Physical And Psychological And Sexual Abuse - 980 Words

Abuse is so common in today’s day and age; it’s used like a language. Some people are immune to it; that’s all that they have been introduced to whether male or female. It’s a language that only people who have not taken a recollection nor responsibility to the issue at hand. This leads into BWS which is classified as a psychiatric condition named Battered Woman Syndrome. The actual definition of this disease from Wikipedia is â€Å"Battered person syndrome is a physical and psychological condition of a person who has suffered emotional, physical, or sexual abuse from another person†. According to the Psychiatric Times, it has been in the medical field for more than 30 years. However, even being in the medical field it is not recognized as serious until reported and or visually seen numerous times. Physical, Psychological and Sexual abuse has been presented in multiple settings as harmful and dangerous. When these things happen, unfortunately the victim is largely blamed and asked questions based on if they meant for what happened to them, as a direct action to inflict pain towards themselves. As is true, multiple cases of the described forms of abuse are reported almost half of the cases are dropped due to the withdraw from victims. Withdrawal due to fear and issues of life or death; they no longer wish to press charges. From my sources in the â€Å"Psychiatric Times†; they explained that gender violence is fostered by the socialization of men†. Meaning that is stemmed fromShow MoreRelatedChild Abuse Prevention and Control; Can Physical, Sexual or Psychological Abuse Be Controlled Within the Household?820 Words   |  4 PagesChild abuse is a serious and widespread problem throughout the world. It can take the form of sexual abuse, physical or psychological mis treatment , or child neglect. Can child abuse be prevented? Can the child abuser be rehabilitated? What can be done within your own home or community to prevent or control child abuse? Once discovered, child abuse can be addressed, but how does one report child abuse, and what are the legal requirements for reporting the abuse? Are you aware of the effect that theRead MoreChild Sexual Abuse And Children1301 Words   |  6 PagesChild sexual abuse effects tens of thousands of children, and young teens every year. With the rate of this issues, parents and other adults are not prepared nor willing to deal with problems of their children or family members been sexual abused. Child sexual abuse can take many forms, but it’s always a violation of a young person’s rights, and it increases the risk of many adverse physical and mental health conditions. Furthermore, child sexual abuse is defined as direct genital contact and indirectRead MoreDomestic Violence At Affordable Pr ice Please Use Custom Research Paper1276 Words   |  6 Pages This sample research paper on domestic violence features: 7200+ words (26 pages), an outline, APA format in-text citations, and a bibliography with 31 sources. Outline I. Introduction II. History III. Types of Abuse A. Physical Violence B. Sexual Violence C. Psychological Violence D. Stalking E. Dating Violence IV. Prevalence of Domestic Violence V. Explaining Domestic Violence A. Cycle of Violence B. Psychopathology C. Perceived Gender Roles VI. Domestic Violence and the GLBT CommunityRead MoreChild Abuse And Its Effects On Society1342 Words   |  6 Pages Child Abuse. How does one decide what constitutes abuse? Is there a thin line between abuse and discipline? We often hear the horrific stories of child abuse in our communities, but are we as a society so used to hearing these stories that we have become desensitized to them? Child abuse is a prevalent thing in communities and often time the victims are suffering in silence. We, as a society, have a bad habit of â€Å"turning our heads the other way† or â€Å"not wanting to get involved.† The mentality ofRead MoreChildhood Trauma Has Life Long Effect On Genes And The Brain1491 Words   |  6 Pagesworld. A lot of abuse can and does scar a person physically and/or emotionally for life. Child abuse needs to be recognized more than it is. It’s something that should not go unnoticed and definitely should not be ignored. People need to stop worrying about little things and focus on the big picture. A â€Å"big picture† like child abuse. Child abuse can be known as four type’s physical, psychological, sexual, or neglect. 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Serial Killers: Born or Created Dependent Variable A serial killer is an individual who has killed three or more people during separate incidents and at possibly different geographic locations where there is a cooling off period between each homicide (Homant Kennedy, 2014). Researchers have identified several typologies of serial killers, however most of the research has been done on the serial sexual sadist killersRead MoreDefine the Following Type of Abuse785 Words   |  4 Pagesfollowing types of abuse: Abuse may be physical, psychological, sexual, financial, negligent, reckless behaviour which endangers self or others as well as self-harm. Abuse may be intentional or unintentional. It may be about doing something (an act of commission) or doing something (an act of omission). When a person abuses another person they violate their human and civil rights. Abuse may occur regularly and systematically or just once. Physical abuse Physical abuse is an act of anotherRead MoreEssay on Suspected Child Abuse