| 词源 |
penny dreadful. The American equivalent of the British term penny dreadful is dime novel, which is purely a historical term today. However, the British still use penny dreadful for any thrilling or romantic novel that is considered trashy, even though such works sell for far more than the penny they cost in the 19th century. The original cheap penny dreadfuls and dime novels of yesteryear were replaced by pulp novels, which were themselves replaced by cheap paperbacks and television. |