Gothic Literature first became popular during the 18th -19th century as a reaction against the Age of Reason, which is the rise of science and rationalism. It was about the supernatural, morality, anxiety, and more overly, anything but the normal. It offered the reader a sense of unrealism, and to escape reality and into their own worlds. It was a world of nightmare which was often created by the reader. Gothic Literature is divided into two sections: Terror and Horror. The difference between Terror and Horror is the awful apprehension and sickening realization of something. When we think of Horror, it is usually things that aren't necessarily scary, but are more capable of shocking us, it is more graphical. Terror is more subtle, it builds up fear and apprehension, it doesn't show much, but can affect us mentally. So Terror is generally mental, and Horror is more physical. Buffy uses both Terror and Horror, the show uses horror as its basic mode because it's based on the traditions of horror films, the vampires, ghosts and monsters are usually shown and are pretty ugly.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV series)
Trade paperback cover of Buffy: Season Eight Volum...
English: The entertitle of Buffy made on Paint.However, the show also uses terror frequently, like when Angelus (who is the bad doppelganger of Angel), mentally tortures her in the episode "Passion" Season 2, he sends her a bundle of black ribboned roses and this makes you think about how psychotic Angelus really is and what he is capable of doing.
Often, the gothic stories reflected back to reality. The Gothic genre fulfilled a social purpose of letting people express their emotions through existentialism reading; it provided an insight on the darker aspect of the world. The Gothic Genre is still as popular today as it was before, even though people are less superstitious and don't get terrified that easy anymore, the Gothic genre provides...