supernatural elements
Beyond natural explanation
Supernatural elements are features in stories, beliefs, or experiences that exceed natural laws—ghosts, magic, prophecy, demonic possession, miraculous healings.
The phrase appears most often in literary analysis: The novel blends realism with supernatural elements.
In folklore and religion, supernatural elements distinguish the sacred or otherworldly from ordinary existence.
- vampiresUndead who drink blood
- werewolvesHumans who become wolves
- evil spiritMalevolent supernatural being
- talismanMagical protective charm
- angelsDivine winged messengers
guardian angel · necromancy · dark magic · ghosts · haunted house · heaven · holy water · underworld · shapeshifting · astral plane · out of body experience · blood sacrifice · djinn · telekinesis · purification rite · banshees · grimoire · witch's brew
- fantasy poetrymagical realism, fantastical creatures, enchanted realms, fairy tales, enchantment
- Gothic LiteratureEdgar Allan Poe, Jane Eyre, Heathcliff, Wuthering Heights, The Tell-Tale Heart
- Russian RomanticismPushkin, golden age, elegies, romantic heroes
- folklore fictionfairy tales, folktales, legends, fables, myths
- ShakespeareRomeo, Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, Othello
- plot devicesMacGuffin, red herring, plot twist, flashback, foreshadowing
supernatural elementsnatural phenomena
Occurrences without human cause
natural elements · physical reality · physical laws · laws of nature · natural forces
supernatural elementsrealism
Accepting things as they are
slice of life · ordinary life · social realism · gritty realism · verisimilitude