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Burke’s definition of the sublime can be mostly related to physiological and psychological
responses to traumatic experiences which “excite the ideas of pain and danger” (Section VII). As
shown in his work “A Philosophical Inquiry into the Origin of Our Ideas of the Sublime and the
Beautiful”, composed in 1756, many characteristics build on the sublime experience; but the
idea that feelings of pain are exponentially stronger than those of pleasure seems to persist
through the ideology of the sublime. In Section VII, Burke states, “When danger or pain press
too nearly, they are incapable of giving any delight, and are simply terrible…”, showing that once
an idea of terror enters the brain, it is hard to cognitively think of anything else that surrounds a
person. An experience of the sublime overwhelms a person, and any other thoughts or feelings
that may enter into a person’s head are disregarded. It is almost as if the thoughts of pain and
terror that make up a sublime experience dominate over any other emotions or thoughts that
may take away from the displeasure found in that particular experience. It is as if the
boundaries between fiction and nonfiction are not important in the sublime, but that fictional
and nonfictional events demonstrate similar responses. It’s the physiological response, or the
mechanical response, that is exemplified first, followed by the psychological reasoning for such
an event. It can be considered a state of cognitive disability, overwhelming a person into a state
of terror with no mental response to the event that is occurring.
Burke’s work also suggests that a sublime experience can be a result of a mechanism laid out in
front of a person, but such an experience is too complicated to comprehend. The effort that is
needed to uncover the workings of nature can cause sublime experience, which is evident in
Walpole’s “Castle of Otranto”, playing out the sublime experience through Manfred. Manfred’s
son, Conrad, was killed by a giant helmet which abruptly appeared from the sky and
dismembered Conrad’s body. Like Burke suggests, feeling of sublime starts with the
physiological reaction, which Manfred shows when he “seemed less attentive to his loss, than
buried in mediation on the stupendous object that had occasioned it” (p.19). Manfred cannot
grasp the idea of the giant helmet, implying that he was cognitively disabled for a moment in
time. But, as Burke’s definition of the sublime would suggest, the “danger and pain press too
nearly” (Section VII), that Manfred was incapable of any delight, nor was he able to make sense
of anything to come. Because he was trying to make sure his castle was safe, trying to obtain a
wife to give him an heir, Manfred was possibly going about it all in the wrong direction. This is
because it was never clear that the first event that put Manfred into the feeling of sublime was
never mentally figured out. This psychological discrepancy between the real and fiction was
inevitably his downfall. The lack of understanding of such a perplex event fogged Manfred’s
judgment and perceptions for the rest of the novel, as he tried to figure out steps to recovery of
the accident without actually figuring out the possibilities that could have been reasoned out.
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“… and seemed less attentive to his loss, than buried in mediation on the stupendous
object that had occasioned it.” (p.19).
The feelings of pain are exponentially stronger than those of pleasure, as there are few routes to
the feeling of displeasure.
o “When danger or pain press too nearly, they are incapable of giving any delight, and are
simply terrible…” (Section VII).
Example: Castle of Otranto. When Conrad dies, Manfred takes time to himself to be wonder
why he actually died. He cannot grasp the idea of the giant helmet, implying that he was
cognitively disabled for a moment in time. But as Burke’s definition of the sublime would
suggest, the “danger and pain press too nearly” that Manfred was incapable of any delight, nor
was he able to make sense of anything to come. Because he was trying to make sure his castle
was safe, trying to obtain a wife to give him an heir, Manfred was possibly going about it all in
the wrong direction. This is because it was never clear that the first event that put Manfred into
the feeling of sublime was never mentally figured out. This psychological discrepancy between
the real and fiction was inevitably his downfall. The lack of understanding of such a perplex
event fogged Manfred’s judgment and perceptions for the rest of the novel, as he tried to figure
out steps to recovery of the accident without actually figuring out the possibilities that could
have been reasoned out.
There seems to be a lack of reasoning throughout “The Castle of Otranto”. This may be because
of there being too many explanations that Manfred postulates for every event that comes
before him.
Manfred’s rational in the novel is unclear, as he goes from an enlightened mode of thinking to a
supernatural mode.