Explore the way in which Westall and Dickens create suspense and mystery in the two ghost stories,

Explore the way in which Westall and Dickens create suspense and mystery in the two ghost stories, "The Call" and "The Signalman". The two ghost stories "The Call" written by Robert Westall and "The Signalman" written by Charles Dickens, both create suspense and mystery to engage the reader's attention. "The Call" is narrated by a person who did not experience the events of the story but heard it from other people, and he also knew the characters. In contrast "The Signalman" is narrated by one of the characters in the story, and is therefore in first person. The ghost story genre has had enduring popularity over the past few centuries. It can even be found as far back as the Elizabethan era, where Shakespeare used ghosts as characters in his plays. For example in Macbeth, the ghost of Banquo comes back to haunt Macbeth. This genre has been so popular because the phenomenon of the supernatural cannot be explained and it ignites a fear in many of us. This was more so when the subject of ghosts were fairly new in literature, around the time when Dickens wrote "The Signalman", and therefore the story would have been quite different for readers. However when Westall wrote "The Call" in 1989-some 120 yrs after The Signalman was written, society was much more sceptical about the integrity of the issue of ghosts and therefore the story would have to be more persuading over its

  • Word count: 1535
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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A comparison of two ghost stories - One is called 'The Signalman' which was written by Charles Dickens in the 19th century. The other story, is called 'The Follower' by Cynthia Asquith

A Comparison of Two Ghost Stories I have been working on two different ghost stories, which were written by two different people. One is called 'The Signalman' which was written by Charles Dickens in the 19th century. The other story, is called 'The Follower' by Cynthia Asquith written in the 20th century. Both stories are set in different times and places, 'The Signalman' is set in the countryside and remains more or less the same throughout the story. But in 'The Follower', which is based in the city, is set in many different places. Both writers, writing at different times, use many techniques to make their stories frightening and gripping. Charles Dickens might have written his story to say something about the society he was part of, because people at that time were known to have lots of doubts about the future, it was a time of great social change. Cynthia Asquith wrote her story in the twentieth century; her story was about a woman. I think Cynthia Asquith may have been trying to express the concerns and experiences that are common to some women in this society. Both stories belong to the same genre of ghost stories. Short ghost stories were popular in the 18th century, perhaps because we needed to find evidence of the supernatural somewhere. I think people enjoy reading ghost stories because it is a change from everyday life, or the enjoyment of being scared in the

  • Word count: 3200
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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"A short story should stimulate the imagination and hold its reader in suspense."Consider the statement in relation to stories from the ghost / mystery genre.

"A short story should stimulate the imagination and hold its reader in suspense." Consider the statement in relation to stories from the ghost / mystery genre. (Think about style, language, setting characters, suspense and climax) A short story is a condensed fictional narrative typically concerning a relatively small number of characters. Short stories may aim to excite the reader provoking emotional responses, to the situations or characters described in the piece. The ghost / mystery genre presents unexpected events, building a sense of anticipation as the reader waits to see how the plot will develop. The short stories that this essay will examine were written in the nineteen-century, a period in which people were intrigued by the supernatural and mystery. In particular, the ghost and mystery genre provided Victorian readers with an escape from their strict moral codes of behaviour. It was in this period that the short story first became recognised as a genre in its own right. Victorian audiences favoured the short story format as they became a popular feature within newspapers and magazines. In the early 1900s, education improved, more people were taught to read and therefore short stories were seen as a good method to increase levels of literacy. Consequently, reading became a social pastime with short stories being a form of education and entertainment. Authors such

  • Word count: 3412
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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How does Dickens create suspense in The Signalman(TM)?

