Neo-victorian cannibalism: A theory of contemporary adaptations

Tammy Lai Ming Ho*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Book/ReportBook or reportpeer-review

    6 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    This Pivot examines a body of contemporary neo-Victorian novels whose uneasy relationship with the past can be theorised in terms of aggressive eating, including cannibalism. Not only is the imagery of eating repeatedly used by critics to comprehend neo-Victorian literature, the theme of cannibalism itself also appears overtly or implicitly in a number of the novels and their Victorian prototypes, thereby mirroring the cannibalistic relationship between the contemporary and the Victorian. Tammy Lai-Ming Ho argues that aggressive eating or cannibalism can be seen as a pathological and defining characteristic of neo-Victorian fiction, demonstrating how cannibalism provides a framework for understanding the genre’s origin, its conflicted, ambivalent and violent relationship with its Victorian predecessors and the grotesque and gothic effects that it generates in its fiction.

    Original languageEnglish
    PublisherPalgrave Macmillan
    Number of pages150
    ISBN (Electronic)9783030025595
    ISBN (Print)9783030025588
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2019

    Scopus Subject Areas

    • Arts and Humanities(all)

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Neo-victorian cannibalism: A theory of contemporary adaptations'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this