No Rest for the Wicked? Exploring Sleep in Nineteenth-century Gothic Literature

Sleep has long been overlooked in critical literature. It is often viewed as a state of passivity and so, an invalid area of research. However, this thesis argues that the depiction of sleep and sleepers in nineteenth-century gothic literature is reflective of historically-specific anxieties regarding sexuality and gender roles, such as those related to the New Woman, prostitution, and homosexuality. Similarly, concerns regarding urbanisation and scientific progress, particularly in relation to the latter's perceived displacement of religion, are shown to be apparent in the enactment of sleep in gothic narratives.

Theories of sleep and dreaming are examined from a number of perspectives, illustrating the uncertainty which categorises the state. Ahistorical 'social facts' about sleep (predominantly founded in the relatively recent sociological interest in the subject) are shown to be related to nineteenth-century ideas of the state, and how best to enact it. This discussion of sleep chiefly draws on socio-historical readings. However, psychoanalytical ideas are also relevant, particularly in the discussion of dreams, and in relation to the sleeping enactment of repressed desires. In applying multiple critical approaches there is an attempt to develop existing analysis of gothic literature, as well as to contribute an original perspective on the seminal texts studied.

Sleepers in the gothic are considered in terms of their physical appearance, where they sleep, and who they sleep with, and each aspect is shown to embody nineteenth-century attitudes regarding morality and sexuality. Portrayals of sleepers are further analysed in relation to their role in the narratives, and shown to be distinctly gendered, thus offering further understanding of gender roles (and responsibilities) in the gothic. Far from being innocent in their passivity, sleepers are shown to contravene a multitude of social and moral laws without waking, and thus, to contribute to the gothic genre's reputation as a transgressive literature.