Demon Lover Essay

Many people think that the events and the language in "The Demon Lover" make it a classic ghost story but I am not sure that it really is a ghost story at all. Elizabeth Bowen's setting builds an eerie atmosphere and lots of suspense by drawing on concepts, images, and actions that I associate with being afraid. She begins the story by using some descriptions to set the scene. “It was late August; it had been a steamy , showery, day: At the moment the trees down the pavement glittered in an escape of humid yellow afternoon sun”. You can imagine what is looks like because of the depth of the description given. “In her once familiar street, as in any unused channel, an unfamiliar
queerness had silted up; a cat wove itself in and out of railings, but no human eye watched Mrs. Drover’s return”. This description of the setting kind of seems a bit spooky especially with the comment about “no human eye watching her return.” It could mean that maybe she is dead and tha...