Spectres of Masculinity

£37.50 £50.00

Spectres of Masculinity

Name: Spectres of Masculinity
Brand: transcript
Price: 37.50 GBP
Availability: InStock

Manhood in Victorian and Edwardian Ghost Stories, 1860-1914

Written by Anna S. Berger

£37.50 £50.00

Low stock

Why are so many ghost stories narrated by men – and what do these tales reveal about ideas of masculinity? Anna S. Berger explores how Victorian and Edwardian supernatural fiction reflects anxieties around imperial decline, compulsive heterosexuality, domestic instability, and shifting gender roles. From haunted houses to colonial outposts, male protagonists face spectral challenges to the imperial masculine ideal, paternal authority, and male rational control. By drawing on works by authors like Rudyard Kipling, Elizabeth Gaskell, and Arthur Conan Doyle, this study reveals the ghost story as a site where normative masculinity falters – and alternative visions of male identity emerge.

Anna S. Berger is a literary scholar and journalist. She works as a postdoctoral researcher in English didactics at Universität Augsburg and as a journalist for the Schwäbische Zeitung. Previously, she was involved in journalism education at Hochschule Magdeburg-Stendal. Her research focuses on Victorian literature – particularly Gothic literature –, comics and graphic novels, as well as critical media education.

ISBN-13: 9783837679564
Publisher: transcript
Imprint: transcript
Publication date: 11 November 2025
Format: Paperback
Pages: 276
Dimensions: 225 x 148 mm
Language: English