and the Teacher ´s Role in Reporting it613 Words   |  3 Pages Teachers Role in Reporting Suspected Child Abuse nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The maltreatment and neglect of children and youth has increasingly come to be perceived as a social blight. As with most social problems, child abuse influences our school systems. Children that are being emotionally, physically and sexually abused often use school as a cop out. These children spend around thirty hours a week in a safe, enjoyable and carefree environment, however within these thirty hours teachers mustRead MoreThe Impact Of Sexual Child Abuse On America1517 Words   |  7 Pages The Impact of Sexual Child Abuse in America Child abuse has been going on for many years. There are many forms of child abuse, however, there is one that is far worse than the rest; sexual abuse. Children has a natural instinct to trust too easily and believe what people tell them, especially if they know those people. Statistics show very high figures of sexual child abuse in America. When children undergo sexual abuse, it impacts their whole being. There are physical, emotional, and psychologic

The Death Of Orlando Florida - 999 Words

Agreement was granting him the â€Å"Exclusive† right to vacation with the children and preference in odds years (2015 being the odd year). Moreover, the father did not know if his proposed order or this of the opposing counsel would be signed by the honorable Judge Bernstein when he left to Orlando with the children. Nevertheless, the order was signed in December 21, 2015 and was not entered in the system until December 24, 2015. Subsequent to this signing, the father was never served with the order. The Father left to Orlando Florida on December 27, 2015 and, by that time, he had not been served with the signed order of the Honorable Judge Bernstein. Neither the Court System nor the Mother’s attorney serve the father with the court order and†¦show more content†¦The father was under the honest impression, and was his argument, that his vacation time schedule had preference over any other vacations granted on the agreement to the mother in odd years. Neverthe less, the order signed on December 21, 2015 does not mentioned whether or not the father had preference to take his vacation with the children. The order stated as follows: â€Å"The Mother s Motion to Enforce Mediated Agreement is DENIED, as moot on the grounds that no variation of the Mediated Agreement has been requested. The agreement stands on its own.† (R. 748). It was not until January 18, 2016, when the opposing counsel filed a motion for contempt, that the father found out about the order that was entered on December 24, 2015. Consequently, the father did not have knowledge at any previous time before returning with the children from Orlando. Even if the father had received this order, the order was not clear enough to make the father understand what vacation dates had preference, which was the issue in dispute when the parties brought the issue to the court on December. II. THE LOWER TRIBUNAL ERRED WHEN GRANTED THE MOTHER ATTORNEY’S FEES IN A NON-EVIDENTIARY HEARING CONTRARY TO THE DUE PROCESS PROTECTION OFFERED UNDER THE FOURTEENTH AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION. A. No state can deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law. The Supreme court of Florida, has held that â€Å"that the trial court s exercise of

Globalization and music Essay Example For Students

Globalization and music Essay The Affects of Globalization on MusicWont you help me sing these songs of freedom?The influence that music has throughout the world is immeasurable. Music evokes many feeling, surfaces old memories, and creates new ones all while satisfying a sense of human emotion. With the ability to help identify a culture, as well as educate countries about other cultures, music also provides for a sense of knowledge. Music can be a tool for many things: relaxation, stimulation and communication.But at the same time it can also be a tool for resistance: against parents, against police against power. Within the reign of imported culture, cross cultivation and the creation of the so-called global village lies the need to expand horizons to engulf more than just what you see everyday. It is important to note that the role of music in todays world is a key tool in the process of globalization. However, this does not necessarily provide us with any reasons that would make us believe that music has a h omogenizing affect on the world. Globalization is becoming one of the most controversial topics in todays world. We see people arguing over the loss of a nations cultural identity, the terror of westernization, and the reign of cultural imperialism. Through topics such as these we explore the possibilities or the existence of hybridization of cultures and values, and what some feel is the exploitation of their heritage.One important aspect that is not explored is that such influences can also be more than just a burden and an overstepping of bounds. These factors can create an educational environment as well as a reaffirmation of ones own culture. With the music being the highly profitable, capitalist enterprise that it is today, it is no wonder that it is controlled and regulated by a few large conglomerates that exist is todays world. It is important to make clear that although evidence is being presented of the positive aspects of globalization through music that there is