By the end of the semester, students will complete a Gothic Challenge. These exercises urge students to connect what we have discussed in class to their lives. Responses should be between 1.5-2.5 pages double spaced. Challenges are evaluated on the engagement with course ideas, student's ability to provide a thoughtful, synthetic response to the challenge’s questions, and on general writing mechanics. Additionally, there will be three, short, informal check-ins related to the assignment throughout the semester.
Check-in #1: On your blog, write which challenge you intend to work on in the coming weeks and how you plan to complete the assignment. In addition, justify/analyze/rationalize why you chose the specific challenge to respond to.
Check-in #2: Update on the progress of your challenge on your blog in the form of a memo. Either upload the text or provide a link to the document on your blog.
Check-in #3: After you complete your challenge, reflect on the process of your experience writing for this specific genre. How did completing the chosen challenge enhance your understanding of Gothic representations? What difficulties or issues did you have during the writing process?
Challenges
1. Gothic Spaces
Describe a place in which you actively participate in and can locate elements of the Gothic within. For example, you may locate Gothic tropes in an atmosphere of mystery or suspense; an unnerving feeling of fear or dread; experienced disturbing omens, portents, or visions; witnessed supernatural, or otherwise inexplicable events. After locating the space, describe the space and the events that occurred. You might explore an experience at a cosplay event, a trip to Gothic location (such as a castle), or a visit to Weeki Wachee or Haile Plantation. Consider what exactly it is about the environment or your experience that stimulates specific feelings. Be as descriptive as possible.
2. Music Production
This challenge has two separate questions you can choose to respond to. You do not need to complete both.
A. Choose a musician or band that you feel is described in terms of her/his/their relationship to the Gothic or Gothic ideologies. How does the Gothic factor into her/his/their characterization? To their identity? Are issues like horror, the supernatural, anger, or sorrow central to the production of music (i.e. are these phenomenons integral to lyrical content, visual rhetoric, musical tone, etc.)? Write a 1-2 page analysis of how Gothic representations in music are used to sell or depict certain musical genres, artists, or ideas.
B. Craft your own musical production that contains identifiable Gothic themes. In other words, you will be creating your own, original song which you will need to record. You are free to find outside Gothic music to remix, though you are also able to create your own beats and chords, but you must create your own lyrical content. So, you might produce your own rap narrative, spoken word poetry, etc. An example of what your final product might look/sound like is Angel Haze's remix of Kanye West's "Say What's Real." Click here for the link (!!there may be triggering ideas expressed in the song, so beware before you listen to it!!) Since you will be creating a secondary piece of text for this assignment, you will only be required to write a 1 page response.
This challenge has two separate questions you can choose to respond to. You do not need to complete both.
A. Choose a musician or band that you feel is described in terms of her/his/their relationship to the Gothic or Gothic ideologies. How does the Gothic factor into her/his/their characterization? To their identity? Are issues like horror, the supernatural, anger, or sorrow central to the production of music (i.e. are these phenomenons integral to lyrical content, visual rhetoric, musical tone, etc.)? Write a 1-2 page analysis of how Gothic representations in music are used to sell or depict certain musical genres, artists, or ideas.
B. Craft your own musical production that contains identifiable Gothic themes. In other words, you will be creating your own, original song which you will need to record. You are free to find outside Gothic music to remix, though you are also able to create your own beats and chords, but you must create your own lyrical content. So, you might produce your own rap narrative, spoken word poetry, etc. An example of what your final product might look/sound like is Angel Haze's remix of Kanye West's "Say What's Real." Click here for the link (!!there may be triggering ideas expressed in the song, so beware before you listen to it!!) Since you will be creating a secondary piece of text for this assignment, you will only be required to write a 1 page response.
