The Anatomy of a Scary Story

Introduction

In this expedition, we will be delving into the world of ghosts, mysteries, bone-chilling thrillers and nail-biting classics as we explore  American Gothic literature and Dark Romanticism. "Gothic" comes from an historical architectural style and morphed into a genre that reveals the darker side of human emotion and demonstrates the vastness of the human imagination. Be it an ancestral curse, a confessional narrative, family secrets, a psychological breakdown or a haunted house, how did this genre arise? What was its purpose? We will read stories like Dracula, The Tell-Tale Heart, and the Monkey's Paw and compare these timeless tales to our modern day crime thrillers. We will also look at the use of the word "goth" today and how it has affected cultural traits like clothing, music and lifestyles. We will investigate how historical events played a pivotal role in the creation of these tales, and analyze how American Gothic affected the development of the American culture.

Essential Questions

• What makes a story “scary?” Why are certain things scary and others not? 

• How do writers create tension and suspense? 

• Why do people read scary stories? 

• What are the different ways in which people can be scared? 

Learning Objectives

• Describe elements that make stories scary and how they affect a reader

• Evaluate what effects scary stories have on a reader

• Compare and contrast different scary stories and judge which ones are scarier

• Create original writing/art that effectively uses suspense, tension, etc.