Gothic literature was a movement in the twentieth century inspired by the concepts of fear and haunting. Gothic horror enthusiasts might recognise titles such as “Frankenstein”, “Dracula” and “The Picture of Dorian Gray”. In fact, many of the most prolific authors of the Victorian era wrote in gothic style - Charles Dickens, the Brontë sisters, Edgar Allen Poe. However, gothic literature, along with its sister, gothic architecture, fell into neglect.
Gothic literature, however, has had a recent resurgence with the popularisation of horror literature with the books of Niel Gaiman and Rhiannon Ward. One such author who particularly stuck out to me was Lauren Owen.
“The Quick”, Owen’s first novel, is a modern gothic unlike any other I have seen. Owen studied Victorian literature and sets “The Quick” in her childhood county of Yorkshire, explaining how she is able to so masterfully capture the essence of the genre with apparent ease. Within the 500 pages of this novel, she provides what I believe to be the best way to interpret a genre. “The Quick” stays true to its roots, but provides a never before seen modern perspective, shedding light on the hidden characters of the gothic.
Gothic literature employs key features such as the supernatural, and a tragic, suspenseful plot. This has made it extremely popular with the romance genre, “New Gothic romances” being popularised in the 1950s through 70s. Whilst the romance genre has changed, the “forbidden romance” tropes adopted through gothic romance remain. The origins of the forbidden gothic romance can be traced back to Lord Byron’s Jüngere Romantik. The “mad, bad and dangerous to know” Byron can be seen as one of the fathers of romantic gothic - in fact, it was a competition he hosted which produced “Frankenstein” and “Vampyre”, two books I credit with the inspiration for “The Quick”.
“The Vampyre” by John William Polidori is viewed as the origin of the romantic vampire genre. It is credited as the first work to collect all the tales of the vampire into one work - defining the vampire blueprint. The primary supernatural premise of “The Quick” is, of course, vampires, which follow the mould of Polidoris’s ‘Lord Ruthven’, instead of breaking it as modern works often attempt to do. Rather, Owen builds upon the stereotypical aristocratic vampires, creating strict rules and moral codes to their society - which are, of course, simply veiling how little the vampires know of their own condition. Similarly to “Vampyr”, “The Quick” has a lengthy first act where vampirism is not discussed - merely hinted at. The popularisation of the vampire genre post-“Vampyr” means “The Quick” has to do far less exposition, and the thrill of discovering the secrets of the Aegolius club on their own is part of the intrigue for the reader. “The Quick” also follows the story of a tragic romance that “The Vampyre” presents. In “Vampyre”, the tragic romance of Aubrey and Ianthe, who is killed by the titular monster. In “The Quick”, the equally tragic romance of James and Christopher - which is taken one step further. To begin, the forbidden nature of their same sex relationship means they cannot have the passionate love story of Aubrey and Ianthe - they are shunned by Christopher’s family and have to make plans to flee for Italy. When Christopher is killed, it is the night before they leave, and reach potential happiness. Not only that, but the very vampire that kills Christopher returns to plague James and his sister - much like what happened to Aubrey. James and Aubrey are mirrored main characters - both orphans, both alone in the world with their sister, both young gentlemen coming from wealth. Both stories kick off when the main character comes to London. Another similarity James shares to Aubrey is dying before the novel can end. The narrative, much like in “Vampyre”, does not conclude with James’ death. However, unlike in “Vampyre”, James does not leave the book - we see James’ narration continue through his transformation as a vampire. This voice of the undead is a revelation considering the history of the gothic vampire - previously mysterious villains, now given an internal monologue, and through the main character nonetheless. This creature-sympathetic narrative leads me into the next possible inspiration for “The Quick”.
The author of “Frankenstein”, Mary Shelley, is an interesting example of the hidden heroes of gothic literature. Unlike many other female authors of the time, Shelley did not write under a pseudonym. This meant she was underpaid and underrepresented by publishers at the time. However, her novel, “Frankenstein, or The Modern Prometheus” has become one of the most prolific of the genre - often considered to be the first work of science fiction. In fact, this sole work by Shelley far surpassed the works of her husband - Percy Bysshe Shelley - who is, in his own right, a renowned author. Other, perhaps more niche, works by Shelley include “Mathilda” and “Lodore” - both starring women, though, perhaps more positively in the latter. This is echoed in Owen’s work - with the character of Charlotte, who at first appears to be a neglected sister whilst male characters take the spotlight, similarly to the sister character in “Vampyr”, comes to the forefront in the third act. Similarly, the character of Adeline Swift not only is integral to the plot, but breaks gender norms - fighting and wearing trousers.
