Dracula. How Does Bram Stoker Create an Atmosphere of Fear and Horror?
How Does Bram Stoker Create an Atmosphere of Fear and Horror? If this was scary in 1897, it's not very scary now but I can see how the Narrator is trying to get a picture in your head to spook you. Bram Stoker wrote it in 1897; it was scary at the time but not as much as it is now. The simplest way in which Stoker tries to scare his readers is by having his narrator, Jonathan Harker, keeps telling us how scared he is? "I grew dreadfully afraid", many times Harker writes something inn his journal. The repetition of this idea builds build's up a picture of fear in the reader's eyes. Another method is seen in the description of Harker's journey to meet Dracula at the Borgo Pass. The horses and the other passengers show a "Strange mixture of fear-meaning movement and make the sign of the cross". Obliviously they are terrified of meeting the Count, because they know him to be a vampire. The coach part is the scariest part of the story. The driver I racing through the pitch dark night, they go in as fast as they can. They go flat out to get there before Dracula. The driver and passengers are clearly scared of meeting Dracula and this is passed onto Jonathan Harker. When I saw Dracula, the film and the book, I was not a bit scared, however in 1987, I could imagine the scene it caused especially Jack the Ripper on the run in London, some people were starting to think that
What elements in the first six chapters make it clear that Dracula is in the gothic genre
What elements in the first six chapters make it clear that 'Dracula' is in the Gothic genre? Does it also have elements of the horror Genre? Novels of the Gothic genre, like 'Dracula', are often set in big old castles or ruins. In this novel there is the setting of Dracula's castle. This is an old castle in the middle of 'one of the wildest and least known portions of Europe'. It is on the edge of a precipice and seems to be very grand. Harker describes it in his journal, 'The castle is on the very edge of a terrible precipice. A stone falling from the window would fall a thousand feet without touching anything!' This description of the castle makes it seem very quiet, rural and frightening. The sheer height of the castle would scare people. Stoker chooses his adjectives very carefully in 'Dracula', here he uses the adjective 'terrible' which sums up the gothic nature of the setting. There is also part of the novel set in a Whitby. Here there is a big ruined abbey and an open coastline. It is a dramatic seaside town. Stoker obviously chose it carefully to stress the full force of the weather and uneasy feelings of Mina. The weather in itself creates a scene of a gothic genre. There is a big storm approaching in chapter six and at the end of the chapter we get the very beginning of the storm. The weather was not easily explained at the time when 'Dracula' was written so
Dracula - Nosferatu Comparison.
25/11/2002 Dracula-Nosferatu Comparison. I have recently watched clips from the beginnings of two vampire movies. The two films were, of course, very different things. One was 'Nosferatu' a product of the 1920's. I am lucky to have seen it considering how it was banned by a judge of the time and all copies ordered destroyed. Of course as attitudes change in cinema and with the introduction of the BBFC 'censorship' system it was released again. The other movie though was a completely different kettle of marine life; it was 'Bram Stokers Dracula' and bore about as much resemblance to Bram Stokers story as myself to a chimp. If it was named 'Parody Of Bram Stokers Dracula', 'Allegorical Tale Featuring Characters Based On Bram Stokers Dracula', I would understand. Maybe even 'Shameless Cash In On The Name Of Bram Stoker' would be more appropriate. The reason for the differences? It seems to me that movie has changed due to social reasons as well as technological reasons (I will return to this subject later). Monsters are out - antiheros are the new black. So what surprise is it to us that by the beginnings of the nineties Dracula was less a monster and more a tortured soul? Why are the Jewish style garb and appearance of 'Orlock' (the Dracula equivalent from Nosferatu) gone only to be replaced with a Dracula who answers the door looking strangely like one of the good Chairman
How Stoker, Poe, Wells and Conan Doyle Have tried to make their stories Horrifying
