Suspense In Literature

Literary Essay Suspense The authors of the two texts “The Tell Tale Heart” and Don't Look Behind You effectively created suspense though the use of dramatic elements. In “The Tell Tale Heart” and Don't look Behind You the two authors used imagery to create suspense for the readers. In both stories the authors also incorporated the factor of setting to create suspense for the reader so they can wonder and think what will happen next.

Overview of the Art of Film Adaptation The challenges in adapting a novel, and in particular Wuthering Heights, can be understood with greater clarity when read in conjunction with the general theories of film adaptation. Adapting a literary text for screen has been studied from increasingly many perspectives over the last couple of decades. From George Bluestone’s seminal 1957 text Novel to Cinema, adaptation studies have come a long way to include diverse views and theories ranging from racism to new historicism. Right into the late 70’s, adaptation studies resonated with [Walter] Benjamin’s argument [in ‘The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Production’, 1936)] that mechanical reproduction, most pre-eminently film technology, obliterates the ‘aura’- i.e. the authenticity, authority, originality, uniqueness – of the world of art, thus bringing about a ‘liquidation of the traditional value of the cultural heritage (Aragay, 12).’

Suspense techniques are an essential part of creating a narrative piece of writing, it creates an anticipation and tension to keep the reader interested. Also it creates a lively experience and grasps the reader’s attention. Suspense enhances the story's appeal to the reader by creating a grim situation that utilizes strategies such as thoughts and isolation. The author of “Night Drive” Will Jenkins effectively uses suspense technique to build tension and anxiety for the reader. The short story demonstrates, skillfully crafted sentences that express many examples of suspense.

There is always something that bothers us in life, whether it’s others or even our own conscious. In “The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, the narrator has a difficult time following through with his cruel acts because a part of him knows it’s truly wrong. Throughout the story, his crimes bring more tension between him and the old man. Suspense is created with his every move, leaving readers hanging on the edge of their seats. In “The Tell-Tale Heart”, Poe builds suspense by using symbolism, inner thinking, and revealing information to the reader that a character doesn’t know about.

Webster’s Dictionary defines suspense as, “a mental uncertainty or anxiety or the state of being undecided or doubtful.” By using mystery elements in his or her writing, an author can give the readers the uncomfortable feeling of suspense while reading their suspenseful text. In various short stories, mystery elements create suspense in a variety of ways. The short stories, “Lamb to the Slaughter,” by Roald Dahl, “The Adventure of the Speckled Band,” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and “Invitation to a Murder,” by Josh Pachter create suspense as a result of the mystery elements they contain. “Lamb to the Slaughter” is one of the many examples of texts that includes suspense, which the author created throughout the story.

Throughout the history of literature archetypes have posed as an important part of creating stories and characters. An archetype is a repetitive theme found within stories and other works over time. A few common ones are good vs. evil, damsels, and heroes. Archetypal elements are important in The Pardoner’s Tale and The Sorcerer’s Stone because deception, false sense of reality, and greed have a significant impact on the main characters, causing death, betrayal, and discovery in both stories. Deception would appear to be the most prominent theme in both of these stories.

To conclude, in “The Tell Tale Heart”, Poe uses the technique of suspense

¨Characterization is an accident that flows out of action and dialogue¨ ,by Jack Woodford, describes how characterization occurs. There are many way that authors create and describe the characters for their stories. In “ The Cask of Amontillado¨, ¨Thank you M 'am¨, and ¨The Most dangerous game¨ the character Montresor, Mrs. Jones, and Zaroff by the use of speech, action, or appearance. In The Cask of Amontillado, Thank you Mam, and The Most dangerous game the author uses characters speech to develop the character personality.

In Edgar Allan Poe’s tales of criminal insanity, the first-person narrators confess unsound confessions. They control the narrative, and we can only see through their eyes. However, they do describe their own pathological or psychological actions so conscientiously that they exhibit their own insanity. They are usually incapable of stepping back from their narratives to detect their own madness. The narrator 's’ fluency is meticulous and often opulent.

(All American: Glossary of Literary of Literary

During Edgar Allen Poe’s life-time he expressed gothic tendencies and his strong telling in The Fall of the House of Usher. The suspense of the book gives an eerie feeling to readers. Even though the narrator in the story might be scared along with the readers, the narrative gives off an understanding that everything is delirious and strange in ways. Throughout the short story, the narrator interferes with grotesque characters, bizarre situations, and violent events. Imagery has a well-known effect throughout the story, it shows you how it happens through words.

Moreover,suspense, one of the most odd sensations that your body will obtain if you are about to get your heart pumping wildly because of a horror story, mystery solving, or etc. Consequently, writers create suspense for the reader to be hooked on the story until the mystery is solved or until the horror ends. Some famous writers like Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, and short stories from Edgar Allan Poe wrote suspense in their stories to make it more alive and interesting for the readers. The characters

Suspense is an extremely important technique that can be used in many contrasting ways. It gives readers the opportunity to slip into their favorite character’s shoes, sit on the edge of their seat, and ultimately immerse themselves into the book. The Most Dangerous Game and The Monkey’s Paw written by Richard Connell and W. W. Jacobs respectively, demonstrate this technique in a very similar way. Both of these authors use elements of suspense in their stories, using foreshadowing, dialogue and diction to create very eerie and ominous atmospheres.

When vieweing horror media, there are many different techniques used to build the suspense. The technique of using artistic elements is used greatly when creating a suspsenseful mood. This technique is especially used iin “If Cornered, scream” and in “Lights Out.” In “If Cornered, scream” Thurmond uses the act of foreshadowing events to develop the mood. However, Sandberg uses sound effects to build the mood, in “Lights Out”.

Originally, Jareth the character in the movie Labyrinth was going to be a puppet, but Jim Henson made him a human. What literary device authors use to create suspense in the motion picture Labyrinth by: Jim Henson? Authors use irony to convey suspense. Moreover, authors use types on irony to establish suspense in the Labyrinth.