Date of Award

2026

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

English (Ph.D.)

Department

English

First Advisor

Amy King

Second Advisor

Rachel Hollander

Third Advisor

Jennifer Travis

Abstract

The BioGothic is a set of biological metaphors in nineteenth century Gothic fiction that anticipates our contemporary understanding of what we now think of as biological processes. The BioGothic system in the novel captures the site of connection and interaction between the body and the interior spaces it inhabits. The Gothic genre, from its inception, shifts the focus onto interior spaces and the ways in which architectural spaces and the Gothic body interact with one another. This demonstrates, in part, how physical space and biological matter are not only capable of becoming integrated with each other, but also maintain the ability to be in active communication with one another, as conveyed through biological processes. The connection between biological matter and architectural space establishes architectural space as a sentient being, in part, through its ability to form a symbiotic relationship with its own inhabitants. The BioGothic methodologically borrows its framework from Gaston Bachelard theories in The Poetics of Space, published in 1958, in which he asserts that a house is more than simply a geometrical object, but its capacity to both ignite and reflect back an individual’s imagination and the biological process of daydreaming, is suggestive of a space that maintains “human virtue” (44) and human characteristics. Building on Bachelard’s theories, the BioGothic takes an anthropocentric approach, which recognizes that the Gothic body is the driving force that awakens and transforms physical space, and elicits the creation of a symbiotic connection between place and person. In focusing on the use of biological metaphors in Gothic fiction, this dissertation theorizes the house-occupant relationship by looking at how physical space is utilized and transmuted in a way that allows it to stand-in for and express emotions – particularly feelings of psychological distress – during a time when mental illness and feelings of persistent anguish were not fully understood. The Gothic novel employs the plot device of the house-occupant relationship within haunted space, in part, to depict and address national anxieties about Anglo-American ancestry and identity, particularly in relation to reproduction. Space provides a framework for comprehending and addressing psychological issues in relation to sociological matters.

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