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Supernatural Elements in Literature
Literature and the supernatural
Supernatural Elements in Literature
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The Setting of The Jolly Corner and The Devil's Advocate Evoek the Supernatural
The Oxford English Dictionary defines "supernatural" as "That which is above nature; belonging to a higher realm or system than that of nature; transcending the powers or the ordinary course of nature." Through the duration of mankind’s existence, humans have been fascinated with a higher power that defies the laws of nature. Supernatural themes have stimulated literature and the arts, both ancient and modern. Many parallels can be connected between stories involving the paranormal. The setting of "The Jolly Corner" and The Devil’s Advocate evokes the preternatural.
In the "The Jolly Corner", a supernatural presence is displayed within the setting. The main character, Spencer Brydon, grew up in the Jolly Corner, as well as many generations before him. We learn that many generations of the Brydon’s have grown up and passed away in the house. Their long history in the house implies that ghosts, either physical or mental, could be present. The spacious house creates a cold, desolate, an...
My first attempt at finding information was by typing in “Jamesport Manor Inn + ghosts” at the search engine Google. I found an article from The Suffolk Times, a local newspaper about the rebirth of the Jamesport Manor. It included a picture of the mansion with its owners, and there was a brief paragraph on the suspicion of ghosts roaming the area. “As for tales about ghosts and later use as a house of ill repute, Mr. Whines laughed and said, ‘I’m a trained historian, so I can’t tell you about that.
Supernatural traditions was basically people in the “sixteenth and seventeenth centuries” (Dr.Heffner) who believed that the reason somebody was acting different was the doing of the devil, the supernatural tradition is also known as the “demonological method” (Dr.Heffner) during the stone age they would perform some type of surgery, where they would cut open the victim’s skull and drain the evil spirits out of there brain, “Ancient Chinese, Ancient Egyptians, and Hebrews, believed that these were evil demons or spirits and advocated exorcism” (Dr.Heffner) if after the exorcism the victim still did not show and improvements, the victim was then torture to leave them with a body that was no use for the evil
The technique Dickens uses to create the setting is he makes the characters say weird things to set the spooky atmosphere “I don’t know you. I never saw the face. The felt arm is across the face and the right arm is waved-violently waved this way”. This sets a spooky atmosphere and makes you feel as if you are there.
When first introduced to Tossie, one learns that she is a firm believer in Spiritualism, which is a religious movement where the core belief is that spirits of the deceased can be contacted directly by living people (Rutter). Tossie informs Ned that the previous day, the spirits had rapped out “beware” and “the letter C” during a séance with Madame Iritosky, which led her mother to conclude that something awful had happened to Princess Arjumand (Willis 98). Madame Iritosky indoctrinates Mrs. Mering and Tossie with her Spiritualist ideals, informing them that “spirits often hover near [a] portal” which is the reason she cannot leave her home to perform seances (108). When Ned and the others finally make it to the Merings’ home, they burst in on a séance which leads to Mrs. Mering fainting. She is overcome with emotion at the sight of “the spirits” who were “draped…in seaweed” and “shining with an ethereal light” (178). Mrs. Mering assigns every strange thing that happens a reason that is ultimately related to Spiritualism. Cyril’s snoring is the “ethereal moan” of the spirits, she has premonition upon premonition that presumably predict the death of Professor Peddick, and we later learn that every prediction made under the guise of Spiritism is false (246). The skepticism revolving around Spiritualism is mirrored by the reactions given by Verity and Ned to Madame Iritosky. When Madame Iritosky and Count de Vecchio arrive at the Merings’ house due to “a message from the Other Side,” Ned and Verity discuss Madame Iritosky’s validity (288). Verity informs Ned that mediums “collect information to convince the gullible” which is a sign that people in the future have found ways to think critically about what they observe (292). Verity and Ned have different ways of
... Filban’s experience is true or not. It might not be believable in some perspectives, but there is one thing that is true. This experience is unexplained, so it can be described as supernatural. Until proven different, Filban did have a supernatural experience. Just because the evidence is not apparent, and no one else witnessed it, the story can still be deemed supernatural.
