Relier Pairs Themes in Gothic LiteratureVersion en ligne list of themes found in gothic literature par Debra Waldorf 1 Power of Ancestral Sins 2 Rational vs Irrational 3 Struggle between World of Imagination and World of Reason 4 Dangerous Knowledge 5 Sublime Nature 6 Supernatural 7 Powerful Secrets 8 Danger of Science 9 Madness - Your own or others 10 Fear of Machines Difference between what is real and what is not. People playing God A character's madness may reveal a darker reality. Insane characters often speak truths that normal characters wish to deny. Nature is awesome - an anti-depressant! Otherworldly elements: ghosts, aliens, witches, etcetera Keeping secrets involves lack of trust, lies of omission, and outright lies. Knowing how to do something that maybe probably/shouldn't be done Fear of going insane or trouble distinguishing between fiction and nonfiction. Actions that cursed future generations or the fear that they will. The fear that machines will overtake us.