Overview
In this unit students will explore the gothic mode in both contemporary culture as well as in the historical sense. Through study of a range of films, literature, artforms, media and journalism as well as critical commentary, students will be given an opportunity to discuss and debate important issues of sexual identity, the relation between nature and culture, and popular pleasure through transgressive style.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Prerequisite: Minimum of 18 credit points
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 2 - 2021
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure – International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback – Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student feedback Self Reflection
Interesting scope of Gothic novels and films studied throughout the term and is overall a very enjoyable subject as it looks at interesting elements of what makes the genre.
Continue to provide an interesting scope of Gothic texts but reduce the burden by offering students a choice of a lower number of novels that must be read in full across the 12 weeks.
Feedback from Student feedback
Update to lectures and links on the Moodle site are required
Update lectures and links on the Moodle site in the Refresh of the unit for 2021 to make content more recent.
Feedback from Student feedback
Provision of free links to resources/texts
Where possible, links to resources should be provided for free through the CQU Library or other online sources.
- Discuss the Western Gothic as it has manifested itself across a range of cultural texts including film and literature from its inception in the eighteenth century up to the present.
- Discuss the Gothic's transgressive mode, particularly the way in which this problematises questions of gender and sexuality.
- Demonstrate further development of your analytical and written communication skills.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 25% | |||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 25% | |||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 50% | |||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||
| 5 - Team Work | |||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | |
| 1 - Written Assessment - 25% | ||||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 25% | ||||||||||
| 3 - Written Assessment - 50% | ||||||||||
Textbooks
Gothic: the new critical idiom
(2014)
Authors: Botting, F.
Routledge
London London , United Kingdom
ISBN: 9780415831727
Binding: Paperback
Handbook of Gothic literature
(1998)
Authors: Mulvey, L.
Palgrave Macmillan
Houndsville, Basingstoke Houndsville, Basingstoke , United Kingdom
ISBN: 9780333670699
Binding: Paperback
Perfume: the story of a murder
(2010)
Authors: Süskind, P.
Penguin
London London , United Kingdom
ISBN: 9780141041155
Binding: Paperback
The white hotel
(1999)
Authors: Thomas, D. M.
Orion Publishing Co.
London London , United Kingdom
ISBN: 9780753809259
Binding: Paperback
Zombie
(2009)
Authors: Oates, Joyce. C
Ecco Press/Harper Collins
New York New York , United States
ISBN: 9780061778919
Binding: Paperback
Additional Textbook Information
The 6 novels listed below will be studied up until to Week 7 with free online access provided on the unit Moodle site:
- Horace Walpole's The castle of Otranto (1764) (see: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/696/696-h/696-h.htm)
- William Beckford's The history of the Caliph Vathek (1786) (see: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/42401)
- Matthew Lewis's The monk (1795) (see: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/601/601-h/601-h.htm)
- Mary Shelley's Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus (1818) (see: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/84/84-h/84-h.htm)
- Emily Brontë's Wuthering Heights (1847) (see: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/768/768-h/768-h.htm)
- Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897) (see: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/345/345-h/345-h.htm)
The following 3 novels listed for purchase above will be studied from Weeks 8-10.
- D. M. Thomas's The White Hotel (1981).
- Patrick Süskind's Perfume: The Story of a Murder (2010)
- Joyce Carol Oates' Zombie (1996)
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Zoom account (Free)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
n.anae@cqu.edu.au
l.dodd@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Introduction: Explorations in the Gothic.
In this unit you will examine the essential Gothic themes of horror, death and romance and explore some of the major issues raised by the genre across a number of literary and filmic texts.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 1: Introduction
Mulvey-Roberts:
- Introduction
Events and Submissions/Topic
Botting, Fred 2014, Gothic (The new critical idiom), Routledge.
Mulvey-Roberts, Marie 1998, The Handbook to Gothic Literature, Routledge.
