SURREALIST CASTLE CULTURE: GOTHIC TRACES IN SURREALIST AESTHETICS
type: CreativeWork
description: This thesis examines the relationship between Surrealism and the Gothic novel. To date, few studies have examined why the Gothic novel appealed to the Surrealist sensibility. In particular, the neo-Gothic referents in Surrealist visual art have been largely ignored. The clearest connection between Surrealism and the Gothic novel is found within Surrealist leader André Breton's essay “Limits Not Frontiers of Surrealism” (1936). In this text the “castle problem” is introduced. Briefly put, Breton urged the Surrealists to find a modern equivalent to the Gothic castle; a place where marvellous events were bound to occur. It appears that the Surrealists never located a satisfactory alternative to the Gothic castle, because they continued to draw from Gothic imagery. This thesis demonstrates that Gothic leitmotifs, most often the medieval castle, continually surfaced in Surrealist writing, painting, and collage, and explores the potential reasons why the Surrealists were attracted to Gothic novels.
abstract: This thesis examines the relationship between Surrealism and the Gothic novel. To date, few studies have examined why the Gothic novel appealed to the Surrealist sensibility. In particular, the neo-Gothic referents in Surrealist visual art have been largely ignored. The clearest connection between Surrealism and the Gothic novel is found within Surrealist leader André Breton's essay “Limits Not Frontiers of Surrealism” (1936). In this text the “castle problem” is introduced. Briefly put, Breton urged the Surrealists to find a modern equivalent to the Gothic castle; a place where marvellous events were bound to occur. It appears that the Surrealists never located a satisfactory alternative to the Gothic castle, because they continued to draw from Gothic imagery. This thesis demonstrates that Gothic leitmotifs, most often the medieval castle, continually surfaced in Surrealist writing, painting, and collage, and explores the potential reasons why the Surrealists were attracted to Gothic novels.
author: Feagan, Claire Elizabeth
keywords: André Breton, castle problem, Gothic novel, Max Ernst, medieval, modern, Remedios Varo, René Magritte, Surrealism, twentieth-century
date published: 2010-01-01
date modified: 2026-07-27T21:56:20Z
provider: Western University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Western University

PropertyValue
property ID: Handle
value: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14721/20073