... Counts and imprisoned wives languishing in madness in secret towers. Examples of these novels include Anne Radcliffe's The MYsteries of Udolpho and The Romance of The Forest and later, rather different works such as Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. These novels can ~ viewed as expressing a deep sense of cultural unease, as they were written at a time of great upheaval and metamorphosis when society was changing from an agriculturally based village system to what would become an almost unrecognisable industrial society. Power was passing from the landed gentry to a ~/ money~oriented middle class oligarchy.~The American and French Revolutions had placed fear in the hearts of the ruling classes and draconian measures such as the suspension of Habeas Corpus and widespread censorship were being implemented to attempt to quell revolutionary groups in society.~ People were also witnessing the advancement of a utilitarian industrial society and increasing secularism which threatened to ...

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