Skills Covered
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Key Terms: What Are Tropes?
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Tropes Are Tools
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The basic definition of a trope is a commonplace or recognizable element of a plot, a theme, a character, or a setting. It's a common convention, one we recognize because it's frequently used. What makes tropes so useful to understand symbolism, for one, is that we recognize that they are fundamentally tools of the trade--and as all tools do, they function to create a larger whole.
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Overview
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The concept of the "other" is an ancient one, maybe one of the oldest. From Cain and Abel to Frankenstein to the creepy twin boys of Goodnight, Mommy, the horrifying community of Get Out, and the figure of the Babadook, the "other" is a key figure of horror and runs the gamut from "terrifying monster outside the realm of human comprehension" to "they are us."
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Lecture Points: The Other in Gothic and Horror
Almost all Gothic and horror deal with the question of "the other." Sometimes the other can be a literal other--an invasive force or figure who's trying to get inside a protected space, a remnant of the past like a ghost, or an actual creature terrorizing one or more people.
What the work itself defines as "other" -- what it immediately means by that term and where it ends up--is crucial for understanding what point or idea the work is communicating about the following basic concerns, among others:
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Key Questions
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Terrifying Figures Outside Human Comprehension
Classic Examples
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Relatable Monsters
Classic Examples
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We Have Met the Enemy, and They Are Us
Classic Examples
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Questions
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Questions About The Other
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