University of Rhode Island DigitalCommons@URI Open Access Dissertations 1992 Out of the Shadows: A Structuralist Approach to Understanding the Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft James A. Anderson University of Rhode Island Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss Recommended Citation Anderson, James A., "Out of the Shadows: A Structuralist Approach to Understanding the Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft" (1992). Open Access Dissertations. Paper 696. https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss/696 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@URI. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@URI. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. OUT OF THE SHADOWS: A STRUCTURALIST APPROACH TO UNDERSTANDING THE FICTION OF H.P. LOVECRAFT BY JAMES A. ANDERSON A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN ENGLISH UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 1992 Abstract Although Howard Phillips Lovecraft (1890-1937) is generally regarded as one of the world's finest writers of horror and science fiction, his work has received little critical attention by mainstream critics. This study takes Lovecraft out of the shadows of literature by shedding light upon his work through a structural analysis of fifteen of his stories. This analysis shows that Lovecraft's fiction, while it may appear fantastic, expresses early twentieth century naturalism in a cosmic context. Part One subjects four of Lovecraft's best known stories to a detailed structural analysis using the theories of Roland Barthes and Gerard Genette to isolate Lovecraft's major themes and narrative techniques.