3. Gothic on the Tube
Choose a film or television show in which you feel a specific Gothic figure (e.g. tyrannical male, hapless female, spirits/ghosts, zombies, mermaids, monsters, hero with secrets, witches, gypsies, "mad" woman, vampires, werewolves, fairies) is present. Briefly describe the figure and then explain how that figure is represented in the respective visual medium. Why is/was this character or set of characters that are considered "Gothic" also considered as horrific, terrifying, scary, hectic, spooky, or cruel? What might this say about the interaction between cultures, times, places, crime, normativity, and/or authoritative voices? How can we compare a Gothic portrayal of men as tyrannical to women as hapless, as discussed in our classes? Why are some individuals Gothicized and others are not?
Choose a film or television show in which you feel a specific Gothic figure (e.g. tyrannical male, hapless female, spirits/ghosts, zombies, mermaids, monsters, hero with secrets, witches, gypsies, "mad" woman, vampires, werewolves, fairies) is present. Briefly describe the figure and then explain how that figure is represented in the respective visual medium. Why is/was this character or set of characters that are considered "Gothic" also considered as horrific, terrifying, scary, hectic, spooky, or cruel? What might this say about the interaction between cultures, times, places, crime, normativity, and/or authoritative voices? How can we compare a Gothic portrayal of men as tyrannical to women as hapless, as discussed in our classes? Why are some individuals Gothicized and others are not?
4. Aesthetic Multimodality
This challenge has two separate questions you can choose to respond to. You do not need to complete both.
A. Remix a piece of Gothic art: Choosing this challenge means you will find a specific piece of art work that may not be immediately recognized as Gothic, but you think could be. Then, remix that painting, film, song, etc. into a Gothic representation. In other words, you would be taking a text and molding it to fit a specific set of criteria in order for it to be represented as a piece of Gothic text. It is possible to use this outlet as a creative endeavor; for example, remix the lyrics in Pharrell Williams' "Happy" and record it into Gothic text. In your response, first explain the logic behind your decisions of altering aesthetics to make the overall product appear Gothic. You might also answer whether or not the act of manipulating objects is Gothic in and of itself. Provide a link, scan, or audio file attachment to the electronic version of this assignment with your written response. Since you will be creating a secondary piece of text for this assignment, you will only be required to write a 1 page response.
B. Analyze remixed versions of Gothic art: This challenge requires some research on the Internet. Find a piece of artwork (or multiple pieces!) that has been redesigned, re-conceived, or remixed and is now perceived as a representation of the Gothic. Examples can easily be located on many fan fiction websites and blogs. Then, determine the aesthetic elements that were altered and the causal effects these remixes have on the aesthetic value of the original piece. In other words, why were specific elements changed or left unchanged? How and why are those altered elements perceived as Gothic? What are the political consequences of changing a text into a Gothic representation?
5. Literary Analysis
First, read one of the following American short stories, poems, and chapters.
A. The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
B. The Goopherd Grapevine by Charles Chesnutt
C. Flight to Canada by Ishmael Reed
D. Somebody Blew Up America by Amiri Baraka
E. My Father Is A Retired Magician by Ntozake Shange
F. "I started early, took my dog" by Emily Dickinson
G. Battle Royal by Ralph Ellison
H. Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams by Sylvia Plath
I. The Trespasser by Bonnie Jo Campbell
A literary analysis does (amongst many other objectives) the following: presents a specific claim and uses evidence from a literary text to support that claim. This challenge asks you to present a claim about one of the above texts and how it represents (or doesn't represent) the Gothic. Use this claim as your base and include an argument using textual evidence to determine the ways that the poem/short story/chapter represents the Gothic.
First, read one of the following American short stories, poems, and chapters.
