Key Issues Recurring Through the Bloody Chamber

Fairytale elements – “gobble you up,” “what big eyes you have.”

Feminism – role of women in society

Musicality – technical terms, “high soprano,” “fugue.”
Onomatopoeia “purr,” “clang.”

Entrapment – The Erl-King, cages. Wolf Alice, marginalisation “not understand their language.”

Superstition – “ghosts, hobgoblin, ogres,” “pentacle.”

Fate/game – tarot cards, “shall we make a game of it.”

Happy ending? – Endings tend to be tragic and ominous, but Carter presents it as a happy ending.

Nature – Winter setting reflects emotions of characters, “cold hearts,” “cold weather.”

Demonic – “incarnate”