How Stoker, Poe, Wells and Conan Doyle Have tried to make their stories Horrifying Writers have several ways of making the stories they write, horrifying. One way in which they do this is through the atmosphere they create through the use of descriptive language. The writers can make everyday occurrences seem scary to suit the mood of the story such as weather and the time of day. Whenever something horrifying happens it always seems to be at night with bad weather! This all adds to the atmosphere. Writers also use the setting to their advantage; this is one of the most important things in a story. Very insecure places are often chosen to build up tension in a story. Writers contrast places in their stories from a safe, secure place on a sunny morning to an isolated place at night. Writers also use Characterisation to make the story horrifying. Some writers use an unlikely killer like a polite American and others use a stereotypical person who would commit a murder but make the reader want to find out how the murder carried out. The Squaw- By Bram Stoker Bram Stoker has several ways to make his story horrifying and one of them is the way his characters develop the story to unravel the supernatural side of the Squaw. Stoker uses the typical gentleman (the narrator) to make the American seem like the bad guy of the story when he shows the Americans reaction when he kills
Compare and Contrast The Use of Gothic Conventions From Pre-1914 and The Twentieth Century
Compare and Contrast The Use of Gothic Conventions From Pre-1914 and The Twentieth Century By Gabriel Clark The word gothic is a noun and an adjective describing an era of fashion. This fashion can be seen through people in what they wear, buildings, writings, music and images. Gothic fashions are meant to shock and scare people into a state of insecurity, it does this by following certain "stock features" (rules it abides to). In this study I plan to concentrate on Bram Stoker's novel Dracula, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Daphne Du-Maurier's Rebecca, and The Woman In Black (author unknown). I will look at four certain "stock features" and find the similarities and differences between Dracula, Frankenstein (pre 1914), and Rebecca and The Woman In Black (the twentieth century). The features that I will be looking at are, buildings, quests and journeys, letters/diaries, and the use of the externals such as weather (pathetic fallacies). In all four of the gothic novels included in this study buildings play a big part. In Frankenstein and Dracula the main characters in each go to stay in huge, isolated buildings. In Dracula Jonathan Harker is working, as a solicitor and trying to move Dracula to London, and in Frankenstein Victor Frankenstein is creating his immortal monster in his rather overly huge student home. In the films of Dracula and Frankenstein we can see that in
The Bloody Chamber (Angela Carter)
Huang Yanting Farah (03) 02A05 JC 1 Term Three Assignment The Bloody Chamber (Angela Carter) The Gothic is often distinguished by an atmosphere of terror, darkness, mystery, the unexplained and the transgression of boundaries. This essay will attempt to dissect how Angela Carter uses Gothic conventions in the passage taken out of her novel, 'The Bloody Chamber'. One of the most predominant conventions manipulated here is that of a dark and mysterious atmosphere. Throughout the passage the feeling of terror prevails. This is first started by the protagonist's taking of a "forbidden key". This stirs up a feeling of disquiet, as it implies a certain degree of prohibition and disapproval towards her task. She later enforces that her bravery is somewhat foolish ("foolhardiness") giving the reader an ominous feeling. She then mentions a "castle". Its presence contributes to the feeling of mystery as we do not know what lies ahead within this icon of the past. Also, here lies the starting of her description of the "dark" that seems to constantly surround her - "very late", "ill-lit", "absolute darkness", "dim...light". There is an emphasis on the dimness and this makes her environment seem very bleak and unwelcoming. Furthermore, evil is thought to be more rampant and stronger in the twilight. The difficulty in which light penetrates the night can also show how the malevolent
How do you think the novel suggests conflict between "the old centuries" and "mere modernity"? Almost immediately in the novel Stoker emphasises Jonathan's discomfort towards his surroundings of Transylvania,
While imprisoned in Dracula's castle, Jonathan Harker writes in his diary: "...unless my senses deceive me, the old centuries had, and have, powers of their own which mere 'modernity' cannot kill" Considering in detail one or two passages, how do you think the novel suggests conflict between "the old centuries" and "mere modernity"? Almost immediately in the novel Stoker emphasises Jonathan's discomfort towards his surroundings of Transylvania, and especially Dracula's castle. This notion is established even prior to his imprisonment, shown when Jonathan is on his way to the castle, saying "I felt a strange chill, and a lonely feeling came over me". The overall effect is accentuated further due to the reactions of the local people regarding Dracula, as they bless him and cross themselves. However, it is the quote (above) referring to "the old centuries" and "mere modernity" which is exceptionally significant, presenting a key theme in the novel. Here, Jonathan voices one of the central concerns of the novel, and the overall Victorian society itself. The end of the nineteenth century brought with it developments that forced England to question the systems of belief that had governed it for centuries. Darwin's theory of evolution was an example of this, as it challenged many aspects of religion, a crucial element within the society. Likewise, the Industrial Revolution
