Gothic literature is always evolving, yet the themes of horror, paranormal activity, curses, and the supernatural are all still significant despite the novel's evolution and branching out into subcategories. Even though Gothic literature has evolved over the years, its audience has evolved as well as its definition of what constitutes "horrific." Due to new conceptions and the inquisitive nature of modern readers, the shock impact of these works has decreased. The use of a small boy (Danny) as a conduit to the supernatural is one of the primary aspects Stephen King employs in The Shining, one of the most well-known Gothic tropes and motifs. Younger characters like Danny (who have not had enough life experience yet to doubt the monster under the bed) are most suited in current Gothic literature for conveying feelings about the supernatural and demonstrating their "presence." In order to convey a better level of realism (that which can be explained logically) for modern audiences, the supernatural must be depicted in adult beings using psychological elements. In The Shining, King does an excellent job at achieving this (Smith et al., 76).

There are a lot of unanswered concerns about why the Gothic subgenre is so popular now. "As literates, we aim to match our typical techniques for attaining pleasure in the world and avoiding unpleasure" from the literary work, said Norman N. Holland and Leona F. Sherman in their essay. Scholar's today is obsessed with making connections between what they are reading and their own lives. While reading Horace Walpole's The Castle of Otranto in the mid-eighteenth century and for a while afterward may have surprised and horrified readers, writers need to become more imaginative in their depiction of Gothic tropes and principles after the mid­ twentieth century and onward (Kilgour 45).

Furthermore, Holland and Sherman suggest that "literates can turn their dreams into the kind of significance they often find meaningful-intellectual, social, moral, or artistic.” The transaction is confirmed when a literate "makes sense" of the text. It becomes increasingly difficult for the audience to get excited about the reading if they are unable to develop personal connections to the material. Aside from personal ties, the reader is always looking for rational explanations for an occurrence (Kilgour 89). It's possible for Gothic literature to retain its haunted castles and otherworldly antagonists, but the author must cling to a rational explanation for awful events in order to hold the reader's attention.

Pederasts are 'natural' descendants of pedophiles in an age where the fear of the dead, superstition, and belief in ghosts, demons, and vampires is decreasing; worse, they appear to inspire in us an insatiable want for' more."' Despite the fact that neither Jack nor Wendy Torrance are in any manner pedophiles in The Shining, the idea that adult characters in a Gothic novel might serve as the new "monster" to pique the interest of readers is worth noting. Modern Gothic books like Danny Torrance, which use this newly established cliche, show how the supernatural and feelings of terror can have a significant impact on youngsters (Strengell 224)

A portion of Danny's fear sterns from his shining and Tony, which in turn shows him the more psychological and material horrors that his parents face on a daily basis. "Divorce" first appears in Danny's head as a sign painted in red letters covered in venomous snakes that reads, "parents no longer live together," and "the greatest horror of Danny's life," first through his friend Scotty and then in his parents' thoughts. The shining itself sounds modest in comparison to the truly supernatural (vampires and Frankenstein, for example), but at the same time, it describes a real, logical terror that Jack and Wendy have towards each other, using the supernatural powers of their own child. Adults have a tendency to be less trusting of children than they would be of other adults, which is why King uses Danny to illustrate the supernatural in this instance (Strengell 224).

By using parents and guardians as monsters, Gothic fiction has become more relatable.

Recalling the notion of divorce, Wendy remembers a moment when Danny is "sitting cross­ legged in a kitchen chair, staring at her with his eyes that seemed both fearful and accusatory". Even if Wendy doesn't sound like a classic "monster" in this part in the novel, Danny's reaction to her thoughts of divorce shows her to be a "monster" from the child's perspective. Even if Danny may be related to his shining, Wendy's "evil" through contemplating divorce is still something that may rationally occur in a real-world environment, therefore the monster here is not supernatural (Goldstein 330).

However, it has become increasingly difficult to suspend a reader's believe in the supernatural in a modern environment, as in Gothic literature. Even in the current environment, characters like Danny and Jack, who encounter hedge animals, are constantly on the lookout for a logical explanation. "[Tony] is just an imaginary friend I made up," Danny tells Dr. Edmonds when they first meet in the doctor's office (page 207). "To keep me company" (King), citing Jack and Wendy's logical explanation for Tony's identity. Even after listening to Danny, Dr. Edmonds goes back to the Torrances and tells them that "schizoid conduct is a relatively frequent occurrence in children.”When a grownup sees things that aren't there, we consider him ready for the rubber ring." It's not uncommon for adults to smile "indignantly" when children claim to have seen trolls or vampires lurking around their homes. While an adult may be diagnosed with a mental condition if he or she is unable to rationalize the possibility of the supernatural, adults  tend to look for a rational explanation.