overwhelming evidence that cultural imper ialism is more than it seems on the outside. One must keep in mind that cultural imperialism, globalization and the creation of a global village is a business. People are profiting at other peoples loss of cultural identity, they are sold a culture and heritage. With the every growing NSync fan clubs and Britney clones, the world is turning into a stage for pop culture and its glamorous unattainable standards. Through the processes that this world is going through we find ourselves blurring the lines of difference that once existed. This has been referred to by Lomax as a cultural grey out. Basically what this theory says is that cultural lines are meshed together so much that is almost impossible to distinguish between them due to the fact that they have so many similar characteristics. Lomax also states that due to the widespread distribution of industrialized music and the loss of music that exemplifies cultural aspects and characteristics, civilizations are not maintaining a sense of national pride and identity. Without these distinguishing lines, Schiller states that at one time it was cultural diversity that flourished, and now we are witnessing the diffusion of such a process. He goes on to state, as well as warn, that if such a process of cultural breakdown were to keep evolving, we would have to face a global consumer monoculture. As stated previously, it is important to realize how big of a business culture has become. Through the use of quantitative analysis we can see the control that the major conglomerates have over the distribution of music. Burnett, in empirical studies of market concentration in music (1990, 1993), reports that seven corporations together controlled no less than 50 percent of market share in any country where they had operations and up to 80 percent in some countries (1990, pp. 104-105). The seven corporations, with their nation of origin and reported 1990 sales, are: Sony (Japan, $3 billion), Time/Warner (U.S., $2.9 billion), Polygram (Netherlands/Germany, $2.6 billion), Bertelsmann Media Group (Germany, $2 billion), Thorn/EMI (U.K., $1.88 billion), MCA (U.S., $1 billion), and Virgin (U.K., $500 million), total 1990 sales $13.88 billion (1993, pp. 141-143). With number such as these it is nearly

The Role of Fear and Obsession on Gothic Literature Essay Example

The Role of Fear and Obsession on Gothic Literature Paper Gothicism itself is a branch of Romanticism, which twists the idea of feeling into slightly more morbid and macabre emotions of fear and a dead, twisted and medieval past as well as losing the early Romantic sense of a moral purpose. The quotation above, taken from Oscar Wildes novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, introduces some of the key ideas which seem to run prevalently throughout Gothic works of fiction and art. It seems undeniable that influence and obsession are able to create, manipulate and dominate the emotions of fear and dread which often characterise the Gothic. Edmund Burke stated that: No passion so effectually robs the minds of all its powers of acting and reasoning as fear. It seems that within the development of the Gothic, fear plays a ubiquitous role. Influence can be prevalent in inciting fear, the influence of a figure or an atmosphere and other less tangible elements of the work can be key factors which hold a certain influence over the individual. However, fear in itself is often seen to present its own influence and it is this tantalizing inexplicable mystery of fear which so often develops and envelopes a character with obsession to retain truth and logic. We will write a custom essay sample on The Role of Fear and Obsession on Gothic Literature specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on The Role of Fear and Obsession on Gothic Literature specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on The Role of Fear and Obsession on Gothic Literature specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Within Susan Hills novel, The Woman in Black, the main character Arthur Kipps demonstrates an obvious fear of the woman in black and the supernatural elements of her presence and appearance suffering from some terrible wasting disease only the thinnest layer of flesh was tautly stretched and strained across her bones- are certainly expressed vividly throughout and contribute largely to the influence which she increasingly has on not only Kipps but also the villagers. The use of heavy adjectival phrases in describing the woman, the idea of deepest black, the woman described as pathetically wasted pale and gaunt with disease and the alliterative skin stretched and strained, give an initially comprehensive description of the woman which not only creates fear but also develops it steadily and makes it feel ubiquitous and unavoidable, as though every element of her is grotesque. Within the pre-1948 setting of the novel the idea of wasting, particularly referring to Tuberculosis, would have had a particularly chilling effect as the disease would have been the cause of many deaths and, before the introduction of the NHS, the lack of readily available health care would have made the disease a constant source of fear. However, it could also be argued that it is not only the descriptions of the woman which perpetuate a sense of fear and influence both the characters and the reader, indeed Hills descriptions of the woman are often significantly sparse. It seems within this text that the