ABSTRACT：Gothic literature is a genre of romanticism literature. It originated in England in the 18th century and became more popular in the 19th. The effect of Gothic fiction offers a pleasing sort of terror. The Bronte sister, Charlotte, Emily and Anne were all well known poets and novelists. Their works expressed woman's entrapment within domestic space and subjection to patriarchal authority, the transgressive and dangerous attempts to subvert and escape such restriction. Many Gothic factors can be found in their novels like The Wuthering Heights, and that enriched the novels’ art.

This dissertation consists five parts including introduction and conclusion. The first part gives a brief introduction to the dissertation including the research methods and the focus of the research. Then the literature review. The main content is pided into two chapters. The first chapter reviews the history of Gothic literature, including its origin and development. Some other Gothic novelists and their works are introduced in this part. The second chapter focuses on the Gothic elements in works. I’ll analyze the elements in their works from three angles: Gothic plots, narration and characterization. Conclusion mainly summarizes the whole content and expresses the Gothic elements’ significance in their works.

The Gothic elements in the Bronte sisters’ novels are not similar to those in traditional novels. They used the elements in the view of female writers at that age. This paper has given a basic research of Bronte sisters’ works and to study their unique connotation and value.

Keywords: The Bronte sisters; Gothic literature; British literature; romanticism

摘  要：哥特文学起源于18世纪的英国，这种题材的小说一经发表就迅速发展，并在19世纪达到鼎盛。哥特文学中常包含恐怖、神秘、超自然的元素，并借此给人带来愉悦的阅读体验。勃朗特姐妹：夏洛蒂、艾米丽和安妮是十九世纪著名的文学家。他们的作品展现了在男权社会中女性的挣扎和对独立自由的渴望。哥特元素常被运用在勃朗特姐妹的作品中，用以展现他们独特的文学魅力。

论文共分为五个部分。在前言中，简单介绍了论文应用的研究方法和研究目的。接着是文献综述。论文主体部分可以分为两个部分。第一部分主要介绍了哥特文学的历史，包括它的起源和发展。此外还介绍了一些代表性的哥特文学作家和他们的作品。第二部分着重介绍勃朗特姐妹作品中的哥特元素，主要从三个角度来分析：哥特式情节、哥特式叙述和哥特式人物塑造。结语总结全文并简单表述了哥特因素在勃朗特姐妹作品中的重要作用和意义。

勃朗特姐妹对哥特元素的应用与许多传统哥特作家不同，他们运用哥特因素表达了对封建道德的批判。这篇论文是对勃朗特姐妹作品中独特的内涵和价值观的基础研究。

关键词：勃朗特姐妹；哥特文学；英国文学；浪漫主义

Table of Contents

1 Introduction 1

2 Literature Review 2

2.1 Studies on Bronte Sisters’ Works 2

2.2 Studies on Gothic Literature 4

3 Gothic Literature 5

3.1 Gothic Literature and Its Origin 5

3.2 The Development of Gothic Literature 6

3.3 The Representative Writers and Their Works 7

4 Gothic Elements in the Bronte Sisters’ Works 8

4.1 Plots 8

4.2 Narration 10

4.3 Characterization 12

5 Conclusion 13

References 15

A Study of the Gothic Elements in the Bronte Sisters' Works

1 Introduction

Being a child in Bronte family was never easy. They used to have six children. Mrs. Bronte was sick all the time, the children dare not to play, and the noise would bother their mother. The Bronte children either read books in their study or went for a walk in the moor near their house. They seldom play with other children in the village. The Parsonage they lived in has an extraordinary view of the moors, but almost right outside the door is the local graveyard. At that time, six or seven people were buried a day. Only twenty months after Anne’s birth, Mrs. Bronte died.