Of all the early Gothic writers, one woman in particular had a considerable impact on the genre. The ‘Great Enchantress’ of her age, Ann Radcliffe established many of the tropes of the Gothic, as well as providing literary weight to a genre that was regarded by many as mere sensationalist fiction. In fact, Sir Walter Scott praised her as “the first poetess of romantic fiction” and she was considered by her contemporaries to be as significant as Shakespeare and Milton.
