Organising our gothic writing to build tension
I can structure my piece of gothic writing to build tension.
Organising our gothic writing to build tension
I can structure my piece of gothic writing to build tension.
Lesson details
Key learning points
- It is important to create tension in Gothic writing because it keeps your reader in a state of anticipation.
- Keeping the reader in a state of anticipation makes reading the text a thrilling experience for the reader.
- You can build tension by delaying revealing key information, switching focus or ending with a cliff-hanger.
- Fronted adverbials tell us the way in which something is done.
- Fronted adverbials can be used to build tension.
Common misconception
Pupils often reveal things early-on in descriptions by saying things like 'it was a painting' and then proceeding to describe it.
It can be much more effective to describe your narrator's view before revealing what the view actually is. This way, the reader is kept in a state of anticipation, as they try to work out what the view is.
Keywords
Structure - the way a text is organised - what comes where and why
Tension - the mental strain a reader is put under because of their suspicion that something bad is about to happen
Strain - a state of tension or pressure
Suspense - feeling anxious or excited about what may happen
Aghast - filled with horror or shock
Content guidance
- Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).
Video
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