Module/Topic
The Castle of Otranto (1764), Horace Walpole
The earliest accepted Gothic novel, Walpole, a British Earl, was among the very first to incorporate the iconography of Romance woven into a story of horror, tragedy and romantic love.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 2: Gothic origins
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Walpole, Horace'
- 'Death'
Events and Submissions/Topic
A voluntary Zoom session may be scheduled before the due date for Assessment Item 1. Please check the Moodle unit site (see 'Assessment' block) for details.
This session will be recorded and available for download soon thereafter.
If you have questions about the assessment item, but cannot attend the Zoom session, please post your questions on the Assessment 1 Discussion Forum.
Module/Topic
Vathek (1786), William Beckford
Originally written in French, the narrative tells an elegantly-crafted story of sensuality, pride and violence when the ill-fated Caliph Vathek of Baghdad makes a pact with the Devil.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 3: Gothic forms
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Beckford, William'
- 'Horror'
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
The Monk (1796), Matthew Lewis
A story of scandalous, erotic obsession and the corruption of power. This novel was roundly condemned as blasphemous and depraved upon its original and anonymous publication.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 4: Gothic writing in the 1790s
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Lewis, Matthew'
- 'Occultism'
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Frankenstein (1818), Mary Shelley
The story of the Modern Prometheus is a tragedy to rival Shakespeare's best. Set during a period of great social change, the narrative follows the rise of scientific hubris and a tragic descent into madness and oblivion.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 5: Romantic transformations
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Shelley, Mary'
- 'Romanticism'
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Wuthering Heights (1874), Emily Bronte
Published the year before Bronte's death, initial reviews for the novel were divided. Not only were its depictions of mental and physical cruelty bleak and confronting, but it openly challenged the social mores of the day.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 6: Homely gothic
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Brontë, Emily'
- 'The Brontës'
Events and Submissions/Topic
A voluntary Zoom session may be scheduled before the due date for Assessment Item 2. Please check the Moodle unit site (see 'Assessment' block) for details.
This session will be recorded and available for download soon thereafter.
If you have questions about the assessment item, but cannot attend the Zoom session, please post your questions on the Assessment 2 Discussion Forum.
Module/Topic
Dracula (1897), Bram Stoker
Stoker was not the inventor of the vampyre, but he was the first to bring the notion of the undead into modern fictional narratives. A classic novel of the Gothic genre.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 7: Gothic returns in the 1890s
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Stoker, Bram'
- 'Female gothic'
- 'Vampire'
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
The White Hotel (1981), D.M. Thomas
Three narratives or movements examining the erotic fantasies of Lisa Erdman, an opera singer. The narratives overlap to form a chilling and horrific witnessing of the Holocaust in WWII. Short-listed for the Booker Prize.
Chapter
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'The sublime'
- 'The supernatural'
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Perfume (1985), Patrick Suskind
Originally published in German, this episodic narrative of the main character examines how the sense of smell can be taken to extremes, as well as the extremes of murder and moral antipathy that such divergence from a perceived 'normal' may cause.
Chapter
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'German gothic'
- 'Terror'
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Zombie (1995), Joyce Carol Oates
This text looks at the extreme and the gruesome in modern America, offering a diaristic experience of a young serial killer determined to acquire a zombie.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 8: Phamtomodernisms
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Gothic body'
- 'The grotesque'
Events and Submissions/Topic
A voluntary Zoom session may be scheduled before the due date for Assessment Item 3. Please check the Moodle unit site (see 'Assessment' block) for details.
This session will be recorded and available for download soon thereafter.
If you have questions about the assessment item, but cannot attend the Zoom session, please post your questions on the Assessment 3 Discussion Forum.
Module/Topic
The Unholy (1998) and The Club (1993)
The Gothic edifices in The Club and The Unholy serve as both a setting and a symbolic signifier. Labyrinths, dungeons, burial vaults and confined spaces illustrate the realm of the unconscious.