As otherworldly as it may appear, Jack's meeting with hedge creatures is just a sign of his descent into madness. As soon as Jack learned about the Overlook's dark and terrible past through the scrapbook, the Excedrin, and Mr. Ullman's conversation, he became paranoid, and this can be observed in the hedge animals' movements. It appears as though the hedge creatures are moving while Jack isn't looking, highlighting Jack's anxiety that something horrible is lurking in the background. All the animals are put back in their places as if nothing happened when he closes his eyes (as Danny was instructed to do). This idea from Strengell, "the Gothic in King is more than supernatural fun and excitement and excess: by means of this equipment he describes our political, financial, and psychological fears which seem little distinct from those of the original Gothic," essentially that the terror in King's novels is not from fear of hauntings per se, but through psychology, and turning to paranoia.

Even if Gothic fiction has undergone a considerable transition, King manages to include the spirit of a father figure into his work in order to keep ghosts frightening in a contemporary setting. He accomplishes this through the use of a Walpoleian Gothic trope: heredity. All of Danny's actions and the way he shines suggest that he is a metaphorical phantom of Jack and Mark Anthony Torrance. It is often through a character's subconscious that the ghosts in Stephen King's novel seek dominance (Holland 284). Despite the fact that these spirits appear to be real, they are actually manifestations of Jack and Danny's inner fears. Only Tony's appearance and the information he provides to Danny have a logical explanation, making him the most likely candidate to be a ghost. It is mentioned in the article that King uses a "ghost in a character's psyche" when describing Tony, which means that Tony is there in Danny's mind, but only in Danny's memory.

The ladder of inheritance begins with Mark, descends through Jack, and eventually reaches Danny. For example, "Mark Anthony Torrance is linked to Jack whose complete name reads as John Daniel Torrance and then to the youngest of the three, Daniel Anthony Torrance," which is fascinating. This argues that Danny's imaginary companion, the Tony figure, might be made up of these names and more importantly, the three individuals, reinforcing King's belief that the present is a product of the past. From the beginning of their lives, Strengell explains, they had a deep bond. For Jack and Danny to be doomed from the start because of their relationship with Mark, their names serve as emblems of this connection; they are his legacy, and hence his "ghost."

Before the novel, Mark was an alcoholic like Jack, and he was also an abusive father who claimed to "love" his family despite his behavior (Holland 331). Even if he doesn't mean to injure Danny or Wendy, Jack's behavior shows signs of repetition, particularly in his drinking and abuse. Jack and Wendy's worry was portrayed in a "awkward amalgamation," Wendy noticed. When she looks at Danny, she notices "the wiping of the lips." The resemblances in terms of ancestry are extensive. Several lines, such as "take your medicine," that Mark used to say are now heard by Danny on occasion.

Tony can also be a part of this discussion. Danny's observation that Tony is "like looking into a magic mirror and seeing himself in ten years the stamp of his features was that of his father, as if Tony - as if the Daniel Anthony Torrance that would one day be - was a halfling caught between father and son, a ghost of both, a fusi" confirms the similarities between the bloodline - Mark, Jack, and Danny. In this work, Tony constitutes the bulk of the supernatural, since he is the only one of the other debatable beings to appear frequently (like Grady). Tony is the specter of Danny's future self, the person he will be in ten years. There are occasions when Tony's methods of delivering Danny visions can be seen as abusive, such as leading him to room 217 and showing him the vision of the deceased woman, warning him about the Overlook, or even threatening him.

In modern Gothic, the supernatural is more prevalent among children than adults, while older characters are more likely to have psychological reasons for their actions. These changes are a result of changing times and a lack of fear in modern audiences for creatures such as ghost, vampire, and mermaid. However, while Walpole's The Castle of Otranto shocked readers, contemporary Gothic writers like Peter Straub, Harlan Ellison and Stephen King must be more inventive in order to keep Gothic traditions and themes alive. For example, King employs Danny to illustrate the supernatural; and he also utilizes elements like cabin fever, a horrible history around the Overlook, and high risks for Jack to take this caretaker job to instill psychological anxieties in Jack and Wendy. It's a challenging task in our day and age, but he accomplishes it by adapting the Gothic themes of classic literature to a contemporary environment.