Fairy Tales are often seen as ways to communicate specific morals and other social schemas to a wide variety of audiences. Symbols, metaphors and theories are all part of the tales and the message they represent. Things that appear in nature are often included in tales to represent a certain idea or event. For instance ravens are often seen as signs of death, a frog is seen as a sign of vanity, and a dark forest represents the dark and evil side of life. Nothing that is good ever comes out of the forest, and it is said that it could possibly represent the darker side within ourselves.
Going through the forest she ran into a wolf also. But she was not scared. She also told the wolf where her grandmother lives. Another piece of elements the author interrupted is word choice. Both of the titles have the words “Little Red.” By meaning little, refers to being young and not really knowing what is right or wrong for you to do.
This is because, as in The Werewolf and The Company of Wolves, the forest represents the girls’ journey towards adulthood. The Werewolf states ‘in her grandmother’s house; she prospered’, which implies that her initial journey through the possibly terrifying setting of an isolated forest was actually necessary to her enlightenment. Thus Carter used setting not to invoke a sense of fear and terror, but to provide the base point for the more important theme of self-development, or the growth of maturity. The exploration of fear in the short story of The Werewolf can be shown through the description of the wolf itself with ‘’red eyes and running, grizzled chops.’’ Which therefore implies the danger within the animal itself, as it is incontrollable of its actions. ‘Red eyes’ suggesting anger and fury within the eyes, with bloodlust, ‘grizzled’ also implying an angered tone therefore complying an amalgamation of the animal itself.
Explore the way in which Carter uses natural settings in ‘The Bloody Chamber’, ‘The Courtship of Mr Lyon’ and ‘The Tiger’s Bride’ Carter’s use of natural setting in the three stories is extremely important, both in terms of creating a visually effective concept of the setting upon which to base the story, but also in terms of symbolising themes within the stories such as transgression and the differences between urban and rural life. The landscape which surrounds the castle of the Marquis in ‘The Bloody Chamber’ works effectively as a plot device as well as being symbolically significant. The castle is described as being ‘cut off…from land for half a day’, an extremely important feature as it adds a sense of danger and isolation and, crucially, cuts her off from any safety or civilisation and therefore any saviour. This is important in that it creates the impression that the heroine is doomed and helpless, thus fulfilling the traditional gothic notions of a ‘damsel in distress’ as is represented by Matilda in ‘The Castle of Otranto’. It is perhaps more important as a symbol of her transportation into a realm which is unfamiliar and mysterious to her, reflecting the idea that ‘otherness’ is what makes something sublime and terrifying and therefore gothic.
‘The Erl-King’ is a story narrating a girl’s journey into the woods which represents her transition into womanhood. The Erl-King is the object of her desire and his domination arouses her and lust takes over despite being warned of the dangers. The girl’s defiance of social expectation ends in tragedy, giving the message that breaking social norms will never have a happy ending when it comes to male/female relationships. ‘The Erl-King’ portrays the relationships between men and women as two-way. She does not show the relationship from a patriarchal view, as with her other stories.
Snow marks easily, it will show any blemishes, it does not lie and you cannot hide in it. This is reflecting the mood of the characters as they have come so far they are now almost blank in mood. Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein was the pioneer in Gothic novels. By her use of nature in her writing, she opened the doors for all future writers. Shelley uses nature as her settings and inspiration of how the character’s mood is in that scene.
Gothic Elements in Lady Oracle It’s not difficult to recognize a gothic novel because of their distinct literary elements. They are often filled with castles, ruins, and vast mysterious landscapes. Each character follows a very specific archetype, such as the damsel in distress or the villain, and drama increases as the reader follows them through their dark, often stormy, journey. In Margaret Atwood’s Lady Oracle, the traditional elements of gothic literature are prominent. Moreover, with its gothic sense of space, supernatural events, and damsel in distress/hero/villain archetypes, Lady Oracle is a successful example of a gothic novel.
The moors act as a source of freedom for the children and an idyllic setting utilised by Emily Brontë to lay the foundations of the relationship between Catherine and Heathcliff whom are now at this point ‘very thick’ (V1C4P33). The setting of the book proves to be significant and important to Catherine as she later proceeds to compare her love for Edgar and Heathcliff; ‘my love for Linton is like the foliage in the woods: time will change it, I'm well aware, as winter changes the trees. My love for Heathcliff resembles the eternal rocks beneath’ (V1C9P75)
The gothic genre has based itself upon refining concepts explored in genres such as horror and taking those notions to newer and more developed standards. Originally part of the Romantic Movement, the gothic genre advocates a connection to the use of supernatural themes, bleak remote landscapes, violent weather and dim, secret places where evil can often occur. Characteristics such as “the use of supernatural in the gothic”, “Gothic settings” and “Gothic Horror” make this genre unique in comparison to regular common genres and texts such as Rebecca and The Others show the variety displayed across the board throughout different gothic text types. Another gothic convention present in the 2 texts is “Gothic settings”. This is evident in the opening chapter of Rebecca where the narrator describes Manderley upon revisiting it in her dreams as “Unkept” and as if “nature had come into her own.” With the use of a metaphor to state “the site itself, was a jewel” we begin to understand how grand and majestic this amazing house is, and we are helped to picture a perfect place that is now overwhelmed with nature.
And changing patterns in bear behavior are bringing the animals closer to populated areas than ever before. A New York Times article described how climate change has forced grizzlies to forage more widely because of the decline of whitebark pines, which produce pine nuts that the bears depend on in their diet. Add it all up and it’s definitely a good idea to familiarize yourself with bear safety tips before heading out on a hike. There’s no need to be overly fearful. Just prepared.