A. The Yellow Wall-Paper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
B. The Goopherd Grapevine by Charles Chesnutt
C. Flight to Canada by Ishmael Reed
D. Somebody Blew Up America by Amiri Baraka
E. My Father Is A Retired Magician by Ntozake Shange
F. "I started early, took my dog" by Emily Dickinson
G. Battle Royal by Ralph Ellison
H. Johnny Panic and the Bible of Dreams by Sylvia Plath
I. The Trespasser by Bonnie Jo Campbell
A literary analysis does (amongst many other objectives) the following: presents a specific claim and uses evidence from a literary text to support that claim. This challenge asks you to present a claim about one of the above texts and how it represents (or doesn't represent) the Gothic. Use this claim as your base and include an argument using textual evidence to determine the ways that the poem/short story/chapter represents the Gothic.
6. Scandals and Tabloids
Find a contemporary and local (i.e. Florida or Gainesville) political, celebrity, or other cultural text that you consider a "scandal." Discuss the event or phenomenon by describing the people involved and how the Gothic played an important role in its representation. Discuss how individual traits (e.g. gender, religion, class, etc.) motivates popular understandings of "scandal." For instance, what types of rhetoric surrounded the case and what did it demonstrate about the actors involved? How did the gender(s) of the individual(s) involved contribute to popular understanding of the event? Did media outlets or legal representatives attempt to use information about a person to "prove" something? One example might be the media portrayal of the Benghazi/Hilary Clinton scandal.
7. Advertising in the South
Southern Gothic is a specific genre that exists in the American south. Common themes of Southern Gothic include: folklore, magic, gender stereotypes, poverty, aristocracy, and slavery. Representations of the Southern Gothic can be located in film and television (e.g. Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained, American Horror Story: Coven), literature (e.g. The Witching Hour, Sookie Stackhouse series, novels by William Faulkner), and a variety of other mediums. For this challenge, you will discuss and analyze the effects of advertising Southern Gothic. You should analyze the ways in which the text portrays Southern Gothic and is subsequently consumed by audience members.
8. Glamorize Your Gothic
Write a personal narrative in 1-2 pages on some aspect, event, or phenomenon that has happened or is currently happening in your life that you would consider Gothic. In your response, include details of purpose, methodology, and analysis of Gothic tropes and how they are represented in your narrative. Since you will be creating a secondary piece of text for this assignment, you will only be required to write a 1 page response.
8. Glamorize Your Gothic
Write a personal narrative in 1-2 pages on some aspect, event, or phenomenon that has happened or is currently happening in your life that you would consider Gothic. In your response, include details of purpose, methodology, and analysis of Gothic tropes and how they are represented in your narrative. Since you will be creating a secondary piece of text for this assignment, you will only be required to write a 1 page response.
9. Dark Disney
First, read one of the following classic fairy tales:
A. Cinderella
B. Peter Pan (only read 1-2 chapters)
C. The Little Mermaid
D. Sleeping Beauty
E. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
F. The Princess and the Frog
G. Alice in Wonderland (only read 1-2 chapters)
H. Aladdin
I. Rapunzel
Then, watch or reacquaint yourself with the Disney version of your chosen fairy tale. In your response, compare and contrast the two versions of the story by asking some of the following questions. What role does sexuality play in representing the Gothic? What types of cultural appropriation are ignored, valued, or questioned in Gothic representations? Which social constructs (e.g. race, gender) are depicted in these representations and do they correspond throughout each text? What considerations can you determine were made across the two genres (literature and film) of the Gothic?
First, read one of the following classic fairy tales:
A. Cinderella
B. Peter Pan (only read 1-2 chapters)
C. The Little Mermaid
D. Sleeping Beauty
E. Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
F. The Princess and the Frog
G. Alice in Wonderland (only read 1-2 chapters)
H. Aladdin
I. Rapunzel
Then, watch or reacquaint yourself with the Disney version of your chosen fairy tale. In your response, compare and contrast the two versions of the story by asking some of the following questions. What role does sexuality play in representing the Gothic? What types of cultural appropriation are ignored, valued, or questioned in Gothic representations? Which social constructs (e.g. race, gender) are depicted in these representations and do they correspond throughout each text? What considerations can you determine were made across the two genres (literature and film) of the Gothic?
10.