Response 1

I will be honest, this is the first time I’ve read a Gothic novel and I must say that it was very intriguing and funny at the same time. Although, I felt really sorry for Conrad since he was killed so young and unexpectedly and he didn’t really have a say either. He was only told by his father Manfred, that he had arranged a marriage for him and Isabella and whether he liked it or not, he had to go along with him. Manfred in the other hand was a very vengeful and selfish character. I felt like he never showed emotions besides maybe just rage. The only reason he wanted to marry Isabella was because he wanted to produce an heir in his family lineage. I mean, otherwise if he really loved Isabella, why didn’t he divorce Hippolita from the very beginning? He was just eager to gain power. And as for Matilda, I truly thought that her character was going to play a much more significant role due to the fact that in the beginning of the story, her beauty and virginity were brought up to truly represent her conduct. She wanted to maintain herself that way, but I just felt that her conduct seemed very naive to me. She fell in love with Theodore because of a resemblance he had with a picture of Alfonso (Theodore’s grandfather). It sounds a bit absurd to me, but nearly everything that happens makes no sense in the story. But I guess it’s all part of the gothic elements regarding the damsel in distress (which would be Isabella in this case)  and all the ghostly appearances and tragedies occurring all of a sudden. This gothic piece was very peculiarly interesting to read, and I hope that the other novels turn out to be similar.