Romans terrifiants

Die Burg von Otranto, in der englische Originalfassung: The Castle of Otranto, ist ein Roman des britischen Politikers und Schriftstellers Horace Walpole aus dem Jahr 1764. Walpole begründete damit die Romangattung des Schauerromans, im Englischen 'Gothic Novel', und beeinflusst die Literatur damit bis in unsere Zeit.

Die Burg von Otranto - Band 50

Nel castello di Otranto vive la famiglia del principe Manfred, il cui secondogenito e unico erede maschio, Conrad, è in procinto di sposarsi. Ma, nel giorno del matrimonio, il futuro marito viene trovato morto in circostanze sinistre. Al fine di evitare la realizzazione di un'antica profezia, il principe Manfred decide di ripudiare la propria moglie e di sposare quella che avrebbe dovuto essere sua nuora, Isabelle. La fanciulla, atterrita dalla proposta incestuosa e spaventata dall'atteggiamento improvvisamente violento di Manfred, fugge attraverso i sotterranei del castello.  Manfred tenta di inseguirla, ma viene trattenuto dallo spettro di un suo antenato... Pubblicato nel 1764 in Inghilterra, "Il castello di Otranto" fu elogiato dalla critica ed ebbe un enorme successo; si dice abbia avuto più di 115 edizioni dal giorno della sua prima pubblicazione. Il pubblico, probabilmente stanco del classicismo e del razionalismo che regnavano all'epoca, aveva finalmente trovato uno sfogo alle sue inquietudini interiori e alla sua sete di mistero. Combinando abilmente horror e giallo, Horace Walpole aveva dato avvio alla letteratura gotica. Atmosfere lugubri, passaggi segreti, castelli diroccati e personaggi misteriosi sono gli ingredienti principali del romanzo. Scorrevole e di piacevole lettura, ancora oggi, dopo quasi tre secoli, " Il castello di Otranto" riesce a tenere il lettore incollato sino all'ultima pagina e continua a ispirare la penna dei nostri autori contemporanei.

Il castello di Otranto

La Ville Lumière est l'une des métropoles les plus visitées, les plus fantasmées au monde. Symbole de la culture française, écrin d'un développement intellectuel et artistique rare, Paris fascine les écrivains, qui n'ont eu de cesse de vouloir la représenter dans leurs oeuvres. E. E. Cummings, Graham Greene, Henry James, Richard Yates, Horace Walpole, Dino Buzzati, mais aussi Rousseau, Aragon, Zola... tous ont puisé dans les richesses de la ville leur inspiration. Arpentons donc ses rues, visitons ses musées, admirons ses monuments avec eux : ils n'en seront que plus beaux.

Paris, escapades littéraires

Horatio Walpole, also known as Horace Walpole, was an English art historian, man of letters, antiquarian and Whig politician. His literary reputation rests on his Gothic novel, The Castle of Otranto (1764) and his Letters, which are of significant social and political interest. From Walpole's own 1785 introduction: "The Hieroglyphic Tales were undoubtedly written a little before the creation of the world, and have ever since been preserved, by oral tradition, in the mountains of Crampcraggiri, an uninhabited island, not yet discovered. Of these few facts we could have the most authentic attestations of several clergymen, who remember to have heard them repeated by old men long before they, the said clergymen, were born. We do not trouble the reader with these attestations, as we are sure everybody will believe them as much as if they had seen them. . . ."

Contes hiéroglyphiques

B>The founding work of Gothic fiction/b>br>br>On the day of his wedding, Conrad, heir to the house of Otranto, is killed in mysterious circumstances. His calculating father Manfred fears that his dynasty will now come to an end and determines to marry his son''s bride himself - despite the fact he is already married. But a series of terrifying supernatural omens soon threaten this unlawful union, as the curse placed on Manfred''s ancestor, who usurped the lawful Prince of Otranto, begins to unfold. First published pseudonymously in 1764, purporting to be an ancient Italian text from the time of the crusades, The Castle of Otranto is a founding work of Gothic fiction. With its compelling blend of sinister portents, tempestuous passions and ghostly visitations, it spawned an entire literary tradition and influenced such writers as Ann Radcliffe and Bram Stoker.br>br>For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

The castle of Otranto

The following work was found in the library of an ancient Catholic family in the north of England. It was printed at Naples, in the black letter, in the year 1529. How much sooner it was written does not appear. The principal incidents are such as were believed in the darkest ages of Christianity; but the language and conduct have nothing that savours of barbarism. The style is the purest Italian.

If the story was written near the time when it is supposed to have happened, it must have been between 1095, the era of the first Crusade, and 1243, the date of the last, or not long afterwards. There is no other circumstance in the work that can lead us to guess at the period in which the scene is laid: the names of the actors are evidently fictitious, and probably disguised on purpose: yet the Spanish names of the domestics seem to indicate that this work was not composed until the establishment of the Arragonian Kings in Naples had made Spanish appellations familiar in that country. The beauty of the diction, and the zeal of the author (moderated, however, by singular judgment) concur to make me think that the date of the composition was little antecedent to that of the impression. Letters were then in their most flourishing state in Italy, and contributed to dispel the empire of superstition, at that time so forcibly attacked by the reformers. It is not unlikely that an artful priest might endeavour to turn their own arms on the innovators, and might avail himself of his abilities as an author to confirm the populace in their ancient errors and superstitions. If this was his view, he has certainly acted with signal address. Such a work as the following would enslave a hundred vulgar minds beyond half the books of controversy that have been written from the days of Luther to the present hour.

Romans terrifiants

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