The poetry Radcliffe interposes into the novel is something I would almost equate to the lack of dialogue in the first half of the novel. Poetry is vague and open to a variety of interpretations, and I believe can be just as vague as actions. The quotes are not the characters' direct thoughts, but rather forewarnings in the beginning of the chapters, or a song being sung. Because the poems are not exactly direct thoughts, the meanings leave room for interpretation and even deception. I believe that in employing the quotations and poetry excerpts, Radcliffe is adding mystery to the novel.
Originally, I considered the lack of dialogue in the beginning of the novel to be a way to allow for future character development and deception. Body language can easily be misinterpreted and if the reader believes Adeline is a meek, frantic girl, they will be surprised to see her later capable of deception. So in my opinion, the poetry is doing a similiar thing: Forcing the reader into profound thought about what the excerpt means in relation to the novel without directly revealing the characters' motives.
I agree, I think this goes back to my comment on indirect discourse. I stated that indirect discourse created a mystery in the text that allowed open interpretations. I do agree that the poetry creates the same accent and adds to the Gothic. Because Radcliffe was such a realist, at least in the end I think this is what made the novel Gothic.
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