"Can Mary fry some fish, Momma..."

According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, Southern Gothic is a literary genre popularized by American writers from the South incorporating uniquely Southern settings and "grotesque, macabre, or fantastic incidents."  William Faulkner, Truman Capote, and Flannery O'Connor popularized the genre.

O'Connor's "Good Country People" is one of my favorite short stories.  The story incorporates deception and physical deformities, and while it is humorous tale, the story contains a disturbing twist. 

Hulga is a representation of O'Connor herself.  

What is it with the South and grotesque deformities?

This archetype still exists.  I can't help but think of Deliverance.

Cue menacing banjo lick...

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When I was thirteen years old, I read Gone with the Wind, Margaret Mitchell's Southern epic.  I also read the vastly inferior sequel, Scarlett.  Rhett butler is the most dynamic character in both novels (His scant presence in the sequel comprises its main fault).  A dashing gentleman and brave warrior, Rhett Butler is chivalry incarnate.  The novel, written in 1936, glorified the South.  Plantations, gentleman, beautiful woman--the South of Gone with the Wind represents American luxury at its finest.  However, it's easy to accumulate wealth with slave labor.  Human rights can stand in the way of prosperity. 

The South paid for its moral depravity, its flagrant disregard for human rights.  Economically and psychologically, the South never recovered from the Civil War.  The Southern gentleman--the Rhett butler archetype--now represents hypocrisy and moral irresponsibility. 

 

The South is the land of the damned.  American Gothic literature, unconsciously or consciously, draws upon the damaged landscape of the South.  

I read somewhere that Hank Williams is the anti-Rhett Butler, the archetypal Southern white man of the 1950's: illiterate, drunk, crippled (Hank suffered from spinal bifida, alcoholism, and depression).

He even possesses a distinct tragic flaw.  His creative powers were fueled by his self-destructive tendencies.  A clean, happy, and sober Hank was unable to thrive creatively.

Hank is Southern Gothic.

As a musical genre, country music is ripe with gothic lyrics and subject matter.  One of my favorite country songs is "Psycho."  Penned by Leon Payne, the song is masterfully interpreted by Elvis Costello, an Irish New Waver (and my favorite lyricist).  The song deals with murder and insanity and possesses a uniquely Southern flavor.