, and four of the best have boys as well.

      The atmosphere in the castle was really strange, strange and strange. The corridor was narrow and oppressive, the floor creaked and we had a humid sensation.

      I was dressind in a pink summer dress when suddenly I thought about Thomas Henry Smithson and Ralph Wellings. Thomas was conscientious, lumberingly polite for anything whereas Ralph, who was a strange boy, was a little, fat and wild. I had a bad foreboding.

      I ran out of the room, worried to look for my mother. When she crossed into the corridor, the light switched off/on, off/on, off/on, off/on... I found that strange, strange, strange... I entered my mum's room. Mum was behind the window and she was looking at the gloomy weather. I approached her and took her hand but she didn't move anymore, anymore...and anymore. Suddenly she clapped her hands and she pushed a frightening howling. There was a furious, tremendous,gigantic flash of lightning. I was so surprised that I jumped. My eyes was looked into the miroir. A scary vision appeared then I fell back unconscious.

    Later, I woke up in a hospital bed. The room was spoiled and very dusty and a foul smell all around. When I looked in there was the room, I saw an unknown woman who called me « Grandma ».

Question: Say in what way The Masque of the Red Death  is " gothic "  ?

Firstly, this short story is " gothic " because the action takes place in an abbey. Furthermore, in the text is writes " Gothic window looked out upon a corridor... " .

Then, this short story is " gothic " because there is the presence of an atmosphere of mystery and suspense. Indeed, with the eccentric castle of Prince Prospero and his seven exceptionnel rooms. To my mind, it plays a symbolic role but more particularly " the black chamber ". Unlike to others rooms where the color of the windows correspond to the decoration of the room, in it's completely different. In fact, the panes were scarlet (a deep blood color) and her tapestries was black velvet. 

Moreover, The Masque of the Red Death is " gothic " because there is the presence of Supernatural but also inexplicable events. Suddenly, the apparition of THE "RED DEATH"- spectral image. As soon as this suspect "character" appeared he created the panic in the crowd. The whole assembly ignored Who was it and why he beared a fancy dress as strange...

( This one wear a strange costume :

- a mask ( impression= countenance of a stiffened corpse )

- he was shrouded from head to foot in the habiliments of the grave

We can notice that his costume is in link with the first theme because this appearance was no orinary : so, mystery and suspense. )

To conclude, Edgar Allan Poe has made this short story "Gothic" because it adopt a dark atmosphere, suspense in his writing but also worrying and frightening elements. Furthermore, there is a lot of description and rich and varied vocabulary.

                          Problématique : ( 2nd dossier )

             “Rewriting - Pastiche – Parody :    How do literary works echo one another? »”

                              Problématique ( 1er Dossier )

               "Love between two people a necessary confontation with the outside word ?"

                                                           THE FIFTH CHILD by Doris Lessing                   

The Fifth Child is a novel which was written by the British writer Doris Lessing. It was published for the first time in the United Kingdom in 1988. Moreover, it was translated into a number of languages. 

Summary:

Harriet and David are a model couple.
Harriet waits for the fifth time is pregnant. However, her pregnancy will not be the same as those of previous times. Indeed, tiredness, anger and pain will be especially so daily.
Later the baby is born (Ben) if he is strangely large, is aggressive and causes the reject of other children of David and Harriet. Despite, his difference Harriet protects and love has its way. Gradually the family will "dissolve", each child will leave home, David will get less and less his home after work ...
Throughout his novel, Doris Lessing will we exposed a societal problem: the disability ( handicapped person ). The fear of difference.