Reading Journal 2, Week 3

Wrapped in the constraints of the gothic horror, these stories presented Italy as more of an element of atmosphere than an actual setting—rather, the settings functioned rather diminutively, and instead of pulling on Italy’s stereotypes for allure, operated on such a level that the bare facts of one particular environment alone did all the work in which Italy and Italy’s connotation usually create. For example, in Rappacini’s Daughter, majority of the story takes place in the ethereal and almost haunting location of the garden—a place not generally associated with a source of horror, but in its description of the almost unnatural beauty and allure of the plants, creates a sort of self-sufficient foreboding not supplied by the brief mentioning of Padua (primarily in the beginning of the piece). Of course, there is the idea that only these sorts of things happen in crazy, overtly passionate countries (i.e. Italy), but the lack of foreign attitudes and architectures seems to suggest an universality to the plot. After all, the garden is a place created by the constructs of science rather than the power of Italy’s history. As for Poe’s brief Cask of Amontillado, Italy seems to work only as an anchor—in fact, I am not thoroughly convinced the story even took place in Italy. Though the opening hints at an Italian setting, especially in addition to the continual mentioning of the Italian vintage wines, there really is no definitive descriptors save for the “Italian-ish” sounding names to leave me settled and confident.