"All this he saw, for one moment breathless and intense, vivid on the morning sky; and still, as he looked, he lived; and still, as he lived, he wondered."

― Kenneth Grahame, The Wind in the Willows

A Basic Plot: Overcoming the Monster

Well, since we’re about to enter the spookiest season and since I’m after all writing a Gothic novel, I thought I could start with one of the oldest tropes in the world: the story in which the hero overcomes a hideous monster.
According to Christopher Booker and his Seven Basic Plots, this is not only one of the older plots but perhaps the oldest: the Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh is often considered the earliest written story in the world and revolves around the journey of our hero to the lair of the great and evil Humbaba, to whom we own the ruin that’s fallen over Uruk. Our hero confronts the monster and, as it usually happens, he wins.
But what constitutes this trope and why do we find it appealing?
Let’s try and find out.
books and literature

The Bicentennial Man (and other stories)

If not for the single story where they cure depression by blasting jazz against brainwaves (not how depression works, I’m afraid), one of the best collections I’ve read so far. It has the sequel of “Marooned off Vesta”, one of Asimov’s the best stories of

Read More »
July 12, 2026 9:00 am
books and literature

Rebecca Ferrier’s The Salt Bind

Rebecca Ferrier’s The Salt Bind is a historical fantasy novel, set on the storm-lashed Cornish coast and steeped in folklore, sea magic, and women’s lives on the edge of the sea. It follows Kensa — daughter of a smuggler and with a regularly-complicated relationship with

Read More »
July 11, 2026 9:00 am
art and fashion

Andrea Pazienza — They Don’t Always Die

At the beginning of this month, I was in Rome with some friends: we had heard that Danny Elfman himself was going to be on stage at the Auditorium, performing some pieces from his soundtracks, and we’re hardcore fans (I have mixed feelings about the

Read More »
July 10, 2026 9:00 am
Load More
Share on LinkedIn
Throw on Reddit
Roll on Tumblr
Mail it
No Comments

Post A Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

RELATED POSTS

The Bicentennial Man (and other stories)

July 12, 2026

If not for the single story where they cure depression by blasting jazz against brainwaves (not how depression works, I’m afraid), one of the best collections I’ve read so far. It has the sequel of “Marooned off Vesta”, one of Asimov’s the best stories of

Read More

Rebecca Ferrier’s The Salt Bind

July 11, 2026

Rebecca Ferrier’s The Salt Bind is a historical fantasy novel, set on the storm-lashed Cornish coast and steeped in folklore, sea magic, and women’s lives on the edge of the sea. It follows Kensa — daughter of a smuggler and with a regularly-complicated relationship with

Read More

Andrea Pazienza — They Don’t Always Die

July 10, 2026

At the beginning of this month, I was in Rome with some friends: we had heard that Danny Elfman himself was going to be on stage at the Auditorium, performing some pieces from his soundtracks, and we’re hardcore fans (I have mixed feelings about the

Read More