Gothic Black Feminism & Gothic Psychotherapy: An Emerging Theory and Praxis

Interdisciplinary literature has utilized the Gothic to critique the impact of power, oppression, and violence on the human condition, yet psychology remains noticeably absent from the conversation. In this theoretical article, I explore the potential use of the Gothic tradition and Black feminist thought (i.e., Gothic Black feminism) to reconceptualize and treat the Black womxn's madness. This article is organized into six overarching sections: (1) The Birth of the Gothic: Introduction to an Interdisciplinary Theory, (2) Gothic Psychotherapy: An Introduction to Praxis, (3) The Gothic Body: Clinical Conceptualization, (4) Soul Work: Five Observances of a Soul-Level Treatment, (5) Discussions on Reclaiming Radicalism: Gothic Departures From a Colonized Field, and (6) Afterbirth: Gothic Conclusions. Within this work, I describe the Gothic Black feminist existential psychodynamics that undergird Gothic psychotherapy and provide brief clinical vignettes to demonstrate its clinical application. I present the four key components of the Gothic psychotherapeutic approach: (1) The Body: The Quinquepartite Self, (2) The Heart: Gothic Black feminist theory, (3) The Soul: Black womxn's knowing , and (4) The Eye: the five non-sequential observances of Gothic clinical praxis. I also include a description of Gothic co-witnessing as an energetic posture to facilitate the Black womxn's movement toward resurrection and self-repossession. Finally, I conclude with a discussion on the Gothic's convergence and divergence from existing clinical approaches, particularly as it concerns its conceptualization of suicide. Together, this work provides a preliminary but comprehensive introduction to Gothic Black feminist theory and the ongoing development of a Gothic praxis for Black womxn's healing.