Several weeks ago, our members engaged in an intense debate over zombies. There are many great zombie stories out there, but are they Gothic literature? We agreed that although many are fantastic horror, zombies just don't quite fit the Gothic literary tradition. The emphasis in a zombie story is gore over suspense. Character and setting development take second place to the horror elements through plot. Ty Schwamberger's novella The Fields is a rare exception. It's both a fantastic horror story and a great piece of Gothic fiction. Rather than an eating brains/ walking dead story, Schwamberger has crafted a tale of human frailty, ignorance, and evil within the framework of the zombie story. The walking dead serve the Gothic narrative rather than serve as the plot device. It's more a tale of humans than shambling corpses and this one of the most critical facets to Gothic literature. Do not be afraid of the zombies with this one.
If you like: Guy de Maupassant, H.P. Lovecraft
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1 comments:
I happened to amble across this today for the first time. Thank you so much for your kind words about THE FIELDS! If you ever need anything, feel free to let me know.
Best,
Ty Schwamberger
http://tyschwamberger.com
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