2007/01/01 by Rebecca Janicker · 9 citations
Social Sciences · Arts and Humanities · #Gothic Literature and Media Analysis #Modern American Literature Studies #Crime and Detective Fiction Studies #Narrative #Space (punctuation) #Literature #Atmosphere (unit) #Focus (optics) #History #Aesthetics #Art #Philosophy #Geography #Linguistics
paper · doi:10.3828/extr.2007.48.1.6
published in Extrapolation 48(1), 56-72 (Liverpool University Press)
openalex publication_date 2007/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
Work on regionalist writers has emphasised the use of a specified geographical location and the deep authorial, emotional connection to that region--its physical environment, local characteristics, customs and idiosyncrasies (Inness and Royer, 1997: 4). Barton Levi St. Armand (1977) has described H. P. Lovecraft as a writer of weird fiction whose work takes on such local-color significance because of its use of specific locales in developing an atmosphere of malevolence (38). Alan Lloyd-Smith (2004), writing on modern adaptations of American Gothic fiction, has observed that some of Lovecraft's work could usefully be compared to William Faulkner's Southern Gothic in terms of their mutual focus on local customs and mindsets (117). I seek to explore these ideas more fully by directly examining two of Lovecraft's stories within a regionalist framework, arguing that the intricate blending of a personal experience of these real-life locations with a detailed fictional geography is fundamental to the success of his work. It supplies a degree of authenticity conducive to sustaining a convincing supernatural narrative.