Dracula Appropriation
Dracula Appropriation Bram Stoker's Dracula is the famous 19th century novel that started the phenomenon that was the vampire genre. Many authors have expanded on the vampire genre, adding their own ideas to the legend. Anne Rice's Interview with a Vampire and Francis Ford Coppola's 'Dracula' are only two such appropriations of the original Dracula. Some major values that appear in these texts are that of good versus evil, the nature of religion and the role of women. During the Victorian era, many people had a 'black and white' view of good and evil. Stoker represents this in his novel through the creation of the monster that is Dracula. The novel is written in first person accounts from all the characters except Dracula himself, creating a menacing and foreboding feeling as the characters and the readers both uncertain in the true nature of Dracula. To add to this, Bram Stoker creates the monster that is Dracula in the first few chapters emphasised by the accounts of Harker "A terrible desire came upon me to rid the world of such a monster". Small occurrences lead the reader to believe that Dracula is evil such as the time when Dracula gives the baby to the three female vampires "there was a gasp and a low wail, as a half-smothered child...I was aghast with horror". This scene shows the evil in Dracula, and the absence of any human emotions. There is not only a fear of the
Consider how the theme of light and darkness is used to good effect in 'Dracula'. Consider the use of language and imagery, how this theme relates to other themes within the novel.
Consider how the theme of light and darkness is used to good effect in 'Dracula'. Consider the use of language and imagery, how this theme relates to other themes within the novel. The theme of light and darkness is used to good effect in 'Dracula' through many ways. When considering light and darkness as an ongoing competitive battle it is possible in 'Dracula' to incorporate themes of 'day and night' as well as 'life and death' and 'right and wrong' as they all share similarities in contrast. It has been argued and said that stoker did not believe in the opinion of extremes meaning he liked to incorporate the idea that something is neither 'black nor white' but possibly grey. In Dracula there are good characters and evil characters but you could also argue that certain ones are neither and stuck between both extremes, this is another way that shows stoker prospect of not agreeing with extremes. Firstly there is an obvious element which is present of life VS death within the novel, this contrast is shown through the characters, language and imagery. Light and Dark is shown through life Vs death and day VS night. One point contained in the novel that suggests a contrast between the two extremes is that it is only during the night, when supernatural, strange things occur in contrast to daytime when nothing seems to go wrong. When Lucy is bitten she acts as a human, during
Taking The Castle of Otranto as your example, outline the main conventions of the Gothic novel, and show how your knowledge of
Taking The Castle of Otranto as your example, outline the main conventions of the Gothic novel, and show how your knowledge of these conventions affects your reading of Northanger Abbey. Is Northanger Abbey most accurately described as parody of the Gothic genre, or is there a more complicated relationship going on? Gothic novels purport to revive old stories and beliefs, exploring personal, psychical encounters with the taboo (Williams, 2000). The genre, as typified by The Castle of Otranto by Horace Walpole, involves a beautiful innocent young woman who is held captive by an older, powerful, evil man in his large, ancient and gloomy residence for his own lustful purposes and who escapes, with the aid of supernatural manifestations, errors caused by "false surmises and conjectures based on partial narratives" (Hoeveler, 1995, p127) and a handsome young hero. Walpole's novel centers around the tyrant where the female writers in the genre, for example, Ann Radcliffe, focus more on the female victim and what she is thinking and feeling, exploring women's anxieties about their lack of control of their feelings, their bodies, and their property, and their desire for something far more extraordinary and exciting than simply to be a domestic woman. The use of the supernatural by Walpole is so frequent and monstrous as to excite laughter rather than terror but for Radcliffe and
