The Gothic - Interplay between Realism and Fantasy The purpose of the imagination, I believe, is to offer us solace and shelter from situations and life passages which would otherwise prove unendurable. The imagination which so often kept me awake and in terror as a child has seen me through some terrible bouts of stark raving reality as an adult. ( Stephen King Nightmares and Dreamscapes : 8 ) This quote from one of America's leading writers' highlights one of the most important reasons for the use of fantasy in gothic fiction. Fantasy cannot only create terror but can mentally