Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the Nineties
In his Geography of Victorian Gothic Fiction (1999), Robert Mighall presents ‘anachronistic conflict’ as the defining feature of the mode. The resurgence of pagan gods and the discovery of a fossil race are the two main triggers of such a conflict in Arthur Machen’s supernatural tales of the Ninetie...
Saved in:
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Presses Universitaires de la Méditerranée
2014-09-01
|
Series: | Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens |
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://journals.openedition.org/cve/1466 |
Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
_version_ | 1832581220173611008 |
---|---|
author | Sophie Mantrant |
author_facet | Sophie Mantrant |
author_sort | Sophie Mantrant |
collection | DOAJ |
description | In his Geography of Victorian Gothic Fiction (1999), Robert Mighall presents ‘anachronistic conflict’ as the defining feature of the mode. The resurgence of pagan gods and the discovery of a fossil race are the two main triggers of such a conflict in Arthur Machen’s supernatural tales of the Nineties. The aim of this paper is to explore how the horrifying returns articulate with the Anglo-Catholic writer’s sacramental worldview, focusing in particular on the use of the wine symbol in his texts. The Dionysian theme reverberates throughout Machen’s fiction, where the double-natured god may induce either debasement or elevation. In both cases, sacramental wine enables man to partake in the reality that lies beyond the veil of appearances. |
format | Article |
id | doaj-art-261e5f10d3fc4cc8b5908dde7e6729ff |
institution | Kabale University |
issn | 0220-5610 2271-6149 |
language | English |
publishDate | 2014-09-01 |
publisher | Presses Universitaires de la Méditerranée |
record_format | Article |
series | Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens |
spelling | doaj-art-261e5f10d3fc4cc8b5908dde7e6729ff2025-01-30T10:21:30ZengPresses Universitaires de la MéditerranéeCahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens0220-56102271-61492014-09-018010.4000/cve.1466Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the NinetiesSophie MantrantIn his Geography of Victorian Gothic Fiction (1999), Robert Mighall presents ‘anachronistic conflict’ as the defining feature of the mode. The resurgence of pagan gods and the discovery of a fossil race are the two main triggers of such a conflict in Arthur Machen’s supernatural tales of the Nineties. The aim of this paper is to explore how the horrifying returns articulate with the Anglo-Catholic writer’s sacramental worldview, focusing in particular on the use of the wine symbol in his texts. The Dionysian theme reverberates throughout Machen’s fiction, where the double-natured god may induce either debasement or elevation. In both cases, sacramental wine enables man to partake in the reality that lies beyond the veil of appearances.https://journals.openedition.org/cve/1466anachronismCeltic mythologyDionysusecstasyEucharistGrail |
spellingShingle | Sophie Mantrant Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the Nineties Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens anachronism Celtic mythology Dionysus ecstasy Eucharist Grail |
title | Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the Nineties |
title_full | Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the Nineties |
title_fullStr | Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the Nineties |
title_full_unstemmed | Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the Nineties |
title_short | Pagan Revenants in Arthur Machen’s Supernatural Tales of the Nineties |
title_sort | pagan revenants in arthur machen s supernatural tales of the nineties |
topic | anachronism Celtic mythology Dionysus ecstasy Eucharist Grail |
url | https://journals.openedition.org/cve/1466 |
work_keys_str_mv | AT sophiemantrant paganrevenantsinarthurmachenssupernaturaltalesofthenineties |