Characteristics Of Horror Suspense In Literature

Because of his constant use of imagery, Poe is able to create suspense in his writing. An excerpt from Edgar Poe’s story The Tell-Tale Heart states, “It was the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe” (Poe 82). In the story, Poe uses descriptive words which can make the reader experience what is happening. “…the low, stifled sound…” gives the reader an inclination that something bad is about to happen. A part of Poe’s short story The Tell-Tale Heart says, “It was a low, dull, quick sound—much such a sound as a watch makes when enveloped in cotton. I gasped for breath—and yet the officers heard it not. I talked more quickly, more vehemently; but the noise steadily increased” (Poe 84). Yet again, Poe has created a sense of suspense by using words one would be able to experience. “A low, dull, quick sound” is imaginable as well as a little frightening to the reader. Poe uses imagery in his stories to create suspense by involving the reader in his writing.

What is horror? Webster's Collegiate Dictionary gives the primary definition of horror as "a painful and intense fear, dread, or dismay." It stands to reason then that "horror fiction" is fiction that elicits those emotions in the reader. An example of a horror film is "The Shining", directed by Stanley Kubrick. Stanley Kubrick was a well-known director, producer, writer and cinematographer. His films comprised of unique, qualitative scenes that are still memorable but one iconic film in his collection of work is The Shining. Many would disagree and say that The Shining was not his best work and he could have done better yet, there are still those who would say otherwise. This film was not meant to be a “scary pop-up” terror film but

In both the excerpts "Jams" and "Swimming with Nightmares" by Peter Benchley, the author creates suspense in many ways. The author utilizes descriptive words, character's choices, and dangerous situations for creating suspense.

Suspense is a detail that many horror writer use to catch the attention of many readers and keep them holding on till the end. Just as W.F. Harvey does when creating suspense in his story August Heat. Mr. Harvey used three methods to create his suspense for his story, foreshadowing, withholding information, and reversal. With these three methods he is able to make the reader feel like, “ We may even hold our breath without realizing it as we read on eagerly to find out how the story ends”(Source 1).

Suspense is when the author makes the reader, or audience excited or scared for what might happen in the story, or even what will happen to the character next in the story. Suspense might even be something you see or hear that will make you have questions about what will happen next. If there is a cliffhanger at the end of a story, it will leave you with questions wondering what will happen to the characters next. The mood, tone, setting, emotions of character, sound and sight might affect how the story is suspenseful. We all enjoy watching suspenseful movies and reading stories, because they are exciting. It leaves us with questions that the author won't have the answers to in the end, so the author gives us as the audience, the chance to make up their own ending to the story or movie. The author will give you clues throughout the story, to help you fill in questions you might have in the end. This makes it more exciting for the reader and the audience because we get to engage with the characters in the book or movie. The tv series, Stranger Things, is about 4 kids who have to fight off monsters in a little town in Indiana. This TV show is a great example of suspense, and it shows it effectively because, of Foreshadowing, Dilemma, and Dramatic Irony presented throughout the show. With just using those four examples, Stranger Things is a great example of suspense.

Edgar Allan Poe is known for his knowledge of how to build and use suspense, but how does he do it? Poe has done many works in his time as a poet and he has mastered suspense in writing these works. He knows when and how to use suspense. In all of his story you can find at least one sentence of suspense. Edgar Allan Poe uses craft elements like short and choppy sentences, the setting, and very descriptive language to build suspense in his works.

On January 19th, 1809 in Boston, Massachusetts, one of the most influential writers of all time was born. This person was Edgar Allen Poe and his works of literature would change the world of writing forever. Edgar Allen Poe was a master of creating a mood of suspense and exhibited this through two of his stories, “The Raven” and “Cask of Amontillado”, where there was much suspense built through many different methods. Poe creates suspense by using word choice, plot structure, and literary elements.

In the sources the authors talk about suspense in stories they write. The suspense in the story could be how the author doesn’t give full detail or description on one or more characters. In the source “How do horror writers create suspense” by Percy D’Aco it shows that many horror stories often revolve around mayhem and the stuff in nightmares, and that great horror story often reflects a person’s biggest fear. Often authors like to keep the readers in suspense to scare them or make them want to keep reading and see how the story ends.

