For many, saying or hearing the word romance evokes numerous stereotypical and prejudicial definitions and emotions. The main reason this probably happens is because romance sounds a lot like romance. The similarity of the sounds and spellings of the two words may lead one to think that the two words mean the same thing or are closely related. While romance and romanticism share some similarities in spelling and pronunciation, they couldn't be more different. In the Merriam Webster Dictionary, romance is defined as "a love story." The Romantic period was not necessarily a time of true romance and love stories, although love was written about, but was instead a time of extreme emotions expressed in many different ways. One of the many ways emotion was expressed was through the use of supernatural and gothic literature and much of it contained horrific subject matter for the time in which it was written, making it anything but romantic. Expressions of thought and emotion were shown through horror and the supernatural as much as emotion was expressed through love and romance. Many authors during the Romantic period presented works "dealing with the supernatural, the strange, and the horrific" (Britannica Online Encyclopedia). In many ways, Gothic tales of horror and suspense defined the Romantic period as much as any other type of literature of the time. Many of the great Romantic authors wrote Gothic literature at some point in their literary careers and some even created their own literary legacies. , perhaps unintentionally, with their tales of horror and suspense. One of the most important authors of the Romantic period, now well known for creating one of the greatest literary masterpieces... middle of paper... New York: Fall River, 2008. Ix-Xii. Print.Hellraiser. Director Clive Barker. Perf. Ashley Laurence and Doug Bradley. New World Pictures, 1987. DVD."Quotes by Herman Melville." Quotes and quotes on BrainyQuote. Network. December 3, 2010. .Huston, Kristin N. "Percy Shelley and Lord Byron." UMKC campus, Kansas City. September 20, 2010. Lecture.Huston, Kristin N. “Romanticism.” UMKC campus, Kansas City. 25 August 2010. Conference. "Romanticism". definitely 3. The Merriam Webster dictionary. 11th ed. Springfield: Merriam-Webster, Incorporated, 2004. 630. Print."Romanticism - Encyclopedia Britannica Online." Encyclopedia - Encyclopedia Britannica online. Network. 3 December 2010. .Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein. New York: Barnes & Noble Classics, 2003. Print.