The Functions of Atmosphere

Writers use atmosphere to elicit an emotional response from the reader. A well-
developed atmosphere also enhances a narrative with deeper, richer detail. This paints
a more complete picture of the setting or situation and keeps the reader engaged with
the text. Some readers enjoy certain genres for their specific atmosphere, like fans of
psychological and suspense thrillers who love the tension, danger, and high stakes
common in those novels.

Examples of Atmosphere in Literature

1. Emily Brontë, Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights is one novel that cannot be extricated from its setting without
compromising the atmosphere. The book takes place on the wind-swept English
moors, and Brontë’s rich descriptions of that landscape infuse this tragic tale with a
sense of heavy foreboding from the start:

Wuthering Heights is the name of Mr. Heathcliff’s dwelling. “Wuthering” being a significant
provincial adjective, descriptive of the atmospheric tumult to which its station is exposed in
stormy weather. Pure, bracing ventilation they must have up there at all times, indeed; one
may guess the power of the north wind blowing over the edge, by the excessive slant of a few
stunted firs at the end of the house; and by a range of gaunt thorns all stretching their limbs
one way, as if craving alms of the sun.

The vivid imagery combines with haunting diction—tumult, gaunt, craving—to fill the
reader with apprehension and foreshadow certain tragedy.