"There was a pleasant smell of furniture polish."
This quotation is an example of a welcoming atmosphere. Janet pearson, who is the matron at farthing house, greeted Mrs Flower (the narrator) with warmth and open arms.
" 'You are Mrs flower - how nice to meet you.' She put her hands out."
This quotation proves that Janet pearson is a welcoming person.
The atmosphere in Farthing house is not always warm.
"I was shrouded at once in the atmosphere of a haunted house."
"The only thing I noticed was the faintest smell of hospital antiseptic. That depressed me a bit more."
These quotations show that the atmosphere at Farthing house is not always warm and welcoming but it can also be depressing and ghostly although it is warm the majority of the time.*
The ghost in the red room seams evil and wants to terrify people whereas the ghost in farthing House does not want to terrify people but wants the peoples sympathy. In the red room the man deliberately sets out to confront the ghost.
" 'I can assure you,' said I, 'that it will take a very tangible ghost to frighten me."
In this quotation the man suggests that he is not frightened of ghosts although when he does finally come into contact with the ghost he is terrified. In Fathing houst mrs Flower does not expect to meet a ghost although when she does she is not terrified. Mr Flower feels sympathetic towards the ghost and that the ghost needs her help.
"I was desperate to follow her, because i felt that she needed me in some way."
This quotation from farthing house suggests that Mrs Flower felt that the ghost needed her. *
During the red room the tension gradually rises and rises until it reaches it's climax just before the end of the story. as the tension builds throughout the story the sentences sometimes become shorter and seam quicker to read. This suggests thst the man is pannicking.
"I shut them in and walked down the chilly echoing passage." (page 6)
-gradual build of tension-
"I bruised myself on the thigh against the tablem, I sent a chair headlong, I stumbled and fell and whisked the cloth from the table in my fall." (page 12)
The first quotation from page six of the red room shows that there is a little tension because of the use of the words 'chilly' and 'echoing'. It is also the kind of passage that is read slowly and calmly which shows that there is not very much tension present. The quotation from page twelve shows that there is a lot of tension present. Wells creats this tension by using commers often. Using commers often, helps the reader to read the passage quickly because there are no 'link up' words, for example 'and' which slow down the reading of the passage. Wells also creats tension by using emotive or charged language.
"With a half hysterical facetiousness."
In this quotation from page eleven of the red room Wells uses emotive words like 'hysterical' and 'facetiousness'.750
In 'farthing house' the pattern of tension is very different compared to that of 'the red room'. Unlike in 'the red room' which builds up gradually, the tension rises and then falls continually throughout the story.
"The only other thing i noticed was the faintest smell of hospital antiseptic. That depressed me a bit more." (page 20, par 3)
"Once I was inside, I no longer noticed it at all, there was only a pleasent smell of furniture polish." (page 20, par 4)
These quotations are one of many examples of the tension rising an falling throughout 'farthing house'. In the quotation from paragraph three, there is a high amount of tension and there is a depressing mood present. One paragraph later the tension has almost completely dissapheared aswell as the depressive mood. Susan Hill creats tension by using creating a depressive atmosphere.
"I trudged around, but the grass was too wet and the sight of the black trees lowered my spirits."
This quotation shows that describing a dreary , dark foggy morning creats tension because the reader expects something to happen and so is put in suspense.
" 'I've put you in cedar - it happens to be free just now.' She barely hesitated as she spoke."
This quotation shows another way that hill creats tension. By stating that Janet Pearson hesitated as she spoke, makes the reader tense as they wonder why she hesitated.
During the story of Farthing House Mrs Flower feels a sudden cloud of depression, a melancholy whenever the ghost is near. She feels a sense of loss but until the end she could not find out why. When the ghost has past the depresive cloud lifts almost straight away.
"It descended like a damp veil about my head and shoulders. But it lifted, or almost, the cloud past after a few moments."
This quotation is an example of the depressive mood coming and passing in a few seconds.
A big difference between the two ghost stories is the personality of the main charictors. Mrs Flower is kind and very calm. This can be told in the way that she feels sorry for the ghost which proves that she is kind. She also visits her aunt which is cery thoughtfull. When Mrs Flower sees the ghost she is calm and even follows it downstairs. The main charachter in 'the red room' is a very confident man.
" 'I can assure you said I, that it will take a very tangible ghost to frighten me.' "
This quotation from 'the red room' shows that the main character is confident that the ghost will not scare him although when he meets the ghost he is not calm.
I think the most successful of the two ghost stories is 'the red room'. I think this because it has all the ingredients of a classic ghost story. For example the dark castle, the cold stone walls and, flickering candles and unwelcoming people. Farthing House on the other hand is light, warm and friendly which does not set a very good atmosphere for a ghost story. I also prefure 'the red room because' the tension is a lot higher throughout the story which keeps you on the edge of your seat. I dislike the way that the tension is placed in 'Farthing House' because just as I wad getting excited the tension reduced and dissapointed me.