influence of fear is born from the idea of the mysterious and the unexplored rather than the grotesque and it is the influence of the unknown which shapes fear and creates a sense of the Gothic. The idea of a local and tightly-knit community who all share and perpetuate a sense of secrecy links strongly with the idea of this as a Gothic text Hill here uses the idea of isolation and unfamiliarity to enhance the idea that Kipps is an outsider and to create the mystery and silence which only fuels the influence of fear upon him: Mr Jerome stopped dead. He was staring at me Mr. Jerome looked frozen, pale, his throat moving as if he were unable to utter. Mr Jeromes reaction as well as the hotel landlords the name had stirred some strong emotion in him, all signs of which he endeavoured to suppress at once, are representative of the general reaction towards not only the woman but anything associated with her and so clearly another manifestation of her influence over them. This idea of fear being sparked and fuelled by a sense of mystery is certainly reflected within Wordsworths poem, The Thorn. Within this poem, from his collection of Lyrical Ballads, strong links can be made with The Woman in Black. The woman within the poem, Martha Ray, is a figure to be feared in the same way as the woman in black not as a result of her as a character but of the mysteries which envelope her. The whole poem is presented as a narrators account of what he has seen and the rumours which he has heard about a woman in a scarlet cloak. Wordsworth exacerbates the sense of fear for the woman by presenting his evidence in a haphazard and hearsay-like manner, some say is said, whilst steadily reinforcing the mystery with a sense of foreboding and subtle allusions such as the fact that the heap of earth is like an infants grave in size as well as the anaphoric use of the womans mysterious misery Oh woe is me! Oh misery! . Michael Kirkham states that the mystery comes from the fact that the narrator is unable to tell us whether the child was stillborn or was murdered1, Whilst Albert Gi rard, discussi ng why we are left in doubt, quotes a sentence from J. F. Danby, There is in the poem the possibility of a betrayed mother murdering her child, and adds, but the point, surely, is that it is never more than a possibility. 2 It seems key to the development of the story within the poem that the reader is made to feel the same sense of mystery that the narrator claims to feel. These slight allusions to wider and more traditionally fearful elements of the works are strongest when discussing the element of childhood and child mortality. The continued association which the woman has with death throughout The Woman in Black, too, obviously contributes largely to her mystery and the fear of her and is reinforced by the allusions to childhood mortality and the final revelation that witnessing her causes children to die- And whenever she has been seen in some violent or dreadful circumstance, a child has died. Again this can be seen within The Thorn as the references to a possible infants death create an initial unease which reaches a climax with some will say she hanged her baby on the tree, some say she drowned it in the pond. The delivery of this revelation, in a blank and unashamedly horrific fashion certainly shocks a reader and gives the cold feeling of dread which is so often identified as an element of Gothicism however, it seems that this only occurs as a result of the steady influence of mysterious and unexplored fear which Wordsworth has continually built upon. The idea of death amongst children would have been an extremely poignant and harshly relevant one contemporaneously where fears of childbirth itself and infancy were elevated. Our baby so had been thrown clear, clear against another tree. He lay crumpled on the grass below it, dead. Again the harsh brevity and impersonal nature of these words seem to give a stark poignancy and factual element to the death of Kipps baby within Susan Hills novel; it seems as though the woman and death are inevitably interlinked and it is this inevitability which serves to enhance the dread of her character. Fear itself as well as the influence which fear can have is also one of the key themes of Oscar Wildes novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. Within The Picture of Dorian Gray, the portrait, an obvious anthropomorphised motif for sin and shame, is the source of fear to Dorian and it is the power of this fear which on several occasions exerts strong influences upon him. The idea of this novel as immoral would particularly be a reference to its direct challenge to Victorian morals and values of family, sexual restraint and strict social code of conduct which were propagated at the time. Certainly at the time of publication the book was labelled evil, whilst the Scots Observer wrote that Mr. Wilde has again been writing stuff that were better unwritten3. This quotation perhaps also demonstrates the fear of others towards the influence which Wilde himself may have held. It is not just the fear of being discovered which eats away at Dorian but the fear of himself and what he is capable of it was the living death of his own soul that troubled him. Dorians panicked self-promises to revert to an acceptable lifestyle and vain attempts to atone for his sins, though futile, are all obviously influenced by his portrait: One thing, however, he felt that it had done for him. It had made him conscious how unjust, how