While there may be no more similarity between Shelley and Owen than both being female gothic authors, it seems this shared experience has fostered in both of them the desire to put their female characters in the spotlight - in “Lodore” as newfound heads of the family with their paternal influence lost, and in “The Quick” as the strongest members of the resistance.
However, it is “Frankenstein” which truly struck me as inspiration for “The Quick” - this time through the original main character, James. James’ transformation into a vampire, the very thing which killed his lover, Christopher, and grappling with his disgust for both his newfound self and the titular quick - his old self - mirrors the struggles of Frankenstein’s monster in accepting his monstrous nature. In “Frankenstein”, the Creature laments his creation - similarly to James, he was created against his own will. In fact, a theme of consent is prevalent throughout the later acts of “The Quick” - it is a common myth that a vampire cannot be turned without his own consent - James disproves this, as is soon discovered by the ingenious Augustus Mould.
The more Creature-sympathetic modern narrative of “Frankenstein” is reflected in “The Quick”, with Victor Frankenstein’s parallel, Michael Bier, presented as villainous. In fact, the first evidence of the horrific supernatural presented in “The Quick”, the murder at Temple Church, is confirmed to be committed by Michael. However, Owen stays true to the duality of “Frankenstein” - Michael is not the villain of “The Quick”. He is sympathetic - and his humanity is shown later in the novel. Even James, who has the most reason to resent Michael, his creator and the murderer of his lover, cannot bring himself to hate him. In fact, the closest things present in the book to villains, Augustus Mould and Edmund Bier, Michael’s brother, are not in the spotlight as villains - Augustus Mould is our supposedly trustworthy narrator for most of the middle of the book, and his later revelation as a morally grey at the lightest character is shocking - but we cannot bring ourselves to truly hate him, as we know his motivation. Edmund, the least redeemed character, is only so as he has so little appearances in the main narrative - he is predominantly behind the scenes, running the Aegolius club, staying true to its elusive nature.
In fact, the closest thing we have to a true villainous arc is the anti-hero, James - the Creature himself. All other villains are one-dimensional lackeys or complex, jumbled character arcs, the disjointed timeline of “The Quick” lending itself to this. But there is no resolution to this - we lose James’ narrative as his humanity slips away - the last we see of him is through the sympathetic perspective of his sister, Charlotte. The very last words of the book tease us with a resolution of his arc, and ultimately fall through on this - “the vampire was gone”. There is no finality to James’ story - just like there is no finality for the Monster of “Frankenstein”, who we simply see sailing away. Similarly, the predominant villain of Augustus Mould is presumed dead, then appears again - perhaps. It is never confirmed to be him, and he never catches up to Charlotte or Arthur. The fifty year time jump at the end leaves this all unresolved.
All this just proves that there is no true hero or villain to “The Quick” - everyone has flaws and virtues, and many simply die too soon for these to balance out, or it is left up to the reader to decide. There are many characters who do supposedly irredeemable things but are still sympathetic. This is a perfect encapsulation of the tragedy of gothic horror.
Whilst Owen stays extremely true to her roots in the 19th century gothic, she presents a modern perspective by shedding light on the hidden voices of the gothic.
Owen’s portrayal of LGBT and female main characters in an unbiased, natural way is one way her modern perspective benefits “The Quick”. It allows stories to be told that would not have been socially acceptable at the height of the gothic. She presents empowered women, capable of the same mistakes and successes as any man in “The Quick”, and same sex romance with the same sweetness as its heteronormative counterparts. However, this modern liberalism does not take away from historical accuracy - she still presents time period accurate homophobia, xenophobia, sexism and antisemitism in her novel, and the main characters are not immune to this. A modern twist is still taken on this to suit the modern audience - predominantly through the featuring of Oscar Wilde. The novelist and playwright cameos and inspires James’ passion project - “For want of Charity”. The playwright is well known for being secretly gay - and James’ admiration for him is bittersweet. In fact, it is on Wilde’s doorstep that James and Christopher are attacked, and ultimately killed.
To conclude, in “The Quick”, Owen adapts the gothic genre in order to both modernise it for her audience and pay homage to the giants of the genre. It combines a compelling plot with complex literary techniques to make the perfect blend of iconic gothic and modern ingenuity. I hope this essay convinces you to read it - and I hope you find it as interesting as I did.