Research Article

OTHERNESS IN THE LADY OF THE HOUSE OF LOVE

ABSTRACT

In her deconstruction and reconstruction of some of the most famous fairytales, Angela Carter not only challenges some of the most enduring concepts and binary oppositions, but she also introduces novel ways of looking at and thinking about cultural phenomena deeply rooted in the Western Culture, in a critique of Western patriarchal society. One of these is the concept of the Other, which she masterfully treats in one of the short stories from The Bloody Chamber collection and that is The Lady of the House of Love. In it, she subverts our notions of who the Other is, how that Other became seen as such and what actually makes them the Other. Late 19th century ideas on Otherness, including those set by our treatment and perception of those who are culturally different from us, influence this representation heavily. Not only culturally, but Angela Carter touches upon ideas of the Other from a philosophical and psychological standpoint as well, and this essay will present these ideas through examples from the story.

Keywords

Angela Carter Otherness the Other vampire The Bloody Chamber