Some students of this genre find that the best way to examine it is to deal with the way horror fiction is organized or structured. Examining the organization of a horror story shows that it shares certain traits with other types of fiction. Horror stories share the use of suspense as a tactic with many other kinds of literature. The tension we feel when a character goes into the attic, down into the basement, or just into the abandoned house is partially a result of suspense. We don't know what is going to happen. But that suspense is intensi- fied by our knowledge of the genre. We know that characters involved in the world of horror always meet something awful when they go where they shouldn't. Part of the tension is created because they are doing something we know is going to get them in trouble. Stephen King refers directly to our anticipation of horror. In Salem's Lot[2] Susan approaches the house which is the source of evil. "She found herself thinking of those drive-in horror movie epics where the heroine goes venturing up the narrow attic stairs...or down into some dark, cobwebby cellar...and she...thinking:... I'd never do that!" Of course Susan's fears are justified. She does end up dead in the basement, a victim of the vampire.

Question

In paragraph 2, the author states that in horror stories "suspense is intensified by our knowledge of the genre." What knowledge is the author referring to? Explain why it increases suspense.

Answer 1

The knowledge the author refers to is the reader's awareness of common tropes and conventions associated with the horror genre. This includes an understanding that characters often face dire consequences when they act recklessly or venture into dangerous or forbidden places, such as attics, basements, or abandoned houses. Readers are conditioned to expect that these actions will lead to encounters with malevolent forces or threats.

This knowledge increases suspense because it sets up a psychological conflict between the character's actions and the reader's expectations. When a character enters a potentially dangerous location, the reader is not only anxious about what might happen next but also aware that bad outcomes are likely. This anticipation of danger, combined with the thrill of uncertainty about the specifics of the horror that may unfold, heightens the overall tension of the story. In the case of "Salem's Lot," the reader knows that Susan's curiosity and disregard of the inherent danger in approaching the source of evil will likely lead to her demise, making the moment she ventures into the basement all the more foreboding and suspenseful.