Female Characters in Gothic Texts Gothic literature, otherwise also called Gothic horror, is a literary genre that combines fiction, horror and romance. It originates from the novel by the English author Horace Walpole The Castle of Otranto. The name Gothic refers to the (pseudo)-medieval buildings, similar to the church or castle, in which most of the stories take place, as in the original Otranto Castle. This extreme form of romance was very popular in England and Germany. Characterized by castles, dungeons, dark forests, and hidden passages, the female gothic emerged from the Gothic novel genre. Feminine Gothic allowed for the introduction of female social and sexual desires into Gothic texts. The relationship between women and the Gothic focuses on works of Gothic literature mostly by female authors. In the mid-1800s, women had far fewer rights than today and were expected to be subservient to men. They had no right to vote or own property. They were expected to avoid expressing themselves openly in the company of men and were expected to be supportive ...