People reads books and they get their captured by the suspense the authors use to write their stories. Suspense is a key point for most readers it keeps them reading the book to see what happens next. Both Edgar Allan Poe and Richard Connell are very good authors that use a lot of suspense throughout their short stories. Poe’s “Cask of Amontillado” and Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game” are two stories full of suspense. It’s unpredictable, surprising that we can’t figure out what happens next. .Through conflict, setting, and diction Poe and Connell are able to build suspense.

For the sake of the “unity of effect”, Poe uses setting for the purpose of conceiving a sinister mood. As Montresor and Fortunato walked deeper into the catacombs in the Cask of Amontillado, Montresor points out the trickling of the water on the bones. “We are below the river’s bed. The drops of moisture trickle among the bones.” (Cask)The setting is under the surface of the earth, so the audience associates it with with Hell because of the bones that lie around. The bones also make the audience feel that the setting is eery and dangerous because it reminds them of death. This only makes isolation and danger prominent factors in the setting. The mood becomes unpredictable and treacherous, with a sense of fear and dread knowing that something bad will happen to the characters who are away from safety. Under those circumstances, Poe controlled the audience's fear and the diabolical mood using the dark setting.

After evaluating the work of Edgar Allan Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher, he utilizes with imagery to build up the feeling of terror. First of all, the passage is about an ill man, Roderick Usher, who invites his old friend of his to come meet him. In this passage both him and his sister, Madeline Usher, are the last remaining of the Usher race and is diagnosed with an unnatural illness. The narrator begins to feel terror with the supernatural things going on in the house of Usher and the illness of the Ushers. Although the narrator feels the sense of terror from the moment he entered the house, through the use of imagery, Poe is able to bring emotion to the reader. Throughout the passage, the author continues to build up the sense of terror by asserting the image and setting of both the passage and the atmosphere. For instance, he starts the passage by stating “a dull, dark, and a soundless day...clouds hung oppressively low in the heavens” (Poe 194). In relation to the previous quote, the quote illustrates the image of the atmosphere and the setting of the story. In particular, because Poe expresses the sense of terror by describing the atmosphere as dark, quiet, and gloomy, the reader can get an image of the surroundings and get the feeling of the darkness and horror. In addition, according to Poe, during the first glimpse of the house of Usher, the narrator describes it as gloomy and unpleasant. In particular, Poe states “the shades of the evening drew on… a sense of insufferable gloom” (Poe 194). Additionally, the description of the house adds on to the sense of terror that Poe established in the beginning of the story. Based on the past two quotes stated by the author, the reader can begin to picture a dark and dull day with a gloomy house adding on to the darkness. Lastly, in regards to Edgar Allan Poe, the house of Usher is

"The Fall of the House of Usher" by Edgar Allan Poe has a gothic horror story setting. Gothic means that the author emphasizes the mysterious, the horrible, the ghostly and the fear that can be aroused in the reader. Everyone knows that a gothic story or a ghost story will often have a setting that will be in an old, decaying mansion far out in a desolate countryside. The mansion will be filled with cobwebs, strange noises, bats, and an abundance of secret panels and corridors, in which people might be running and screaming in terror. The author uses every literary trick to give us an eerie sensation or to scare us if we hear an unexpected noise. The

When we think about horror, we think about death and bad things happening to good people. Horror gives a face to material that generally does not have a face. It gets our blood flowing and you cannot stop thinking about it. When is the next bad thing going to happen? Who is it going to happen to? It allows our minds to be creative and picture what we want. It kind of follows the idea that we are not at the top of the food chain like we always are and most people find that scary. Matthew Lewis does a wonderful job of depicting horror in The Monk.

The setting presented in this story has a very dark and gloomy atmosphere which has been used as a technique to help outline the scene. It is set in the one location; a bedroom. Poe describes the room as being “black as pitch with the thick darkness,” which deepens the effect of terror. The night setting gives the text an eerie feel as it focuses on the horrors of night time. This horror creates a noticeable impact which is recognisable when the victim cried out “who’s there?” against the backdrop of frighteningly still silence. Ultimately, the way in which Poe’s story is set builds anxiety and fear in the reader.

As a master of short stories of horror, Edgar Allan Poe is knowledgeable, learned and imaginative. He could skillfully manipulate the words in his literary works to create everything people can think of. The masterful use of the symbols, objects intensify the readers’ nerve as the typical elements of horror in Poe’s short stories, and therefore it is also a feature which makes Poe 's stories different from other writers.