<P> In the second and subsequent editions, Walpole acknowledges authorship of his work, writing: "The favourable manner in which this little piece has been received by the public, calls upon the author to explain the grounds on which he composed it" as "an attempt to blend the two kinds of romance, the ancient and the modern . In the former all was imagination and improbability: in the latter, nature is always intended to be, and sometimes has been, copied with success ...". There was some debate at the time about the function of literature, that is, whether or not works of fiction should be representative of life, or more purely imaginative (i.e. natural vs. romantic). The first edition was well received by some reviewers who understood the novel as belonging to medieval fiction, "between 1095, the era of the First Crusade, and 1243, the date of the last", as the first preface states; and some referred to Walpole as an "ingenious translator". Following Walpole's admission of authorship, however, many critics were loath to lavish much praise on the work and dismissed it as absurd, fluffy, romantic fiction . </P> <P> In his 1924 edition of The Castle of Otranto, Montague Summers showed that the life story of Manfred of Sicily inspired some details of the plot . The real medieval castle of Otranto was among Manfred's possessions . </P> <P> The Castle of Otranto tells the story of Manfred, lord of the castle, and his family . The book begins on the wedding - day of his sickly son Conrad and princess Isabella . Shortly before the wedding, however, Conrad is crushed to death by a gigantic helmet that falls on him from above . This inexplicable event is particularly ominous in light of an ancient prophecy, "that the castle and lordship of Otranto should pass from the present family, whenever the real owner should be grown too large to inhabit it". Manfred, terrified that Conrad's death signals the beginning of the end for his line, resolves to avert destruction by marrying Isabella himself while divorcing his current wife Hippolita, who he feels has failed to bear him a proper heir . </P> <P> However, as Manfred attempts to marry Isabella, she escapes to a church with the aid of a peasant named Theodore . Manfred orders Theodore's death while talking to the friar Jerome, who ensured Isabella's safety in the church . When Theodore removes his shirt to be killed, Jerome recognizes a marking below his shoulder and identifies Theodore as his own son . Jerome begs for his son's life, but Manfred says Jerome must either give up the princess or his son's life . They are interrupted by a trumpet and the entrance of knights from another kingdom who want to deliver Isabella . This leads the knights and Manfred to race to find Isabella . </P>

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