Horace Walpole, Strawberry Hill and the Castle of Otranto: an aesthete’s insurgencies among excess, extravagance and maximalism

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5007/2175-8026.2024.e105258

Keywords:

Horace Walpole, Strawberry Hill, Excess, Extravagance, Maximalism

Abstract

This article aims to investigate the aesthetic insurgencies of one of the most iconic figures of the 18th century: Horace Walpole (1717-1797). Regularly referred to as the author of The Castle of Otranto (1764), a narrative considered to be the genesis of Gothic literature in England, Walpole’s numerous other facets (architect, designer, poet, critic, biographer, playwright, collector) reveal not only his plurality of talents, but also his visionary and subversive artistic approaches. With a modus vivendi anchored in extravaganza, excess and maximalism, Walpole is an artisan in his own right whose legacy, from Strawberry Hill to The Castle of Otranto, has haunted the arts from the 18th century to the present day.

Author Biography

Luciana Colucci, Federal University of Triângulo Mineiro

Professora titular do Departamento de Estudos Literários (Cursos de Letras), da Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (UFTM). Atualmente é Coordenadora do Laboratório Interdisciplinar de Estudos do Gótico “Sandra Guardini Vasconcelos” – (LIEG/SGV) e participa dos seguintes grupos de pesquisa: TOPUS (CNPq) e Estudos do Gótico (CNPq). Sua área de pesquisa concentra-se nos estudos do gótico com ênfase em Horace Walpole e na categoria espaço.

References

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Published

2025-03-05

Issue

Vol. 77 (2024)

Section

Literary and Cultural Studies Dossier

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Copyright (c) 2023 Luciana Colucci

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.