The Mysterious Mother
E11159
The Mysterious Mother is a 1768 Gothic verse drama by Horace Walpole that explores dark themes of incest, guilt, and religious anxiety within an aristocratic family.
Statements (46)
| Predicate | Object |
|---|---|
| instanceOf |
Gothic verse drama
→
literary work → play → |
| associatedWithAuthor |
Strawberry Hill circle
→
|
| author |
Horace Walpole
→
|
| countryOfOrigin |
Kingdom of Great Britain
→
|
| criticalReception |
considered too shocking for frequent performance in the 18th century
→
|
| dateWritten |
1768
→
|
| exploresTheme |
aristocratic decadence
→
family secrets → guilt → incest → religious anxiety → sin → |
| form |
verse drama
→
|
| genre |
Gothic literature
→
tragedy → |
| hasMoralFocus |
consequences of hidden sin
→
spiritual terror within the family → |
| hasNotableCharacter |
Adelaide
→
Countess of Narbonne → Edmund → Father Benedict → |
| hasStructure |
five acts
→
|
| hasTheme |
Catholicism and confession
→
hereditary curse → secrecy and revelation → suicide and sacrifice → |
| influencedBy |
tragedy of family guilt
→
|
| language |
English
→
|
| literaryForm |
blank verse
→
|
| literaryPeriod |
Augustan and early Romantic transition
→
|
| literarySignificance |
important early example of Gothic drama
→
|
| medium |
theatre
→
|
| movement |
early Gothic
→
|
| notedFor |
extreme treatment of incest theme
→
religious and psychological horror → |
| periodOfWork |
18th century
→
|
| relatedWorkByAuthor |
The Castle of Otranto
→
|
| settingClassContext |
aristocratic family
→
|
| settingLocation |
France
→
Narbonne → |
| subjectMatter |
conflict between religious duty and personal guilt
→
lifelong remorse → unwitting incest between mother and son → |
| timeOfAction |
late Middle Ages
→
|
Referenced by (1)
| Subject (surface form when different) | Predicate |
|---|---|
|
Horace Walpole
→
|
notableWork |