cruel, he had been to Sibyl Vane he portrait would be a guide to him through life, I have done too many dreadful things in life. I am not going to do any more. However, far from this fear acting as a constant reminder of morality, the fear also wields a strongly negative influence through the extreme excitement and passion of sin. This effectively reflects the nature of the mysterious fear within The Woman in Black and The Thorn a s fear itself is perhaps the greatest mystery and so the excitement for Dorian Gray lies in testing and breaking the mysteries of sin and debauchery, all characteristic elements of the Gothic. The link between influence and obsession within The Picture of Dorian Gray is strong; it can easily be seen that obsession is merely the product of strong influence, the degradation into the fervent compulsion of obsession from unavoidable influence He grew more and more enamoured of his own beauty, more and more interested in the corruption of his own soul The more he knew, the more he desired to know. He had mad hungers that grew more ravenous as he fed them. This influence is seen largely within Dorians own fear rather than the hideousness of the portrait. This path from influence upon a character to their obsession can also be seen within The Woman in Black where the influence of the fear upon Arthur Kipps develops into his obsession with delving into and uncovering the mystery: the woman in black affected us both as deeply as any other experience we had undergone in our lives I must face it out Such things one must face. And even as I spoke I felt a new determination arise within me I had fallen under some sort of spell of the kind that certain places exude and it drew me, my imaginings, my longings, my curiosity, my whole spirit . Aside from the influence which fear itself can present, within these three texts and indeed many other texts which present elements of the Gothic, the influential and obsessive power of the supernatural can be seen. Supernatural ideas, particularly commencing with those found in an orthodox theology, came strongly into conflict with the rationalism and idealism of the Enlightenment and the Age of Reason which had begun to take hold by 1688 and continued into around 1789. Gothicism, following from the Romantic, was born when seizing this challenge of the cold reality of enlightenment and, seeking feeling amidst the inartistic reason, twisted these feelings into extremes of fear, weirdness and grotesqueness. The friction with the new schools of thought caused disillusionment and discord and in the midst of the disagreement, Gothicism adopted elements of the Supernatural as both a reaction to the new ideals and due to the stretched extremes and inherent impossibility of the supernatural. The Picture of Dorian Gray deals strongly with the element of supernaturalism with Wildes interpretation of Marlowe and Goethes Faust myth via the changing portrait. This notion of a deal with the devil is, however, stretched in Wildes novel to present the obsessive influence of sin rather than just the uselessness of power. The portrait, changing to display Dorians sins and ages whilst he remains unchanged, seems to present an almost paradoxical influence over Dorian; whilst Dorians actions clearly influence the aesthetics of the picture, making it the misshapen shadow that had to bear the burden that should have been his own, the pictures horrid nature influences Dorians actions. It can be seen that the picture renders him sometimes good: it was watching him e would not sin and sometimes, through the mere obsessive nature of sin and lust, damning him: he grew more and more enamoured of the corruption of his own soul he had mad hungers that grew more ravenous as he fed them, an uncontrollable feeling of hatred suggested to him by the image. It could be viewed that this paradox between the influence between Dorian and the portrait reflects that in fact influence, far from being something supernatural and beyond control, has more of a sub-conscious and human factor in which we create and control our own i nfluences. Similarly The Woman in Black presents strong elements of the supernatural; the woman herself clearly has a ghostly influence over Mr. Kipps. It seems that the fact that she is a ghost, aside from the aforementioned appearance and attire, renders her influential and fearful. However there are other elements of the woman which make her so strongly influential over Arthur Kipps, the villagers and indeed the reader. Contextually, the notion of this woman would indeed have been something which was a source of great fear for many. The idea of a lone woman would have been unacceptable in this Victorian situation and could certainly have also created allusions to witchcraft and other ideas which challenge a strong morality of not only traditional family values but also the subservience of woman and the notion of them as the possession of a man, to be kept in check, whilst also presenting the mystery of the unknown. In addition to this, the woman herself has been viewed by several critics, such as Val Scullion, as the feminist protagonist of the novel. This reading presents the notion that the woman is fearful and influential through her obvious hideousness and difference but also because she is a woman. The contention is that Hills novel challenges the prevalent anxieties about motherhood and autonomy during the period when the idea of family itself was a difficult notion. The protagonist of the novel, the