How Bram Stoker Uses Gothic Conventions to Create an...

How Bram Stoker Uses Gothic Conventions to Create an Atmosphere of Suspense and Fear for the Reader Dracula is one of the most well-know novels, it was written by Abraham Stoker. At the time Dracula was released in 1897, people regarded it as being a romantic horror, with some elements of fantasy and also it was especially famous for its gothic conventions. In modern times the term gothic can be regarded as being barbarous, offensive and uncouth. Although many people may not regard it as being scary it is still associated with the unknown. In the late 18th and early 19th century, gothic ways of living were very common in the Eastern part of Europe, especially in the medieval times. A†¦show more content†¦As the first character writes about his personal experiences we find that proves to be very effective, in the way the writer is able to portray the gothic theme to the reader. The first example would be Jonathans journey to Eastern Europe, The impression I had that we were leaving the West and entering the East . Here the writer portrays an image in the readers mind of the Eastern world, the writer is trying to convey the message that he is entering the unknown, which is being very gothic. The writer also describes Transylvania as being one of the wildest and least known parts of Europe; this composes a very mysterious setting to the story. Transylvania means the land beyond the forest. By naming his imaginative world Transylvania, he creates the impression that Jonathan is travelling to a part of the world beyond the reach of an ordinary Victorian person. At the time the novel was written, this may have had an impact on the reader, because the idea of the unknown world draws them in. By using the diary and journals the writer finds the use of conventions very effective, later on in chapter one of the story, the character describes a very unnatural atmosphere. There was a dog howling all night under my window