Chapter
Botting:
- Chapter 9: Consuming monsters
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Monstrosity'
- 'Gothic film'
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Night Train to Venice (1993)
Intrigue, darkness and sexual repression follow the central character in this film where iconic images of the Gothic abound, as do the Jungian archetypes of good and evil.
Chapter
Mulvey-Roberts:
- 'Gothic drama'
- 'The uncanny [Unheimlich]
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Written Assessment
Using the structure provided on the unit website (see Week 4 Topic Section), write a short paper on one (1) of the following topics:
-
1. How does The castle of Otranto construct the role of women?
or
2. To what extent can the forces of 'darkness' be said to defeat/undo the traditional moral framework at the end of Vathek?
or
3. To what extent does the Christian moral framework ultimately hold in The monk?
or
4. Students may opt to create their own essay topic on any of the above texts subject to the lecturer's approval.
Note: The specified word limit for this item (1500 - 1800 words). The word count is considered from the first word of the introduction to the last word of the conclusion. It excludes the cover page, abstract, contents page, reference page and appendices. It includes in-text references and direct quotations. The specified word limit for this item (1500 -1800 words) does not include the reference list. Also, there is a 10%+/- allowable variance over or under the stipulated word count.
Feel free to adopt the 5 part essay structure if you prefer. This format is a useful formula to assist new students in formatting an academic essay and is useful beyond the first year as well.
Week 5 Monday (9 Aug 2021) 11:45 pm AEST
Week 7 Monday (30 Aug 2021)
The following assessment criteria will be used for this assessment task:
- Does your short paper have a clearly articulated thesis (point of view) that can be considered as an answer to the question and the specific issue/s related to the chosen novel and its critical and theoretical location/s regards the Gothic that the question raises?
- Have key terms been clearly defined in a scholarly manner and is the central thesis of the short paper supported with clear arguments supported by relevant evidence from the text(s)?
- Has secondary criticism (at least 3 credible, scholarly sources) been used to support the arguments and does the essay show an understanding of the relevant critical theory regards the Gothic that is being called upon?
- Has care been taken with presentation, grammar, expression and spelling (i.e., has the essay been carefully edited)?
- Have all sources been properly acknowledged both in-text and in the reference list using the Harvard Author-date system (i.e., ideas, paraphrases as well as quotations)?
Please access the Assessment Criteria Matrix below for standards required for each grade.
Note: The specified word limit for this item (1500 -1800 words) does not include the reference list. Also, there is a 10%+/- allowable variance over or under the stipulated word count.
- Discuss the Western Gothic as it has manifested itself across a range of cultural texts including film and literature from its inception in the eighteenth century up to the present.
- Discuss the Gothic's transgressive mode, particularly the way in which this problematises questions of gender and sexuality.
- Demonstrate further development of your analytical and written communication skills.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
2 Written Assessment
Using the structure provided on the unit website (see Week 7 Topic Section), prepare a formal research paper on one (1) of the following topics:
- To what extent does Frankenstein concern itself with the question of the creator's responsibility to what it has created and in this regard how does the novel compare with the genesis creation story?
Wuthering Heights concern itself with sexual desires which lie outside of traditional social and moral prescriptions? - How far does Bram Stoker's Dracula position women as mediums through which the male characters are able to establish/ maintain homoerotic links?
- How does Thomas use the gothic in The white hotel to engage with Freudian constructions of sexuality?
- Alternatively, students may opt to create their own seminar topic on any of the above texts subject to the lecturer's approval.
Note: The specified word limit for this item (1500 - 1800 words). The word count is considered from the first word of the introduction to the last word of the conclusion. It excludes the cover page, abstract, contents page, reference page and appendices. It includes in-text references and direct quotations.