While describing Aswarby Hall, M R James describes it as a "tall, square, red-bricked house." This is done to create curiosity and interest as the description given is of an average looking house that would be similar to others around it as nothing in particular stands out about the home. M R James uses unexpected settings like this. In traditional ghost stories the setting of a house is often of a grand and unusually eerie house which creates a dark and sinister atmosphere, but M R James does the reverse of this. He describes his settings using people’s everyday lives, for example, the description of the house they live in. He does this as he believes it has a scarier impact on the audience as the reader feels connected to characters and settings that are ordinary just like them, and can no longer separate themselves from characters like Mr Abney. Although to create a sinister atm...
Everyone has a slightly different interpretation of the supernatural but the interpretation which we can start with is Shakespeare’s. Everyone of Shakespeare’s time found the supernatural fascinating. Shakespeare interpreted the supernatural as witches, magic, unnatural and evil and he expressed his beliefs in the play, “Macbeth” very clearly, as he portrayed the three deformed women with control over the weather and the ability to predict the future. These three evil witches with magical powers were the creation of Shakespeare’s interpretation of the supernatural. Shakespeare’s contemporaries believed in the supernatural very strongly and a majority of them were frightened of it, including the king of that time, King James I of England.
Given the title of this work, you may mistakenly believe (as did at least one prior owner of the book copy I had read from, if their annotations are any indication) that this is a literal investigation into all things paranormal and society’s investment of that which goes bump in the night. In “Ghostly Matters: Hauntings and the Sociological Imagination”, Avery F. Gordon offers academics and ethnographers – those whose profession it is to unearth the secreted relationships between the signifier and the signified, the subject and object, the real and unreal - a disturbing ghost story that should leave those of us in the field who came claim these titles with both the deepest of darkest chills and, through a new method of revealing and acknowledging the ghosts we feel, the hope for something akin to redemption. (In this way, perhaps, Gordon accomplishes many of the same feats as Stephen King and Edgar Allen Poe).
The supernatural culture has been in our society for decades and as it looks it will be part of our society for a long time to come. The supernatural has greatly influenced our society by entertaining, creating an unrealistic ideal life for individuals and the supernatural theme is so popular businesses take advantage of it and are able to make profit out of it.
Through the years there has been many ideas to what goes bump in the night. Mysterious, unsolved happenings blamed on the so-called supernatural. There are many myths, legends and lore based on these so called mysterious happenings. Through this research paper I am going to help to explain the biggest threats, conspiracies, and misunderstandings of aforementioned legends, myths, and lore.
From the perspective of a ghost story, the narrator makes references to some “creepy” ideas early in the story, noting her first impression of the house is, “it is haunted” (Gilman 746). Beyond the aesthetics of the house, we see a level of fear overcoming the narrator in: “there is something strange about this house-I can feel it” (Gilman). What about the house makes it appear and feel haunted? Not the aesthetics of the home, but what’s inside…..inside the wallpaper. Almost immediately we see the issues...
Incidents of Humanity that cannot solve events using logic and scientific reasoning always turn towards the supernatural for an explanation. Yet when looking at the supernatural reasoning you dwell into reasons that always give an answer to the unknown. This is seen today when someone passes away or objects move from one point to another that defies the laws of science that humanity has grown a custom too. When looking at the supernatural you have a range of beliefs that vary from ghosts to demons. Every culture and religion has there own views on how to interact with the supernatural.
According to the Oxford dictionary the word supernaturalism is defined as “(a manifestation or event) attributed to some force beyond scientific understanding or the laws of nature” 1. But for some writers it is the element that sets their stories successfully in motion.
In the English Renaissance, there was a strong belief in the existence of the supernatural. Thus, the supernatural is a recurring aspect in William Shakespeare 's Macbeth and is an integral and important part of the plot. The role of the supernatural in Macbeth is to bring out emotional reactions within Macbeth that cloud his judgement, affecting his actions which ultimately leads to his downfall. This is demonstrated through the ambiguous prophecies of the witches, the supernatural phenomenon that Macbeth sees, and the apparitions that foreshadow how he will meet his end.
The supernatural, is an integral part of the plays of William Shakespeare. In addition, the supernatural is, in fact, an integral part of the structure of the plot of Hamlet. The supernatural appears in Hamlet in the form of a ghost. The role of the supernatural is very important.