Abstract
Limbs allow the body to traverse boundaries, either by reaching or physically moving through space. Broken or incapacitated limbs prevent such movement and can horrify, especially where breaks are visible. This chapter discusses immobility as a result of broken limbs, focusing on Stephen King’s novel Misery (1987) and its 1990 film adaptation. The Gothic nature of paralysed limbs is explored through a discussion of the films What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) and Monkey Shines (1988). Phantom limbs are considered with a focus on the films The Unknown (1927) and Boxing Helena (1993). Replacement limbs and their relationship to the human as hybrid are discussed in Planet Terror (2007) and Army of Darkness (1992). Sentient limbs are explored in the 2010 novel The Unnamed.
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Conrich, I., Sedgwick, L. (2017). Feet and Limbs. In: Gothic Dissections in Film and Literature. Palgrave Gothic. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-30358-5_10
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-30358-5_10
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