« Lettre à une ombre chère »…: les dark romances en héritage ?
“Letter to a beloved shadow”…: Dark Romances in Heritance?

Author(s): Isabelle Rachel Casta
Subject(s): Cultural Essay
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Keywords: dark fantasy; hybridization; love object; metamorphosis; violent passion;
Summary/Abstract: The genres of the imaginary multiply according to two models: genealogy or hybridization; some themes; or engrams; combine the paths of the two trials by combining the legacy of black romanticism; and the mythical embroidery of dark fantasy... Bit‑ lit reclaims and recycles; for example; the great universals of L’Amour and the West; while creating the more and more distinct star‑ crossed lovers – most often characterized by their vampiric nature.Indeed; American fantasy writes about a couple’s dance by following two totally opposite narrative regimes: all that is addressed to the youth is romantic; chaste; marked by beautiful and strong feelings; everything for adults is much rawer; with a rather explosive mix of kitsch and trash; characteristic of mass‑produced steamy novels; which shares the readership market with the holders of a very strong sentimental conventionalism. By analyzing some great vampire series; and some novels rich in “gaslight romance”; I aim to show how the recent stereotypical “gritty” changes by introducing a skillful mix of yesterday’s techniques; transposed into today’s perspective.

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