Isolation in Gothic Literature
Both parts of the damsel-in-distress/hero equations are part of the isolation game. The antihero is inherently misunderstood and the stock damsel-in-distress rarely has family or friends who care about her. Often, the lady in question would escape from one danger only to find in their source of escape a new threat. Oops.
Why were the Gothics so focused on isolation? Well, you'll remember that the Romantics (who the Gothics grew out of) were all about the individual—and individuals…are isolated. Add to that the increasing sense of change and the nostalgia for a Gothic version of the Medieval period that they dreamed up, these folks felt quite adrift in their own world.
Chew on This
What's lonelier than a sensitive Romantic poet? This doctor and monster duo that the wife of a Romantic poet dreamed up. Check out how Mary Shelley's Frankenstein deals with two kinds of isolation: man alone even within society and man's creation without society. Frankenstein is often considered Gothic-Romantic—makes sense to us.
There's precious little lonelier than sailing the high seas with no one to talk to but your dead crew members. Here's a double whammy: how do you think the supernatural mingled with the setting impact the sense of isolation in The Rime of the Ancient Mariner?