Dialogue should simply be a sound among other sounds, just something that comes out of the mouths of people whose eyes tell the story in visual terms.
Alfred HitchcockRead
Mystery is an intellectual process... But suspense is essentially an emotional process.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Mystery engages the intellect, whereas suspense invokes emotional response.
In this quote, Alfred Hitchcock distinguishes between two narrative techniques: mystery, which stimulates curiosity and critical thinking, and suspense, which captivates the audience's emotions. This highlights the dual nature of storytelling, where engaging the mind can often be as powerful as evoking feelings, shaping how audiences experience a narrative.
Themes
MysterySuspenseStorytellingEmotionIntellect
In practice
Example use cases
In a writing workshop, to illustrate the importance of emotional engagement, one might say, 'Remember Hitchcock's insight: suspense is where the true magic of storytelling lies.'
More from Alfred Hitchcock
All quotes βLuck is everything... My good luck in life was to be a really frightened person. I'm fortunate to be a coward, to have a low threshold of fear, because a hero couldn't make a good suspense film.
Alfred HitchcockRead
I can't read fiction without visualizing every scene. The result is it becomes a series of pictures rather than a book.
Alfred HitchcockRead
I am a typed director. If I made Cinderella, the audience would immediately be looking for a body in the coach.
Alfred HitchcockRead
Seeing a murder on television can help work off one's antagonisms. And if you haven't any antagonisms, the commercials will give you some.
Alfred HitchcockRead
There is something more important than logic: imagination
Alfred HitchcockRead
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