What methods do the writers use in order to create mood, atmosphere and character in the short stories you have studied?

Authors Avatar

What methods do the writers use in order to create mood, atmosphere and character in the short stories you have studied?

The horror story genre is one of mystery and intrigue. In the times before television and radio horror stories used to be told to groups of people as a form of entertainment. The story tellers intent was to keep the audience guessing and on the edge of their seats. Although by today’s standards these stories seem rather tame, in the period in which they were written they would have captivated and scared their audiences much as would the latest Hollywood thriller scare us today.  All of the horror stories that we have covered share the common themes of the supernatural and death two leading principles incorporated into horror stories of this particular genre.

     The opening of a Victorian horror novel is of great importance, it must be able to draw the reader in and make them want to read on. Therefore the opening must not give too much away and plant lots of unanswered questions in the readers mind. However it also has to make you suspicious of either a character or place at the same time as withholding information. A good example of this technique is seen in The Signal-Man by Charles Dickens. The start of this story builds tension and atmosphere; it makes us wary and suspicious of the Signal-Man and makes us wonder what event has caused him to behave in such a strange manner. This is shown when “he looked up at me without replying and I looked down at him without pressing him too soon with a repetition of my idle question”, this highlights the fact that the Signal-Man is a bit strange because of his failure to reply but also tells us that there is something about him that the narrator is wary about because of the fact that he does not want to irritate him by repeating the question. This is also shown when the narrator says “There was something remarkable in his manner of dong so, though I could not have said for my life what”, this reiterates the point that the Signal-Man is being made out to be strange and this makes us immediately suspicious of him. Another trademark of Victorian horror stories is the setting. Nearly all the examples are set in isolation and darkness. It makes you believe that should something happen to the narrator or main character, they would be completely alone with no means of help or communication with the outside world. This therefore tells us that something bad will happen to capitalize on the atmosphere created. Examples of this are in The Signal-Man where it says “the cutting was extremely deep, and unusually precipitate. It was made through a clammy stone that became oozier and wetter as I went down”, this tells us that this railway cutting is isolated and difficult to get out of. This makes us wonder whether the narrator will become trapped or have to escape from down there at some point during the story. The narrator also compares this railway cutting to a great dungeon which reaffirms the connotations of being trapped and goes on to say “a dripping wet wall of jagged stone”, which makes the cutting itself seem almost sinister and deadly. The setting is also conveyed in this story via the sky, for example when the narrator says “steeped in the glow of an angry sunset”, this makes us wary and suspicious of what events will take place as sunsets make the sky turn red, a colour which has strong connotations with danger. The idea of isolation is also apparent in the Monkeys Paw when Mr White says “that’s the worst of living so far out”, meaning that his house is out of the way and not close enough to civilization and in Draculas Guest when the narrator says “so far as the place was concerned, it was desolation itself.”  This tells us that there are no people or buildings around and that the narrator is alone, which makes us wonder if he is really alone and why the place is so desolate, it also tells us that if the narrator were to find himself in trouble there would be no one to help.  

Join now!

     There is also a lot of characterization present in Victorian horror. The writers usually make characters out to be strange, suspicious and mysterious. This is shown by the Signal-Mans odd behaviour at the start of the story when he refuses to speak or look at the narrator and instead “motioned with his rolled up flag.” The weirdness of the Signal-Man is also communicated through physical features as he is described as being “a dark, sallow man”, he is also said to have “fixed eyes and a saturnine face.” An example of characterization in The Monkeys Paw was with Sergeant ...

This is a preview of the whole essay