STRANGE AND MYSTERIOUS
STORY ELEMENTS
The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art
and science.
-Albert Einstein
TALES OF THE STRANGE AND MYSTERIOUS
Strange:
TALES OF THE STRANGE AND MYSTERIOUS
Strange: something that is unfamiliar or out of the ordinary.
Mysterious:
TALES OF THE STRANGE AND MYSTERIOUS
Strange: something that is unfamiliar or out of the ordinary.
Mysterious: something that is difficult or impossible to explain.
TALES OF THE STRANGE AND MYSTERIOUS
“The Raven”
“The Tell-Tale Heart”
“Annabel Lee”
“The Fall of the House of Usher”
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
SUSPENSE: The uncertainty or anxiety that a reader feels about what will happen next
in a story, novel or drama
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
4 Elements of SUSPENSE: 1. Foreshadowing:
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
4 Elements of SUSPENSE: 1. Foreshadowing: The use of clues or hints to suggest events that will occur later in the plot.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
4 Elements of SUSPENSE: 2. Mystery: something that is difficult or impossible to explain.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
4 Elements of SUSPENSE: 3. Dilemma: a difficult or puzzling situation where the character must choose a dangerous course of action.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
4 Elements of SUSPENSE: 4. Reversal: a sudden change in a character’s situation from good to bad, or vice versa.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
Identify:1. Foreshadowing:2. Mystery:3. Dilemma:4. Reversal:
Watch "The Tell-Tale Heart" on YouTube
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
MOOD the feeling a reader
gets from the story.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTSCreating a mysterious MOOD: Expressing character’s
fears through thoughts & feelings.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTSCreating a mysterious MOOD: Producing vivid
descriptions of sights and sounds.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTS
Creating a mysterious MOOD:
Repeating words, phrases or actions.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS VOCABULARY
alibi – n. a person used as another’s excuse. deduction – n. process of drawing a conclusion based on evidence/cluesfaçade – n. a false front or appearance
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS VOCABULARY
hunch – n. a suspicion or guessintercept – v. to take or cut off from the intended destinationinvestigation – n. a search or examination for facts or clues.
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS VOCABULARY
motive – n. something that causes a person to act a certain way or do a certain thing. oppressive – adj. unjustly harshrapacious – adj. extremely greedy
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS VOCABULARY
red herring – n. a distraction from the real problemsinister – adj. evil; wicked, dishonestsleuth – n. a detective or private eye
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS VOCABULARY
tantalizing – adj. teasing by withholding something; temptingvictim – n. a person who suffers from a disaster or injurywitness – n. one who sees or watches
STRANGE & MYSTERIOUS STORY
ELEMENTSCreating Suspense & Mystery: Use of irony: A contrast
between expectation and reality.