In this particular story the narrator seems to speak with an air of superiority
“‘I can assure you,” said I, “that it will take a very tangible ghost to frighten me’”.
He believes he is above the caretakers and is sneering at them.
“‘And I stood up before the fire with my glass in my hand’”
The narrator feels the elderly are beneath him and speaks condescendingly to them. There is tension between the narrator and the elderly:
“If I see anything tonight I will be so much the wiser”
He is unbelieving of the caretaker’s theory of a ghost’s presence and does not care to show them kindness.
The narrator is scathing towards the caretakers and refers to them ruthlessly.
“More bent, more wrinkled”
It shows his lack of respect towards the caretakers and that he sees them as hideous monsters.
The narrator is assertive and speaks to the caretakers with pomposity, “it is my owns choosing,”
The elderly caretakers are hostile to one another from the beginning of the story, such words as “positive dislike” and “took no notice of his arrival” suggest this. The narrator is distant with the caretakers and is unfavorable, “wrinkled”, “bent” and “withered” illustrates this. The narrator sees the custodians as monsters showing them little respect. When the narrator tries to ask for directions to the room he is ignored many times by the elderly; this implies that there is tension between the custodians and the narrator.
As he begins his journey he becomes startled and paranoid along with the feeling of fear towards the house “I stood rigid for half a minute perhaps. Then with my hand in the pocket that held my revolver, I advanced.”
He is very suspicious and cautious; he suddenly is afraid and grave.
“a sudden twinge of apprehension. I glanced over my shoulder at the Ganymede in the moonlight, and opened the door to the red room rather hastily, with my face turned to the pallid silence of the landing.”
This shows that since he left the caretakers his confidence has waned and he fears Lorraine Castle.
Once the narrator enters the room he begins to survey the room, walking about and surrounding himself in darkness “closing the shutters”. He lights candles and places them all around the room; showing he is insecure about being in the darkness alone. Throughout the scene, when the narrator was in the room, Wells repeats the words “darkness” and “shadows” to emphasize the power of the room itself. He is comforted by the presence of his revolver, even though it is useless in the situation. The narrator sits back and waits nervously, and this shows through his choice of language:
“I was in a state of considerable nervous tension”.
This emphasizes the power of the “Red room”.
He is soon waiting for the room to come alive, “a helpful sense of the passage of time”. Soon he is having to reassure himself by speaking o himself ““By done!” said I aloud”. This proves he is frightened as do the words “stranger” and “a queer high note getting in my voice”.
As all the candles begin to go out we are beginning to see a change in his reactions, his once calm and rather arrogant nature has now become nervous and frightened. He is panicking now and it is as though the darkness is a violent enemy thus Wells’ use of syntax becomes longer and more complex to reflect the actions of a man in sheer panic.
He wakes up the next day disorientated and in the company of the custodians, suddenly the attitude between them changes; they show compassion towards each other.
“He spoke no longer as one who greets an intruder, but as one who grieves a friend.”
The caretakers question what haunts the red room, but are astounded when he gives his answer. It is no ghost that lurks in the shadows of the “Red room” but something created in the human mind. “Fear!” Wells personifies “fear!” and makes it sound like a wild beast to frighten the reader and stress the power that the mind has over our actions.
I am left with a feeling of wonder and nervousness at the end of this tale because I can picture the room in my mind and feel the darkness that clings to the room. I do believe Wells has been successful in creating the tension we expect from a gothic story because he leaves the reader questioning constantly, making us want to know more. He also got the setting perfect because most gothic novels are set in run-down castles.
I think this is a successful ghost story because of his use of language “shadowy” and “darkness” and how he repeats It to emphasize his meaning.
