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- Title
Gothic Tales of the Liberal Nation in Juan Martínez Villergas's Los misterios de Madrid (1844-1845).
- Authors
DELANO, CRISTINA
- Abstract
This article analyses the use of the Gothic mode in Juan Martínez Villergas's Los misterios de Madrid (1844-1845). Villergas's novel belongs to the Spanish urban mystery genre, popular serial novels inspired by Eugène Sue's Les Mystères de Paris. The misterio novels explored contemporary political and social issues through melodramatic storylines. Villergas uses his misterio to retell the story of the First Carlist War and the moderado-progresista conflict as a Gothic tale, with lecherous aristocrats and corrupt priests conspiring to undo the liberal government. The article explores how Villergas uses the Gothic to create a foundational narrative for progressive liberalism. However, the Gothic is the mode of ambiguity and contradiction, and Villergas's use of the mode problematizes the new national narrative and reveals the complexities of the transition from the antiguo régimen to the modern age.
- Subjects
STORY plots; MARTINEZ, Juan, 1942-1993; CARLIST War, Spain, 1833-1840; GOTHIC fiction (Literary genre); LIBERALISM
- Publication
Bulletin of Hispanic Studies (1475-3839), 2016, Vol 93, Issue 3, p269
- ISSN
1475-3839
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.3828/bhs.2016.17