Suspense In Seven Floors By Dino Buzzati

In the short story “Seven Floors” by Dino Buzzati, the author skillfully creates suspense throughout the span of the story. The story follows the protagonist Giovanni Corte as he arrives at a mysterious hospital where he will be treated for a mild form of a disease. He is put on the seventh floor of the hospital and learns that the doctors choose which floor to put patients on by the severity of their disease. The patients on the first floor are lost causes and the patients on the seventh floor are the most mild cases. The short story follows Giovanni Corte as the doctors send him down floor by floor until he finds himself on the first floor. In the short story “Seven Floors”, the author incorporates imagery and symbolism that create suspense for the reader. Dino Buzzati incorporates imagery and detail into the short story. The hospital that Giovanni Corte is staying in is first described as “peaceful, welcoming, and reassuring” (Buzzati 131). The reader is able to picture the hospital as a building that is comfortable for the sick. However, throughout the rest of the story, the hospital becomes Giovanni’s worst fear. The author makes sure to include many times that Giovanni's

When he first meets another patient, Giovanni learns more about the hospital’s significant floors. At the time, he is not afraid and “proceeded with his questioning with the light-heartedness one might adopt when speaking of tragic matters which don’t concern one” (Buzzati 133). This foreshadows the downgrading of floors as the short story goes on. Giovanni is unconcerned at the beginning of the story because he thinks that he does not have to worry about going down any floors. However, as the plot continues, what floor he is on becomes the only thing he is worried about. The suspense of the story deepens as Giovanni continues to descend floors until his death. The suspense used in the story leaves readers on the edge of their