Northanger Abbey

Many literary critics have said Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey critiques the Gothic novel. Having only read the first 58 pages of Northanger Abbey, hardly any Gothic elements are mentioned, but these elements are expected to appear in the second half of the novel. Despite the lack of themes and elements in the first half, Austen begins her critique through the character Catherine Morland. Catherine Morland is a young woman of seventeen who has grown up and spent her entire life in the country. Catherine's features are plain but she is described as almost pretty. The narrator also mentions that as a child she was a tomboy but is now paying closer attention to her looks and has developed a love of reading, especially Gothic novels. Catherine is very naive and innocent, her opinion and view of the world comes from her limited education and the novels she has read. When Catherine goes to Bath with the Allen's it is almost as though she envisions herself in a Gothic novel. The Gothic novels Catherine has read have given her unrealistic expectations about what will happen, and who she will meet during her trip to the busy town of Bath.
Austen begins her critique by inventing characters of supposed interior motives for her character Catherine to imagine and invent. Catherine envisions herself in a Gothic novel by creating typical characters of Gothic novels from the actual people that she meets. For example Catherine is introduced to Isabella Thorpe and the two instantly become best friends. The relationship between Isabella and Catherine is reminiscent of the relationship between Isabella and Matilda in the novel The Castle of Otranto, by Horace Walpole. Both Isabellas are a little over the top and depict themselves as "woe as me what would I do without you" but neither girl is really in need of her friend and is actually in competition with the other girl. In The Castle of Otranto Isabella competes with Matilda for the love of Theodore and in Northanger Abbey Isabella puts herself in competition with Catherine because she wants to be seen as the prettier girl.
Another example of how Austen portrays the elements of a Gothic novel through the character Catherine is by developing Catherine's relationship with Mr. Thorpe. At first Catherine likes Mr. Thorpe because he compliments her but as she gets to know him she realizes that he is actually rude and pompous. In Catherine's mind she is setting Mr. Thorpe up to be the villain of her personal Gothic story. For example, how he won't stop the carriage when she asks him to, so that she can actually go on her previous engagement with Mr. Tilney. Catherine sets up Mr. Thorpe as the villain who will try and keep her away from her true love.
In addition to the characters Catherine creates out of Isabella and Mr. Thorpe, Catherine also does this with Mr. Tilney. Catherine falls in love with Mr. Tilney immediately. Catherine is setting up Mr. Tilney the hero of her story, the one who will save her from the evil Mr. Thorpe and his manipulative over the top sister.
Austen's invention of Catherine, is interesting. From a psychological point of view Catherine's vision of her trip to Bath as a Gothic novel, is probably a result from her love of reading Gothic novels and longing to be like the characters in the stories.