Compare The Red Room(TM) by HG wells and The Signalman(TM) by Charles Dickens examining how the writers create effective mystery stories.

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Compare ‘The Red Room’ by HG wells and ‘The Signalman’ by Charles Dickens examining how the writers create effective mystery stories.

     

 ‘The ’ is a story about a Signalman who is haunted by a specter. Each time he sees the specter a tragic event happens on the railway. The Signalman gets visited by the man who doesn’t believe in the specter but is interested by it. The Signalman tells the man that he has witnessed the specter again and is waiting for another event to happen on the line. When the man returns he finds the Signalman dead and realizes it was the specter that caused his death.

        ‘The Red Room’ is a story about a man who visits a castle owned by three custodians. They tell him of a haunted room which he doesn’t believe in. To prove them wrong he spends a night in the room. When he is in the room certain events make him panicked. When he tries to escape he knocks himself out. The next morning, he wakes up with several injuries, he decides fear itself haunts the room.                              

         Theses two stories are typical Victorian ghost stories. They are both pre 1900 texts show the same characteristics as other Victorian ghost stories. They are both set in oppressing places and involve the supernatural.

       The features I will be looking for are how the writers create effective mystery stories by using viewpoints and characters, structure and suspense, setting and atmosphere, and effective use of language.

         ‘The Signalman’ and ‘The Red Room’ are both told in first person. In ‘The Signalman’ the narrator asks questions to the Signalman who then answers him through his eyes. “One moonlit night; said the man, I was sitting here when I heard a voice cry.” In ‘The Signalman’ the narrator seems to be concerned about the Signalman. “But surely this is a cruel haunting of me, what can I do?” Because “The Signalman” is not told through the eyes of the narrator the events have already taken place. “Did it cry out?”, “no it was silent.” Because of this the story doesn’t build up as much suspense as you already know the Signalman has survived his encounters with the spectre.

       In ‘The Red Room’ the narrator does not find the three custodians any interesting and dislikes them. “I half suspected the old people were trying to enhance the spiritual terrors of their house by their drowning insistence.” Unlike ‘The Signalman’ the narrator experiences the supernatural for himself. “Yes said I, the room is haunted.” This adds to the tension of the story as it builds up, from the narrator not believing in the supernatural. “If I do see anything tonight, I shall be so much the wiser.” Because the narrator in “The Redroom” is experiencing it, it enhances the atmosphere. This especially helps in building up the tension as he reaches the redroom.

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       In “The Signalman” the narrator is convincing as he is interested in the railways. “… Had a newly awakened interest in theses great works.” His feelings dramatically change in the story, from being happily surprised to be able to see how the Signalman does his work to being shocked and depressed when he finds that the signalman had died. “…the nameless horror that oppressed me.”

      The Signalman seems convincing as the narrator describes his actions. “There was something remarkable in his manner of doing so.” Its seems possible that if he is alone for ...

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