eponymous woman in black, resists the lot of the so-called fallen woman. In her spectral form, she repeatedly inflicts suffering on other families and children to avenge her own; her revenge and lack of compassion is unbound by time or place whilst her ghost is never laid to rest. The lack of restoration in the final pages could reflect her struggle and the limitlessness of the pain which she will cause. This view, held by Scullion, contends that the woman is fearful because she exists against the idea that a woman should be restrained and controlled. However, it seems more likely that the presentation of the woman in this way, as unruly and vengeful, is to enhance the fear rather than to play a more feminist role. It seems within these texts that a sense of Gothic, with regard to the influence and obsession of the characters, comes not so much from the conventional fear of the supernatural and the mystical but more from a human sense of emotion and instinct and things over which man has control. It is perhaps the cold reality and bluntness of possible sin, such as the murder of Basil Hallward within The Picture of Dorian Gray, which is far more chilling and fearful than anything other-worldly and unnatural. Wildes presentation of the murder, and Dorians feelings after, certainly create a strongly Gothic atmosphere yet without the expected darkness of a truly Gothic atmosphere. The sky was bright, and there was a genial warmth in the air the events of the preceding night crept with silent blood-stained feet into his brain, it seems that the notion of humanity and the obsession which drives us, has a more powerfully chilling influence than the strictly supernatural and weird. It is as though the element of possibility and familiarity of humanity is what creates the fear rather than something wildly improbable; fear is born from a twisted reality rather than an unimaginable wildness. The curious influence which Lord Henry himself has over Dorian, far from being supernatural, is still chilling and as effective at creating a sense of obsession and influence as the ghostly woman in black is within Hills novel. This influence and Henrys awareness of it there was something terribly enthralling in the exercise of influence is made more chilling to the reader because of its clearly degrading effect combined with Dorians naivety towards it: you are certainly my best friend, Harry, no-one has ever understood me as you have. Words from The Heart of Darkness by Conrad, another novel presenting the strongly horrific nature of man himself, seem appropriate: Look at the influence that men must have s it not frightful Porphyrias Lover, a poem by Robert Browning which presents strong elements of the Gothic, seems to do so too, not because it deals with elements of the spiritual and supernatural but, because it deals so shockingly with human passions and emotions, such as Dorians own or Henrys influence, which are certainly very possible and largely an element of humanity. The poem itself professes that passion will prevail, and it is chillingly Gothic that this murder has taken place not through the influence of a ghostly being or a portrait or indeed a decadent sense of medieval myth as in Keats St. Agnes Eve, but the plain obsession and influence of humanity and emotion. The obsession within this poem and the pure madness of Porphyrias lover, expecting God to interfere and say something And yet God has not said a word -, is dramatically heightened by the childlike simplicity of the rhyme; Rhythm mimics natural speech and the rhyme follows a conventional and standard ABABB pattern, this simplicity is demonstrated in the lines below. The symmetry of the rhyme and the ease and natural nature of the rhythm seem to reflect the madness within Porphyrias lover despite his reposed and calm fai de: surprise made my heart swell, and still it grew. The madness of the man is what has influenced his action yet it was also the perfection of the scene and the obsession with Porphyria and her love she was mine, mine, fair I strangled her . This obsession, a perfectly human one, yet insane, is what is most chilling about Brownings poem and indeed strongly reflects the sense of human influence within The Picture of Dorian Gray. Overall it is clear that influence, and the natural development of it into obsession, is a key feature which defines and creates the Gothic. Influence can abound in many forms within Gothic texts such as the natural influence of fear itself upon the victim and the unnatural fear of something supernatural; however, that which seems to create the element of spine-tingling and Gothic is bred mainly in something far more base and real than ghosts or curses. It is the possible which shocks and chills more than the unreal. In the same way that a terrible thought or feeling can be far more fearful than the unimaginable presence of something as otherworldly and unlikely as a curse, so too is Gothic literature defined by the baseness and instinct of humanity. Within these texts, particularly Porphyrias Lover, man himself, has more power in shaping his obsessions than would ordinarily be thought and the fact that emotions, thoughts and feelings can become so twisted and amoral is more greatly unsettling than anything incomprehensible. Human degradation is a cold reality and one which many strive to cover up yet when the mysteries of the human psyche are uncovered, perhaps because of a fearful obsession, the chilling nature of man is overturned.