The Influence Of Atmosphere And Setting In Dracula

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Dreary Places Mysterious Faces
Dracula by Bram Stoker is known to be a one of the most famous horror stories of all times. The book well describes the atmosphere and setting throughout the book. Three things that influence the atmosphere and setting are the country before Transylvania, how the castle looks and how the estate that Harker is selling looks like.
The first thing that influences the atmosphere and setting in Dracula is the country before Transylvania on how it looks and feels to Jonathan Harker. The country is not like any other happy, delightful town; it is dark and dreary. It sets the horror and darkness that will soon come in the story. Almost foreshadowing for what is yet to come. “Sometimes we saw little towns or castles on the top of steep hills such as we see in old missals” (Stoker 4). The castles on the steep hills set how everything looks in that part of the country. Harker also talks about the darkness and fog in his journal. Therefore, it sets a dark, and gothic theme to it all. …show more content…

The castle has many passage ways and cob webs. There is not much light expect for little bit of fire here and there. “He insisted on carrying my traps along the passage and then up a great winding stair, and along another great passage on whose stone floor our steps rang heavily. At the end of this he threw open a heavy door” (Stoker 18). This is Harker describing some features in Dracula’s castle. The winding staircase, stone floor, and heady door show how the castle is gothic like. Also, how dark and dreary it is. The atmosphere around the castle also sets it off as dark. Harker can hear wolves howling and he says that there are doors everywhere and windows. “Doors, doors, doors, everywhere, and all locked and bolted” (Stoker 27.) The doors are locked, now why on Earth would the doors be locked? This gives Harker a suspicion of something mysterious that he cannot quite figure

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