Examine what aspects of the 'The Red Room' by H.G.Wells and 'A Vendetta' by Guy De Maupassant are typical of the horror and ghost story genre

The setting of the house is also extremely important in a story such as this. It is the classic ghost story setting, an old derelict house. The gloominess within the house contributes to the atmosphere of oppression and neglect. The descriptive language used by characters (especially the narrator) also contributes to developing an eerie atmosphere. For example texts such as '...wrapped around me in a stifling embrace' help to give this effect.

H.G.Wells also uses personification, which is extremely effective; this helps to create a vivid image in your mind. Examples such as 'a shadow came sweeping up after me, and one fled before me into the darkness overhead', give the reader an image of a wild animal as a shadow. By the end of this we can see some definite similarities between him and the old people that we met at the beginning of the story. The main character has experienced something they have feared all their lives and because of it he is knows exactly how they feel. If anything the moral of this tale would be to acknowledge peoples beliefs and not reject them until you have experienced them.

The introduction to 'A Vendetta' is very striking. The picture that it conjures up in one's mind is of a sleepy little village on the side of a mountain. However, you soon learn that it is a story of bloody murder and revenge. Phrases like "deadly straits" "barren coasts" and "harassed by restless winds" shows a very lonely and harsh scene.

The story then jumps from a description of the area straight onto one of the key parts of the story; it does not have any build up whatsoever. In this scene Widow Saverini's dead son is brought to her. There is a loneliness and strange stillness that hints at the extent of emotions felt by the mother as the she looks upon her dead son. 'She did not cry, but she stayed there for a long time motionless, watching him. Then stretching her wrinkled hand over the body, she promised him a vendetta'. From the very beginning of this story the emotions and descriptions are not strong enough to create imagery. This is very unlike 'The Red Room'.

Widow Saverini is a strange character, she doesn't seem to be human, I cannot say what she was like before her son's death but after she seems very calm and very alert. She has all the qualities of a zombie in that the character lacks emotions and her coldness is striking. 'Slowly she leaned over him, pressing her cold lips to his dead ones'. Her lips are symbolic in that most humans have warm lips as they have blood running through them, suggesting that she is dead inside. 'Day by day the old woman plotted revenge against her son's killer'. The revenge scene is very odd, I say this because it is the only scene in which she shows emotion. The emotion she shows is hard to describe, sickening is the word that first came to mind. She is excited by this horrible killing. 'That night she slept well' is the closing sentence, This suggests that her task has been fulfilled and she can die peacefully.

In conclusion, both are typical of the ghost story genre in that they both have the right sort of setting. The 'Red Room' uses lots of description and personification to create psychological fear and 'A Vendetta' uses small amounts of horrific imagery in an otherwise bare and minimalist storyline to shock the reader.

By Harry Metzger

1JH