Tension in The Signalman

The first release of tension is when the train comes past but we are not told it is a train dickens leaves it up to our imagination until the last sentence when the train finally rushes by. Also dickens uses alliteration of the letter ‘v’ to add to the tension “just then there came a vauge vibration in the earth and air, quickly changing to a violent pulsation, and oncoming rush that caused me to start back, as thou it had a forced that pulled me down.

When such vapour as rose to my height from this rapid train that had passed me…” In the story you expect strange things to happen, with things like the danger light and the high pitched screeching.

Comparing the way dickens treats the ghost in the Signalman and they way he treats them in the Christmas carol 

The Ghost in the signalman is not expected when it turns up, where as the ghosts In the christmas carol are expected because marley tells scrooge when to expect them and what ghosts they’ll be.

The ghosts in the CC are mainly positive halping scrooge top change his life for his better, where as the Spectre is seen as a negative whith the death aspect added. They way the are described is very different , the CC ghosts are described fully ,where as the ghosts in the siginalman are barly described at all