THE “GOTHIC” IN ENGLISH LITERATURE AND IN THE NOVELS OF IRIS MURDOCH AND JOHN FOWLES

Umida Fayzullaeva Ass.prof.,PhD, JSPU Guzal Solieva, JSPU   Abstract. This article is dedicated to the period of XX century when many genre varieties of the novel (educational, novel in letters, Gothic, travel novel, etc.) appeared and strengthened their characters. Among the genres in which English literature became a cradle, the Gothic novel emerged as an alternative to the rational enlightened novel, which could not explain the versatility of human nature. The flourishing of the Gothic novel dates back to the last third of the century, but the poetics of the later gothic novel correspond to the worldview of English-speaking writers with a romantic orientation. Keywords: gothic, English, literature, novel, plot, character, fantastic, mystery.   English literature “plays a special role in the expression of national speech, it becomes a reflection of the nation itself and one of the leading components of the national imaginary construction”.  A revision of national identity in post-war Britain, traditions as the basis of culture reflected in the literature of the time.  At the same time, the new context requires a certain variation of traditional literary forms that occur in the form of stylization, parody and quotations.   Referring to customs for English literature is not only a tribute to past cultural experiences. The use of “old forms” in a new way is one of the conditions for the existence of mature literature. But this phenomenon, which was increasingly developing in post-war English literature, found a principle character. Literature gradually became a special continent with its sources, no less than reality. In the context of the dialogue of literary periods in English literature, Victorian traditions are often considered, and less often — the previous period. However, the XVIII century is a period when many genre varieties of the novel (educational, novel in letters, Gothic, travel novel, etc.) appeared and strengthened their characters. Among the genres in which English literature became a cradle, the Gothic novel emerged as an alternative to the rational enlightened novel, which could not explain the versatility of human nature. The origins of Gothic prose as a literary experiment can be traced back to H. Walpole, A. Radcliffe and M. Lewis. It is marked by several main characters: — the plot is built around a mystery (someone’s disappearance, mysterious origin, unopened crime, deadly persecution). Often several mysteries are combined in one novel. The story evokes an atmosphere of fear and horror and opens in a sequence of episodes that threaten the lives and happiness of the characters. The most common scene is a long, mysterious house, a castle, a monastery with a mysterious past. It has dark rooms and forbidden places, surrounded by deserted lands, deserts, forests, swamps. At the center of the action, the role of the executioner is given to the devil the villain, and the virtuous heroes the role of his innocent victims.   The novel contains elements of fiction and mysticism. The central aesthetic category in the Gothic novel becomes “terrible”. Representatives of the “Gothic” school derive its interpretation from Edmund Burke’s treatise “Philosophical studies on the origin of our lofty and beautiful ideas” (1756). In it, the philosopher for the first time connects the categories “terrible” and “glorious”. At the same time, the fear that creates a terrible fear must have its own character, writes Burke. “…if the pain and fear are alleviated to the point that they really do not harm; if the pain does not turn violent and the fear does not occur due to the immediate risk of death of the person; then … these thrills … capable of pleasure; not pleasure, but a kind of zealous horror, a calmness painted with fear; and since it implies self-defense, it is one of the strongest of all influences. Its object is majestic…” writes Burke. Glory is born when passions like horror arise; it flourishes in the dark, evokes thoughts of strength and absence and everything related to deprivation-emptiness, loneliness, silence. However, he discovers that pain and fear will only be the source of glory unless threatened by actual violence. In this separation, the nature of the pleasure that a person experiences when in contact with a terrible is hidden. However, fear has its own characteristics. Anna Radcliffe, in her essay” on the supernatural in poetry”, emphasizes two types of fear — horror and terror-only one of which can elicit an aesthetic experience. Horror is hatred caused by violent scenes and bloody stories. Terror is a tense environment that results from “offering horrific events”.  The difference between Terror and horror is the difference between a terrible prophecy and a disgusting phenomenon: between the smell of death and meeting a corpse. The flourishing of the Gothic novel dates back to the last third of the century, but the poetics of the later gothic novel correspond to the worldview of English-speaking writers with a romantic orientation, and are reflected in Edgar Poe’s novels (“The Fall of the House of Asher”, “William Wilson”, etc. and “Jane Eyre”, Mary Shelley’s” Frankenstein”. However, adopting the “Gothic” experience of the 18th century, 19th-century English literature left room for parodies of the genre.  Among them, the most famous are Jane Austen’s “North Abbey” (1817) and T. L. Peacock’s” Abbey of nightmares” (1818).  The continuity of the Gothic tradition can be traced back to W. Collins’ novel “The woman in white” in the second half of the 19th century, the mystical novels of Dickens’ “The Mystery of Edwin Drood”, Oscar Wilde’s “Portrait of Dorian Grey”, and R. L. Confirms the appearance of Stevenson’s novel “The strange story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”.  In the story” the strange story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, Stevenson, like Frankenstein, becomes a scientist determined to enter the mysteries of human nature. He learns the secrets of the human body and through these experiences comes to the experience of the terrible division of his personality. The psychological tension in the story arises as a result of the doctor’s realization that gradually his “second self” grows stronger and absorbs his true personality. Thus, the incarnation of evil ceases to stand out from a person as a fantastic creature (as in Lewis’s “the monk” — a beautiful girl who tempts an insensitive monk”), which is part of it. Accidentally awakened by the habits of youth and beauty in the performance of Lord Henry, this satanic principle attracts the character of the young Dorian Gray in the novel of the same name by Oscar Wilde. Unlike the characters in the early Gothic novel is still experiencing fear for their soul, Grey even enjoys the process of her destruction, reflecting her portrait hidden in a secret room. These works use important elements of the Gothic novel-the principle of separating heroes from the outside world, the mysterious past of the mysterious house and its owners, the presence of evil figures of demons and the violation of public taboos. The authors draw attention to the nature of evil, showing the degradation of the individual, the powerfulness of instincts and the dark sides of the human mind. This task often requires the “division” of the hero, in the creation of Twin heroes (“woman in white”), in the fantastic division of a person into a worthy person and a famous villain (“the strange story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”), in the mysterious reflection of man’s vices and crimes with his portrait (“Portrait Of Dorian Gray”).  The authors of the 20th century effectively continue the psychological direction of immersion in the dark abyss of the human mind by these authors. Supernatural evil-huge helmets, swords with mysterious inscriptions and Devils in the form of beautiful girls retreat. The stereotypical technique of the Gothic novel helps to create psychological and philosophical labyrinths associated with the study of evil hidden in the depths of a person’s personality. Joyce’s novel “Soon there will be a storm” is also woven from nightmares, misgivings and mystical coincidences that fill everyday situations with a unique meaning. Thus, Gothic’s formal technique creates an atmosphere of obsessive anxiety that explores the existential problems of human existence. Fear reveals the hidden places of the hearts of the heroes, unknown to both them and others.   It is this point of view that is determined by the “intellectual” Gothic, the characteristics of which are ham in the works of John Fowles and Iris Murdoch. REFERENCES:

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