Next, I will examine setting. The setting of the story plays an important part in creating fear and tension, mainly through Stoke Morran and it’s manor. The manor and it’s grounds are in the middle of the countryside, and therefore it is easy to imagine that it could become very dark and desolate there. Also, wild animals (a cheetah and a baboon) are kept on the grounds thus adding to the sense of fear. The manor itself is very large and old, just the place for a murder mystery and this really helps with the atmosphere. The manor for all its size is largely uninhabited, with only a few rooms being used. This gives it an eerie atmosphere, a “place where anything could happen”.
Now, I will analyse the plot. Apart from a red herring near the start, the main part of the plot is “how was the crime committed?” and not “who did it?” as it is obvious almost from the beginning that Dr. Roylett is guilty. When Helen Stoner comes to Holmes, and talks about her sister’s death, she mentions that her sister’s last words were “it was the speckled band” and she says that the gypsies wore speckled handkerchiefs, and also that she thinks that the gypsies have been making the whistling noise. The reader jumps to the conclusion that the gypsies killed her sister.
However, once you get to Stoke Moran, your ideas and thoughts soon change. Holmes tries to get into Helen Stoner’s room from the outside, but finds it impossible, so the reader thinks that the killer must have come from the inside, and that the killer is Doctor Roylett. When Holmes finds the dummy bellpull, the ventilator, the milk and the marked chair, it starts to look like Dr Roylett committed the murder in a very complicated way. When Holmes decides to spend the night in the room, the quiet and darkness, as well as Holmes saying that this was ‘a very dangerous situation’, makes this scene full of tension. When Holmes jumps up and strikes at the bellpull, the tension is both released and added to, because finally something has happened, but you are not totally sure what.
Doyle often uses rather long, unfolding sentences in this story. This has two effects; one, to make sure that the reader is well informed and can think about what is written, and two, it keeps the pace of action slow.
This is similar to a scene in Talking in Whispers in which Andreas is being tortured and at the end of the paragraph he screams for mercy but you are not sure if he gives ups his secrets.
Fear and tension are some of the main ingredients in Talking in Whispers, and play a large part in setting the tone and atmosphere.
One of the ways that Watson creates tension and fear is by making “cliffhanger” paragraph and sentence endings. For example, on page 104, when Andreas has screamed for mercy you read on wanting to find out if Andreas has told all, but the scene changes to the scene where Jack Normanton is told to meet someone for some information. It says, “green panama?”….“Didn’t the Silver Lion wear a green panama?” and you want to find out who the informant is. You are now waiting to find out two things – as soon as you find out one thing, there is something else, so there is always an atmosphere of suspense and tension.
Another technique Watson uses is juxtapositioning, this time to mainly emphasise fear. On page 10, at the top of the page, everyone is happy about the Silver Lion’s imminent victory, and how “tomorrow, all will be different”. You read the beginning of the next scene (set the next day), expecting it to be detailing the Silver Lion’s victory, but instead it is a scene of terror with Larreta being attached, and Andreas being searched by armed junta. This makes the fear seem more intense and real, as it is in contrast to the previous scene.
Watson also tries to make the reader identify with Andreas. Because the story is written with lots of direct speech and Andreas’s thoughts, as well as making the story plausible and realistic, we can get to know Andreas very well. We can feel what Andreas feels, and be with him when things happen to him. We can also compare events in Chile to events in England, and this can help us to understand fear.
Watson uses more short and snappy sentences than long flowing sentences, and I think this helps to make the book more exiting. He also uses lots of metaphors and similes to describe characters and events. For example, calling his torturers “hog” and “snake”. The metaphors/similes are closely linked to the imagery used as they really help the reader to conjure up a picture of what is going on.
Both James Watson and Arthur Conan Doyle excel at creating fear and tension in their stories. Both authors use lots of direct speech and character thoughts, which allows us to get to know the characters and thus feel their fear.
I think that Watson has been the more successful author at creating fear and tension in his story. This is basically because Talking in Whispers contains a lot more continual action and danger than “The Adventure of the Speckled Band”. In Talking in Whispers Andreas’s life is in danger in every twist in the tale, but “The Adventure of the Speckled Band” is just too quiet and slow to capture the imagination.