Click here to access Writing a Research Paper
Click here to access an Exemplar of Assessment Item 2 (Research Paper)
Week 9 Friday (17 Sept 2021) 11:45 pm AEST
Week 11 Friday (1 Oct 2021)
The following assessment criteria will be used for this assessment task:
- Does your essay have a clearly articulated thesis (point of view) that can be considered as a research topic critically examining the specific concern relating to the chosen novel/author/text and its critical and theoretical location/s regards the
Gothic that the question/s raised?
- Have key terms been clearly defined in a scholarly manner and is the central thesis of the research paper supported with clear arguments supported by relevant evidence from the text(s)?
- Has secondary criticism (at least 4 credible, scholarly sources) been used to support the arguments and does the research paper show an understanding of the relevant critical theory regards the Gothic that is being called upon?
- Has care been taken with presentation, grammar, expression and spelling (i.e., has the essay been carefully edited)?
- Have all sources been properly acknowledged both in-text and in the reference list using the Harvard Author-date system (i.e., ideas, paraphrases as well as quotations)?
Download a copy of the Assessment Criteria Matrix and CQU Harvard Referencing on the unit Moodle site.
Note: the word count does not include the reference list. A variation of 10%+/- the word count is allowable.
- Discuss the Western Gothic as it has manifested itself across a range of cultural texts including film and literature from its inception in the eighteenth century up to the present.
- Discuss the Gothic's transgressive mode, particularly the way in which this problematises questions of gender and sexuality.
- Demonstrate further development of your analytical and written communication skills.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Team Work
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
3 Written Assessment
Analytical Paper - 2000-2500 words
Marks: 50
Note: You cannot use set texts or films already used in a previous assessment item.
Using the structure provided in the Assessment 3 task description (also see Week 10 Topic Section), write an analytical essay on one (1) of the following topics:
- How does Suskind use the gothic in Perfume to interrogate the ways in which desire is socially controlled/regulated?
- What attitude/s to homosexuality does Oates display through her use of the gothic in Zombie?
- Choose a movie from any era (for instance The exorcist, The omen, Legion) which focuses on the intrusion of the satanic into the human realm. What aspects of the gothic does your chosen movie employ and for what purposes?
- Write a short story in the Gothic genre (please see link to the Tip Sheet on Moodle) and accompany it with a brief justification essay of the specific literary elements and techniques of the Gothic your story incorporates (e.g., themes, tone, characterisation, rising action, suspense, setting, point of view, figurative language, foreshadowing, simile, metaphor, metonym, etc.). If you choose this option, your story should be approximately 1800 words and your justification essay (supported with at least six [6] peer-reviewed, scholarly sources) in the region of 700 words.
- Students may consult with the lecturer to create their own analytical topic for any of the texts studied during the term.
Click here to view Tips on writing your Gothic short story and justification essay
Week 12 Thursday (7 Oct 2021) 11:45 pm AEST
Exam Week Thursday (21 Oct 2021)
The following assessment criteria will be used for this assessment task:
- Does your essay have a clearly articulated thesis (point of view) that can be considered as a research topic critically examining the specific concern relating to the chosen novel/author/text/your short story and its critical and theoretical location/s regards the Gothic that the question/s raised?
- Have key terms been clearly defined in a scholarly manner and is the central thesis of the essay supported with clear arguments supported by relevant evidence from the text(s)/your short story?
- Has secondary criticism (at least 6 credible, scholarly sources) been used to support the arguments and does the essay/your short story show an understanding of the relevant critical theory regards the Gothic that is being called upon?
- Has care been taken with presentation, grammar, expression and spelling (i.e., has the essay been carefully edited)?
- Have all sources been properly acknowledged both in-text and in the reference list using the Harvard Author-date system (i.e., ideas, paraphrases as well as quotations)?
- Discuss the Western Gothic as it has manifested itself across a range of cultural texts including film and literature from its inception in the eighteenth century up to the present.
- Discuss the Gothic's transgressive mode, particularly the way in which this problematises questions of gender and sexuality.
- Demonstrate further development of your analytical and written communication skills.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
