Ann Ward Radcliffe

The Mysteries of Udolpho Ann Ward Radcliffe

The Mysteries of Udolpho is often cited as a quintessential Gothic novel. It was written by English author Ann Radcliffe and became her most popular novel after its first publication in 1794. The novel is replete with incidents of physical and psychological terror; remote, crumbling castles; seemingly supernatural events; a brooding, scheming villain; and a persecuted heroine. There are also extensive descriptions of exotic landscapes in the Pyrenees and Apennines, and of Venice. Set in 1584 in southern France and northern Italy, the novel focuses on Emily St. Aubert, a young French woman who is orphaned after the death of her father. Emily is forced by her father's wishes to live with her aunt, Madame Cheron, who marries Montoni, a dubious nobleman from Italy. Montoni brings Emily and her aunt to his remote castle of Udolpho. The two women suffer imprisonment in the castle, and Madame Cheron dies of a severe illness caused by her husband's harshness. Emily is left alone in the hands of the sadic Montoni.