How does Dickens create suspense in 'The Signalman'? The Signalman written by Charles Dickens in 1866 is a short story that falls into the gothic fiction genre. This particular style of writing combines elements such as the supernatural, castles, darkness, madness and the unknown. At the time the story was being written, the industrial revolution was in full force. This had a huge impact on society at the time. It improved the standard of living drastically. The death rate had dropped due to better health care and sanitation. Numerous amounts of great and unbelievable machines were being invented. Nothing like this had ever been seen before. There were suddenly vast amounts of new jobs being created because of all the new factories and machines having to be built and operated. People became sceptical as to the existence of god because their thoughts were being widely challenged by science and its overwhelming significance. Charles Darwin's, "The Origin of Species" suggested that man had evolved from the ape. This caused chaos in the Church. Ordinary People began to form their own opinion about the existence of mankind in relation to god. Dickens incorporates these ideas into The Signalman. The idea of these prosperous new machines scared people because they were totally unknown shows through in the short story and is one of its main themes. Dickens uses the setting to form

  • Word count: 1357
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Examining how tension and suspense are created in two short stories - The Signalman and Lamb to the Slaughter

Tim Hole Wider Reading We will be examining how tension and suspense are created in two short stories. I will analyse the use of language, setting, characters and plot to see where tension has been created for he reader. We are looking at 'The Signalman', which is a pre-1990 Dickens' story and 'Lamb to the Slaughter', a more modern story written by Roal Dahl. Charles Dickens would have written 'The Signalman' for a Victorian audience who were very interested in science and paranormal. So Dickens wrote the story with a supernatural mood and with the upmost intent to create fear for the reader. He has also written the story in a railway setting, which was central to Victorian life. Roal Dahl's desire within 'lamb to the Slaughter' is to make people smile at the humorous, ironic twist at the end. Dickens chose to write 'The Signalman' in first person so that the reader would experience what the narrator was feeling, allowing Dickens to be able to create tension. Dahl has written 'Lamb to the Slaughter' in third person as the only character that remains throughout the story is Mary Maloney and Dahl would have had to expressed her emotions before and after the murder, which would have spoilt the comical twist due to the complexity. Also Dahl would have to explain why Patrick Maloney wanted to leave Mary. I think Dickens has left this out so that we don't feel sorry for Patrick,

  • Word count: 1188
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Which of the two short stories studied did you most enjoy and why? In your critique explain briefly where each story is set, when and what happens.

Thursday, 2nd March, 2004 Wayne Owens Literature G.C.S.E Prose Critique Q = Which of the two short stories studied did you most enjoy and why? In your critique explain briefly where each story is set, when and what happens. Despite your preference, comment on whether both stories meet the criteria for good ghost fiction. Make close reference to the writers' skills and language (make comparisons.) _______________________________________________________ After reading 'The Signalman' by Charles Dickens and 'Harry' by Rosemary Timperley, I have come to the conclusion that I prefer 'Harry'. Both stories, however, are brilliantly written ghost stories with well-created atmospheres and plots that create tension and suspense. 'The Signalman', by Charles Dickens, is a pre-20th century story which is set in the 1800's. It takes place by a train line and in a signal box which is occupied by the signalman. In the story the signalman befriends a man and later confides in him that he has seen an 'appearance' at the entrance to the train tunnel. He tells the man, who is the narrator of the story, that after he has seen the appearance something bad has always happened. After the first sighting, a train crash took place where a number of people died and, after the second sighting, a young lady died whilst on a train. The signalman then explains

  • Word count: 2471
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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The Monkey's Paw" by W. W. Jacobs, "The Clubfooted Grocer" by Sir Arthur Canon Doyle, "The Red Room" by H. G. Wells and "The Signalman" by Charles Dickens

Analyse how the writers successfully use aspects of the supernatural to create dramatic tension in the short stories you have read. The nineteenth century was an era of general belief in ghosts and spirituality. This is what made gothic stories even more appealing and successful during this era - the fact that they would be seen as being realistic. One major reason for the rise in spirituality during this era was the fact that many people had started to lose their Christian faith (mainly because the Church was unable to give an explanation as to why ghosts existed) and so they started to search for a new way of understanding and accepting death. I think that the Victorian's enjoyed reading horror stories because they offer a challenge - to see whether the reader can figure out who the "ghost" or spectre represents and what they are doing. By involving the reader, the writers were able to keep them interested throughout the story. During the Victorian era, the short story became a very popular genre and ghost stories were well-liked with the readers. It was therefore very important for the authors to build tension and suspense to keep their readers interested. I will be studying: "The Monkey's Paw" by W. W. Jacobs, "The Clubfooted Grocer" by Sir Arthur Canon Doyle, "The Red Room" by H. G. Wells and "The Signalman" by Charles Dickens. In this essay, I will be exploring the ways

