The Burden of Inheritance: An Analysis of Generational Sin in The Castle of Otranto Jessie Hwang College

The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole is hailed as the first novel of the Gothic genre. Accordingly, the novel contains many tropes found in gothic literature, such as the pious princess and the evil prince. In the novel, male characters do appear to have a more odious disposition than female characters do, but by observing the character development of Theodore and Isabella, we discover that male characters are in fact victims of the corruptive effects of inheriting power, which affect both male and female characters and reflect the repetitive nature of generational sin.

In the novel, female characters mostly display positive qualities, such as sympathy, piety, and obedience. For example, Isabella, “treated by Hippolita like a daughter,” gratefully returns her “tenderness with equal duty and affection” (17). Further, even after Manfred fatally wounds Matilda, not only does she readily forgive him, she also urges her mother to do the same: “Forgive him, dearest mother—forgive him my death—it was an error” (107). Throughout the novel, the visible ease with which female characters seem to forgive offenses, endure suffering, and obey commands establishes their superior moral character.

While mothers and daughters seem equally...