Gothic Fantasies
 Mila as Gothic bride |
Unsurprisingly, 18th century Gothic novels are full of inspirations, as, I dare say, they are the basis and the original of all our common fetish BDSM fantasy media. The genre brought forth the victimized heroine, the maiden in distress, the femme fatale, the middle aged setting we still find copied in most brothels today, the castle, the libidinous tyrant, but also the virtuous brave hero. Excess and transgression are central themes, sensory overload, satisfaction of desires that aren't meant to be, incest, Doppelgänger, false identities, chases through dark passages… |
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My favourite Gothic novel The Monk by M.G. Lewis is a milestone of the genre as it marks the so called transition from terror to horror. To simplify this, it basically means that the characters stumble over blood and corpses wherever they tread, instead of just imagining them. Furthermore, the hero will be coming too late, the heroine will be murdered (not before she's tortured and raped, of course, preferably by a close relative, who might also happen to be a tyrant, or a monk, or all of the above). Well, after all, it's subtitled "a romance". An altogether lovely read. (For those of you, who are into cross-dressing and scenarios involving religious symbols there are several interesting sub-plots involving a young female demon dressed as a novice tempting the monk, as well as viscious nuns torturing a virtuous woman at a convent) |
 The Monk illustration |
Female Gothic Stereotypes
Maidens in Distress
"Beauty in distress is much the most affecting beauty." (E. Burke)
| Young
(read
naive
and
innocent)
maidens
tend
to be persecuted and taken
advantage of by dominant, sadististic villains (those lucky girls). The
Monk's heroine, Antonia, is so young and innocent that even
her prime source of education, the bible, is a censored version of
itself. She regards the monk Ambrosius as a father figure and a symbol
of virtue. Little does she know, that he has entered a pact with the
devil, tempted by a demon seductress (the aforementioned novice).
Before capturing her in a sepulchre, where she will be raped and
killed, Ambrosius already murdered his and Antonia's mother (yes, it
turns out they are siblings, but these family ties are unbeknownst to
him). The knight in shiny armour does arrive at the scene, albeit too
late.
Needless to say that the damsel in distress has become a target of feminist criticism because of her helplessness and need to be saved. Despite my fondness of such scenarios, I very much believe that they have a point there. Especially thinking of the Twilight series targeted at a rather impressionable audience, and without the distancing features of the middle ages and exotic settings, it promotes this image of vulnerable female amongst real impressionable girls. Damsel in distress scenarios are also a popular fetish (see Link section). |
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 Chivalry by Dicksee |
 Andromeda by Rembrandt |
 Ophelia by Hughes |
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The first picture is all about her eyes. The saviour has arrived at the scene and killed the enemy, yet, she is still scared. It is as if she is wondering whether she will be next. Or is she intimidated by his masculine strength and power which she might not be able to tame and keep under control? I love this depiction of Andromeda. The atmosphere is sublime, a storm seems to be coming up. (I wish there were boats in the background, though) Andromeda, chained to a rock by her people to be sacrificed to the sea monster, is often depicted in company. Here, she is utterly alone with nature (further stressed by her being naked). Of course, the important segment is her eyes again. They don't show horror at the sight of the monster, but rather fear of the unknown which is to come. Ophelia is under no threat from outside forces, but we know she will die anyway. This Ophelia seems to invite the viewer to come along and join her in death. |
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Femme Fatale and Lesbian Predator
The Femme Fatale has been argued to be a symbol of patriarchal misogyny, as well as a representative of female empowerment. (I will discuss this point in detail in the section on Film Noir) In Gothic novels, she usually comes along in the shape of demon and seductress.
| Carmilla, antagonist of Sheridan LeFanu's homonymous novella
is an early example of a
femme fatale. She also happens to be a vampire and the alter ego of the
sceptical
protagonist Laura, whom she tempts to indulge in forbidden pleasures
with her.
The story, like most vampire stories, is filled with metaphors of
fusion, (or infiltration if you will):
"You are mine, you shall be mine, and you and I
are one forever", or "In the rapture of my enormous humiliation I live
in your warm life, and you shall die - die, sweetly die - into mine". Funny enough, Carmilla is introduced into the story as a maiden in distress. On second sight, this is typical for a femme fatale and I particularly like that aspect of hers because it highlights her rationality, emotional detachment, and manipulation capabilities, while she plays (and feeds) on the emotions of others, making them forget their own rationality. |
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 Salome by Corinth |
There are many gorgeous Salome works out there. I picked this one because of its lack of reservation to death. In this picture, Salome, instead of turning away in disgust, indulges. Time seems to stand still; the chaos around her doesn't disturb her. She even turns her eyes away and focuses on the tactile which makes her seem even deeper absorbed in the encounter. This is such a sensual image. The contact between her hand and the face has a very disturbing intimacy, especially set against all that colourful noise. |