How Did Stephen King Build Suspense

Through the use of highly improbable and unexpected events, Stephen King’s “Children of the Corn” creates fear and suspense. The story opens with Burt arguing with his wife Vicky, which causes his attention to sway from the road. Despite Vicky’s warning, Burt does not turn his attention back to the road in time. Burt runs over a boy, but the strange part was that after examination of the body, the boy’s “throat” was slit, and also his blood “splattered” quite far (2).

Edgar Allan Poe uses irony to create suspense in "The Cask of Amontillado," to create a dark, dangerous short story. The protagonist, Montresor, plans to seek revenge on Fortunato, who insulted him, by killing him. Poe uses dramatic irony in the first paragraph by writing that Montresor is planning to kill Fortunato and get away with murdering him. The example of dramatic irony creates suspense, due to only the reader and Montresor knowing that Montresor is premeditating Fortunado's murder. Verbal irony is utilized to create suspense when Poe writes of Montresor and Fortunado making toasts, and Montresor saying, "And I to your long life" to Fortunado (Poe 347). Completely aware that he is going to murder Fortunado, yet Montresor toasts to Fortunado's

The antagonists of the stories, who are seemingly evil characters, are interpreted differently because of the narration, thus creating ambiguity in the nature of the antagonists.

“‘Watch out!” screamed Maggie. Suddenly the road took a sharp turn, and a huge oak tree loomed in my headlights”(Shusterman 39). When Neal Shusterman uses suspense it’s usually in a way that would probably end badly. He loves to try and hook the reader with suspense, so then the readers would want to keep reading that same book. As evidence in Full Tilt by Neal Shusterman and “The Abandoned Farmhouse” by Ted Kooser, suspense can be effectively created through the use of imagery.

Have you ever read a book that continued to keep you interested in what's going to happen next? You get lost in the book trying to figure out what's going to happen before reading on. This happens often in novels that have a lot of suspense like Richard Connell’s “The Most Dangerous Game” or Tobias Wolff’s “Hunters In The Snow.” The fact that they both have suspense is often the only similarity people can think of. There are many similarities and differences in them both that get ignored such as similarities and differences in the plot, theme, and characters.

In Stephen King’s somewhat subjective essay in the 1984 Playboy magazine, Why We Crave Horror Movies, King describes his reasoning behind why so many people are fond of watching movies residing in the horror genre. The content of his essay, though inserted in an unconventional area for

The first half of this course focused on Alfred Hitchcock and how his techniques are now recognized as iconic. From class discussions and film screenings, it is clear that Hitchcock pays every attention to detail when he crafts a scene. Many Hitchcock films we have seen this semester highlight how he builds suspense through cinematic elements such as shadow, dialogue, and composition. While many of his suspenseful scenes stir feelings of intensity and uncertainty, Alfred Hitchcock builds a more romantic suspense in his 1955 film To Catch a Thief in the fireworks scene (1:06:35-1:11:00).

Both “Knocking” by Rick Hautala and “The Road Virus Heads North” by Stephen King are masterfully crafted horror stories that lead readers on a psychological rollercoaster. The authors are able to generate such a detailed and in-depth atmosphere that it causes readers to picture themselves in the terrifying situations that they have devised for those reading. Through the evolution of “monsters”, point-of-view and atmospheric conditions which help to create a mood that engulfs readers both King and Hautala are able to write brilliant horror stories.

Stephan King is easily one of the most well-known writers in the horror genre. Often regarded as “The Master of Horror,” King’s impact on the horror genre is remarkable, and he has written both books and screenplays. Many of his works have been turned into movies, further increasing his popularity. Most people at least vaguely know who Stephen King is, but not many know his real story. In today’s time Stephen King entrances audiences and his classic books are converted into screenplays for movies.

Have you ever read “The Tell Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe? It is a short story about a man whose mental state deteriorates over time. The narrator loves the old man, however he has a deep hatred toward the old man’s vulture-like eye. This essay will be explaining the ways Poe keeps his readers in suspense. Edgar Allan Poe uses time, repetition, and descriptive language to set the pace, tone, and mood.

Horror is the genre that keeps the reader on their toes for nights upon end. It keeps them thinking. Thinking about how cruel and disturbing someone, or something, could possibly be. Thinking about what in the world happens to a character after the story drops off in a cliffhanger. Thinking about the probability that the events in the narrative could transpire in real life. Thinking about how likely it is for those things to happen to the reader. Refusing to look out their window in fear of seeing the glimpse of a murderous face, and listening to every sound with acute accuracy, praying that the noise is not one of a stranger creeping up the stairs. Scary accounts make the reader live in fear whenever the

“Each life makes its own imitation of immortality.” is exactly what Stephen King, one of top selling writers in history said when quoting on his own life. As one of the most renowned and famous authors of modern history, Stephen King has published a countless and immense number of bestsellers and worldwide hits. The King of Terror Stephen Edwin King is one of today's most popular and best-selling writers. His countless number of books have circled around the homes of millions of readers who are so intrigued by some of his most famous works. His works continue to embody the minds and fears of its reader while increasingly becoming ever more popular. Stephen King is not only a figure of present history but also a household

Do you enjoy watching murder, the paranormal, and any other morbid scene which makes the hair on the back of your neck stand up, your palms sweat, and your adrenaline surge? Why people enjoy watching murder, tragedy, and carnage in their spare time has been a mysterious phenomenon. If these gruesomely horrific scenes would not be enjoyable in real life, why is watching a recreation of it so riveting? Stephen King, a world-renowned horror novelist, wrote “Why We Crave Horror Movies” to give insight as to why horror movies, although gruesome and morbid, captivate audiences. King also aims to persuade readers to continue to watch horror movies, arguing that they are a crucial part of keeping sanity. King delves into this psychological aspect of humans and believes that the desire to watch horror films is a normal tendency of humankind. “Why We Crave Horror Movies” includes appeals to emotion, logic, and author credibility in order to convince readers of the positive, normal desire to watch horror films, why it is important to watch them, and why the reader should believe what the author is saying. King utilizes the rhetorical devices—pathos, logos, and ethos—in an effective way through the use of metaphor, logic, humor, and emotion to persuade readers that watching horror films is normal.

In Stephen King's "Why we Crave Horror", the famous novelist argues for a rather depressing explanation of society's fixation with horror movies. He insinuates today's generation's obsession over gory and demonic storylines is a result of our internal need for violence that must be satisfied. Such claims may shock readers at first, however, King's use of diction, imagery and tone leave us no choice but to agree with his analysis of human behaviour. He uses these rhetorical tools to prove to the naive reader that we truly are "mentally ill".

Novel in particular and literature in general is more than just a work of fiction but in fact the hidden reflection of a specific historical era. Although, Frankenstein, Wuthering Heights and Dracula were written in different times and each leaves its readers with different emotion and contemplation stages, they all share an affinity: the presence of Gothic elements. Indeed, these novels are designed to lead their reader into thrilling journeys through spooky dark setting, suspense horrifying plot, and claustrophobic atmosphere. These elements, though appear in various forms throughout these three novels, still excellently accomplish their mission of enticing the readers to be caught up in the narrative.