Gothic Disruption of Internal and External Narrative in Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban and Mary Poppins

We often picture children’s books that contain fantastical nannies or magical schools as wholesome narratives where good triumphs over evil in straightforward storylines. However, closer examination reveals gothic themes in books like Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban and Mary Poppins. Both novels explore experiences of encountering the forgotten and unfamiliar, utilizing the gothic framework of the Unheimlich (The Uncanny) and Gothic disruption of personal spaces. This paper analyzes how gothic elements refine the protagonists’ identities, arguing that while Harry Potter ultimately embraces a unique self-concept through his encounters with gothic disruptions, Mary Poppins integrates the uncanny into everyday middle-class life.