Temačni akademski roman: Opredelitev žanra

This Master’s thesis is an analysis of Dark Academia literature. Dark Academia is a trend that originated from Donna Tartt’s novel The Secret History and manifests in various forms: as an aesthetic, subculture, and in film, music, and literature. In my thesis, I describe what Dark Academia is, its origin, and the reasons for its popularity. I then attempt to place it within literary theory. The thesis outlines the main characteristics of Dark Academia novels (academic setting, student outsider in a tight-knit friendship group, themes of death and murder, obsession within a secret society, social critique, and elements of fantasy) with the support of five novels. Additionally, I summarize the characteristics of the campus novel genre and compare it to Dark Academia novels. Finally, this thesis examines the criticism directed towards Dark Academia novels before concluding that the genre deserves more recognition.