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GCSE: Bram Stoker

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  • Marked by Teachers essays 5
  1. Marked by a teacher

    How does Bram stoker manipulate audience response to Jonathan Harker and Dracula in his entopic novel?

    5 star(s)

    Jonathan also comes across as a very precise man as he notes the exact train times down, "should have arrived at 6:46, but the train was an hour late." Bram stoker also puts this across later in the chapter when other times are mentioned. By putting the exact time it emphasises how precise he is. He wants us to see Jonathan this way so that the audience think he is a trustable character, and believe what he is saying. Bram Stoker also portrays Jonathan as a very observant character.

    • Word count: 2315
  2. Marked by a teacher

    Write about Chapter 1 of Bram Stoker's Dracula as an introduction to the rest of the novel.

    4 star(s)

    By giving this information Stoker presents a location for the castle of Dracula, in current day Romania. The date and place "3rd May Bistriz" also gives the reader a clue to Jonathon's current whereabouts and when he wrote that particular entry. Jonathon then continues on to describe everywhere he sees in detail and all the countries he has experienced on his way to his final destination. As he has moved farther east, the country has become wilder and less modern.

    • Word count: 2111
  3. Marked by a teacher

    Dracula adapted by David Calcutt from the novel by Bram Stoker.

    4 star(s)

    He describes them as being "Bathed in a deep red light" and red is the colour of blood. It is also associated with evil and danger. In scene three after Jonathan has arrived at the castle and met Dracula, to convey horror, three hags are added. Adding the hags to the play provides a hypnotic element, like they have put Jonathan under a spell. They use figurative speech and metophorical language when they are talking. An example of this is "The scratch of the spiders leg over the floor." This is used to describe the hags voice. It doesn't really sound like that, it is probably a low rough sounding voice, but describing it like this gives it a supernatural effect.

    • Word count: 2232
3 essays

Conclusion analysis

Good conclusions usually refer back to the question or title and address it directly - for example by using key words from the title.
How well do you think these conclusions address the title or question? Answering these questions should help you find out.

  1. Do they use key words from the title or question?
  2. Do they answer the question directly?
  3. Can you work out the question or title just by reading the conclusion?

  • Discuss Austen's use of the gothic in Northanger Abbey

    "In conclusion, it is evident that Austen wished to be unconventional in writing this novel and wanted the narrator to be the one to make the reader aware of the contrasts of conventional literature and "Northanger Abbey. The narrator and the method in which the story is told are the focus of the story. Although the narrator is not an actual character in the story her presence is known and her opinions are expressed and can be identified by the reader. Jane Austen provides her audience with an alternative form of literature by having a novel focus on how a story can be told as opposed to most novels which traditionally focus on the story itself. Cleverly, by using a likeable character that the implied reader can identify with and relate to, Austen is able to use this character as a model for her extraordinary comparison. 1 Shaw, Narelle. Free Indirect Speech and Jane Austen's 1816 revision of Northanger Abbey. London:Warner 1987. pg 571 2"

  • With close reference to at least three texts compare and contrast four characteristics of Gothic Horror which you consider to be effective.

    "The concept that the reactions of characters initiate more fear in the plot is heightened in 'The Monkey's Paw'. Although a repulsive description of Herbert is included, I find that the father's frightened reaction on even thinking of beholding his dead son is more effective in initiating fear in an audience: "he has been dead ten days, and besides he - I would not tell you else, but - I could only recognise him by his clothing. If he was too terrible for you to see then, how now?" "For God's sake, don't let it in" In 'The Monkey's Paw', the characters to not face the 'monster' and they do in Frankenstein, but I believe that the mystery of his appearance and intent is far more frightening than in Frankenstein. This proves that with a combination of many characteristics of horror, the best horror scene is created. I believe that the supernatural and superstition are best used in conjunction with other characteristics, such as fear of the unknown, extreme behaviour and weather. In Dracula, the supernatural and superstitions are emphasised by the extreme behaviour of the people around."

  • Discuss the relationship between sexuality and cruelty AND/OR or death in any TWO texts.

    "One of the main points I have argued in this essay, is that power and sexual cruelty prevail through conflict. My assertion in Dracula is that conflict is external to vampire existence, whereas in contrast, internal conflicts exist in Interview With The Vampire. Therefore in conclusion, it is essential to say that although both narratives are told in the first person, the viewpoints in the text are endorsed by use of opposing narrative strategies. In Dracula the text is narrated by mortals, therefore the reader is greatly influenced by the mortal perspective. Whilst in contrast, the narrative of Interview With The Vampire is recounted from a vampire's perspective. Accordingly then, Dracula and Interview With The Vampire, present the reader with a textual biased perspective. The narrators present their own ideologies relating to power and sexual cruelty projecting their own identities and environment. As Michel Foucault argues: 'We must conceptualize the deployment of sexuality on the basis of the techniques of power that are contemporary with it (Foucault p.150). Therefore, sexuality and cruelty, operate by reflecting the personal, political and social opinions of their narrators. Consequently, Dracula reflects mortal ethics, in contrast to Interview With The Vampire, which through a single narrative is unmistakably opinionated but applies vampiric reasoning."

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