Stephen J. Dubner

In Bram Stoker’s “Dracula” a novel that embodies the main points of the gothic writing of it’s time. Stoker’s use of tropes in his work assessing a distinct villain, the settings of the novel Throughout the book Stoker manages to use the trope wild and desolate landscapes as a base and setting for what occurs throughout the book. Certain settings distinguish either the character or the actions that take place. With wild and desolate landscapes it shows and sets up a gloomy and dark setting which…

Once again, Salinger wasn’t oblivious to the meanings behind each character’s name. In fact, symbolism plays a part in the character Sybil Carpenter. “Sybil, bright with innocence but already tarnishing, symbolizes for Seymour the human condition: like the sibyls of old, she is the unconscious oracle through whom the prophecy is revealed, the instrument of truth” (Lane). A sibyl is defined as “a woman in ancient times supposed to utter the oracles and prophecies of a god” (“sibyl”). It is…

Another important aspect of the setting is the labyrinthine, claustrophobic and exotic space into which the plot is set. Since Walpole's `Castle of Otrano' (1764) the Gothic castle is one of the key features of the Gothic novel. The Gothic castle is a labyrinthine and claustrophobic place which evokes feelings of "fear, awe, entrapment and helplessness" (Raskauskien 50). Characteristic of the Gothic castle are mazy, over- and undergrounded corridors, creaking doors, shuttered windows, trapdoors…

to save yourself and everyone on board or completely give up on the idea of escaping this tragedy? Would you expect help to come for you or step up and try to lead everyone to safety yourself? Luckily, in the short story “The Open Boat” written by Stephen Crane, he answers these questions in his writing that is about four crew members on a boat that have found themselves faced with this exact dilemma. This piece, based on an actual incident in Crane’s life, was written not to explain what to do…

Gothic literature perpetually creates suspense and tension in the form of both tradition and contemporaneity. Both forms of gothic literature share a theme insanity that helps the writers to create suspense. In the traditional gothic literature ‘The Signalman’ written in 1866, Charles Dickens successfully builds suspense by writing in first person with numerous imageries. In addition, suspense and tension are well-developed through various techniques, such as third person point of view and…

What are distinguishing factors between science fiction and horror they seem so different, yet share so many similarities. Science fiction obeys the natural laws of the universe, but horror creates its own set of supernatural laws. The horror genre creates terror while the Sci-Fi genre creates a sense of wonder. But both genres are so much alike and are separated by their own periods of time. The film industry uses these periods of time to create different classics for each genre. There is a…

When analysing Hitchcock’s Psycho, it is clear why it has been labelled as a horror. Although Norman Bates is not a monster in the physical form, his monster-like nature is within his human psyche. There are many reasons for this film to be regarded as a “horror”, the imagery of the old dark house is typical of “horror”, being set in an isolated place, off the beaten track presents a clearly gothic setting where as little as the appearance of a single woman unleashes forces of sexual assault,…

The Cask of Amontillado is a horror tale that has many gothic stories in it. They include the underground chambers, dark imagery and a lot of violent revenge to share Poe’s stories. Poe is known for using the world of the gothic literature to bring out terror and external worlds to the psychological environment. He can create a world in the mind of the reader using gothic tradition. This world conveys the terror needed using irony, puns, double entendre and foreshadowing among other features of…

Over the past several hundred years, horror and monster themes have become very popular in every medium available. At any given time it is not uncommon to find three or four horror movies playing at the same theatre. Arguably starting with Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, there has been no shortage whatsoever since this explosion of a new genre. This raises the question of why are we so in love with scaring ourselves? What part of the unknown is desirable to the point where horror dominates the…

Since the inception of the motion picture, countless filmmakers have made a point of infusing the same ancient tales into their movies for centuries. Some of the best artistic reflection is expressed through writing fiction. Not all movies that attempt to weave deeper themes into their stories succeed. James Cameron’s Avatar is a movie that executes this and does so extremely well. “Avatar is a joyous celebration of story craft and the visual possibilities of cinema.” Meyer (2017) Avatar is such…