The Mysteries of Udolpho novel "The Romance of the Forest", plays a prominent role in Jane Austen's novel "Northanger Abbey", in which an impressionable young woman, after reading Radcliffe's novel, comes to see her friends and acquaintances as Gothic villains and victims with amusing results. "The Mysteries of Udolpho" is a quintessential Gothic romance, replete with incidents of physical and psychological terror; remote, crumbling castles; seemingly supernatural events; a brooding, scheming villain; and a persecuted heroine. Modern editors point out that only about one-third of the novel is set in the eponymous Gothic castle, and that the tone and style vary markedly between sections
Northanger Abbey is constantly checking his watch and that everything at the abbey happens on a strict schedule, which is a marked difference from Catherine's lax attitude that she displayed in Bath. When Catherine is late to a dinner, General Tilney shows his displeasure by pacing back and forth in the dining room while frequently glancing at the clock. Because of the importance of staying on schedule, even when General Tilney is not around, clocks serve as a symbol of his power as Catherine finds herself checking what time it is all the time. As the novel progresses, Catherine finds the discipline