L’espace anxiogène dans La Meute de Serge Brussolo sur l’exemple de la figure de la demeure noire
Anxiogenic Space in Serge Brussolo’s La Meute on the Example of Black Dwelling (fr. demeure noire)

Author(s): Aleksandra Bogusławska
Subject(s): Studies of Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Keywords: gothic novel; black novel; neogothic novel; literary horror fiction; fear; anxiogenic space; black dwelling; Serge Brussolo;
Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to analyze the space presented in Serge Brussolo’s novel La Meute (1990) as an example of anxiogenic space with a specific emphasis put on its multiple attributes related to the black dwelling (fr. demeure noire), a characteristic figure developed by the horror fiction genre. The sensation of fear is obtained through the attribution to the space of the house of the protagonist the anxiogenic features already present in the first texts of the genre initiated by Horace Walpole, namely the gothic novel, such as: the atmosphere of hostility, the connection with a macabre past, the relationship with death, the isolation of civilization, enclosed space. In La Meute, there are also references to the innovative features characterizing the neogothic space. Thus, by choosing the location of the haunted house in the Parisian metropolis, Serge Brussolo resorts to the topos of the giant city, representing a daily and banal space becoming the scene of violent events, inexplicable by the laws of terrestrial reality. Space attracts the characters and exerts an evil influence on their spirits generating a relationship of submission and mental dependence. Thus presented, linking traditional and innovative traits the space in Serge Brussolo’s La Meute represents an anxiogenic space par excellence.

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