When reading “the Castle of Otranto”, one can find many shocking moments that give us a sense of how people lived during that time. While I was reading reading this book, I felt sad and sorry for the women in this story. It is obvious that the women of Otranto don’t have a say in their lives; they can’t make any decisions in their lives because they have to follow whatever their father or husband say. An example of this situation is when Hippolita was talking to Matilda and Isabella and said the following: “It is not ours to make election for ourselves: heaven, our fathers, and our husbands must decide for us.” This clearly shows the lock of power women faced during this time and how unfair society was when we compared it to today’s society. It gets me scared just to imagine myself living in a trapped life where I can’t make any decisions in my life.
There is also the theme of sorrow in chapter 5 and we can see it in various moments. A perfect example is when Matilda was dying. It was really heartbreaking when Matilda was holding her father and mother’s hands and put both of their hands in her heart. This moment a way of saying to her parents that she loved them. This was really surprising because she loved her father despite how cruel he was to everybody in her family. I was also touched by how Theodore loved Matilda. The way he talked about Matilda was beautiful and shows how much he loves her. There is a moment when he said, “Father, come and unite me to the Princess; she shall be mine! In every other thing , I will dutifully obey you. My life! my adored Matilda!.” When reading these lines, we find the theme of passion because of how desperate he is to be with his adored Matilda and we can also see that he is willing to do whatever it takes to be with her.
