Exploring the psychological and political implications of Gothic fiction, Valdine Clemens focuses on some major works in the tradition: The Castle of Otranto, Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dracula, The Shining, and Alien. She applies both psychoanalytic theory and sociohistorical contexts to offer a fresh approach to Gothic fiction, presenting new insights both about how such novels "work" and about their cultural concerns.

Clemens argues that by stimulating a sense of primordial fear in readers, Gothic horror dramatically calls attention to collective and attitudinal problems...