The Thirteenth Tale

Gothic literature gained popularity as a genre during the 19th century, and some of the most famous works of gothic literature are mentioned in The Thirteenth Tale, including Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre and Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights. Gothic novels share many of the same features, conventions, and tropes that Setterfield uses throughout The Thirteenth Tale to draw parallels between her novel and classic works of gothic literature.

One important feature of gothic literature is setting. Gothic novels are often set in a crumbling castle or ruin. In the case of The Thirteenth Tale, Setterfield uses Vida’s endless and labyrinthine garden to create the same sensation at her home. In addition, the fire-damaged ruin of Angelfield draws parallels to gothic convention, specifically to Jane Eyre, in which the Thornfield estate is burned to the ground. In addition, Setterfield also sets her novel in Yorkshire, specifically on the moors, the site of the novels Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, among others, drawing immediate comparison to those works.

These elements of setting contribute to another gothic convention, which emphasizes an air of mystery, laden with danger and suspense. This sensation is cultivated through many elements, but prominent among them is the weather. In novels such as Jane Eyre, the weather or environment is often a reflection of the protagonist’s state of mind. Setterfield uses this strategy with her constant reference to the perpetual mist that surrounds Vida’s estate, which Margaret refers to as “endless twilight” (265). This twilight is a darkened version of the mist that has been clouding Margaret’s vision as she sinks deeper into Vida’s mysterious story. It also contrasts with Margaret’s moments of clarity, as she wakes one night to clear moonlight so bright that she initially believes it is daytime. This moonlight leads her out into the garden, where she finds Emmeline and begins to unravel the truth behind Vida’s story. Another moment of clarity she experiences comes when, after being ill and facing feverish visions of Vida’s story, as well as her own twin, Margaret wakes to a clear, cloudless day, as if she has been reborn with new clarity of mind.

Gothic literature also has conventions that apply to the characters that appear in the novel, including the tropes of the “madwoman” and the villain. Setterfield uses both of these characters in her novel. Through her portrayal of Adeline as a “madwoman” who eventually sets fire to Angelfield, Setterfield evokes comparison to Rochester’s wife, Bertha, in Jane Eyre, who is seen as unpredictable and is kept hidden in the attic, only to escape later and set fire to the estate. In addition, Emmeline’s secret existence at Vida’s house and Margaret’s discovery of her parallels Jane’s discovery of Bertha in Jane Eyre. Setterfield also creates the character of Charlie to serve as a gothic villain, one who is pure evil, often almost demonic. As a boy, Charlie terrorizes the household staff of Angelfield and, as a young man, he rapes multiple women, eventually resulting in Vida’s birth. Although he is absent for most of the novel, Charlie’s presence at Angelfield is overwhelming and constant until his disappearance.

Supernatural events also abound in gothic novels, however, they frequently turn out to have natural explanations. When Margaret first meets Aurelius, she initially believes she is alone at Angelfield. The ruin is eerie, and so when the doorknob turns under her hand, she flees, imagining a “skeleton or monster” (133), but in fact, the person on the other side of the door is quite human. She meets Aurelius, a gentle man who is destined to become a friend. In another example, when Hester sees Emmeline and Adeline playing together, and then finds Adeline at the doctor’s house, she is convinced she has seen a ghost—but as the novel later reveals, the ghost child is actually the third girl, Vida. These references, as well as her use of other common gothic conventions, are used to great effect by Setterfield to create a modern gothic novel that resonates for the reader as a 19th-century gothic novel would.