  • Word count: 4985
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Comparing the Whole Town's Sleeping With a Terribly Strange Bed

Comparing the Whole Towns Sleeping With a Terribly Strange Bed In both stories the setting is used as a powerful technique for creating tension. In the Whole Towns Sleeping the town is described as being "a little town, far away from everything," "Separated from the rest of the world." The town is also described as having "half empty streets," this suggests that people are scared of something or someone, as there are not many people on the streets. The Ravine is described as being "black," and having "secret odours of a rank greenhouse." This suggests that there have been deaths in the area and the bodies are rotting and creating the odours of a rank greenhouse. Both stories use suspense. In the Whole Towns Sleeping suspense is used often when Lavinia is walking home and she hears a man singing and thinks it is the Lonely One "she heard a man singing far away," then further on she says "and that's who it was of course Officer Kennedy." This suggests she did not know who it was but was relieved when it was Officer Kennedy. In a Terribly Strange Bed suspense is used when the narrator is being attacked by the bed, you never know what is going to happen, whether he is going to wake up and it be a dream or it actually kill him. When comparing the Whole Towns Sleeping with a Terribly Strange Bed the gaming house is described as being a place where blackguards and the

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  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Comparison between Three pre 1914 Short Stories; The hand - Guy De Maupassant, The signalman - Charles Dickens, and The red room - H.G Wells.

David R Barnard Comparison between Three pre 1914 Short Stories. The hand - Guy De Maupassant The signalman - Charles Dickens The red room - H.G Wells In The Hand, the action is started by way of the townspeople listening to Judge Bermutier. He then mentions that he once dealt with a case that was unexplained and had to be dropped from investigation. Some women ask him to tell the story of this case and so he proceeds in telling the story. He starts by telling the people that he used to be judge at a mountain town called Ajaccio. He says that most of the cases involved vendettas and heroism. He tells of how one day he learned of an Englishman who had moved into a little villa on the bay. This Englishman had engaged his servant in Marseilles. This man was a very alone person and went rifle practicing every morning as well as a morning walk. He had legends made of him, and his name was Sir John Rowell, The Judge watched him as he could do nothing else. The Judge met with the man a fair few times and then proceeded to getting to know him and then paid him a visit where he was invited into his house. The Englishman informs the Judge that he has travelled around quite a lot to many places including parts of Africa and America. The Judge asks him about what he has hunted, he informs him that he has done some 'Man-hunting'. He then started to talk of weapons, showing the

  • Word count: 870
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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Discuss the Ways in Which Dickens and Collins Create an Air of Suspense and Mystery in These Stories.

Josh - Bryan 10DRH Discuss the Ways in Which Dickens and Collins Create an Air of Suspense and Mystery in These Stories. Both The Signalman and The Ostler are Victorian ghost stories, the signalman being written by Charles Dickens in 1866, and the ostler being written in 1855 by Wilkie Collins. Both these stories were relatively scary at the time of which they were wrote (The 19th Century.) Both writers create suspense in their stories by using a certain type of narrative, descriptive and organisational conventions such as in the beginning, they both have someone narrating it without the reader knowing who it is. The oster mentions murder, and the signalman has someone shouting, "Halloa! Below there!" Both of these examples create suspense. They are also set in the dark, and with hardly anyone around, this creating mystery, as mysterious things are more likely to happen in the dark. The main characters in the stories are haunted by ghosts and picked on as targets, making them interesting. The supernatural appear in both of these stories, the signalman using the spectre, which appears to be his cause of death, and the ostler using a witch. Both of the endings in these stories are unexpected, the signalman has a twist at the end, it lead up to just another ordinary day, but then "Signalman killed this morning, sir" is clearly not what the reader expected to happen, very good

  • Word count: 1046
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: English
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