Red room and signalman

The stories, “The Red Room” written by H.G wells and, “The Signalman” by Charles Dickens were both written in the Victorian era. At that time, the short story was a popular genre as a form of entertainment. Ghost stories and thrillers were particularly popular with the Victorian readers, therefore it was essential for the authors to build tension and suspense to keep the readers interest.

“The Signalman” is a short story about a man who works for the railway company. There is also another character in this story. The Gentleman is the other character in the story. We never get to know his name. This is one way Charles Dickens built up tension, by making the Gentleman a mysterious character. We similary never get to know the Signalmans name either which adds to the mystery. Likewise we never get to know any names in “The Red Room”. This is one similarity between the two stories.

“The Signalman” is set in a dark railway cutting with a signal box at one side of the railway track. The walls were made of clammy stones. We know this because Dickens says, “It was made of wet clammy stone”. This too adds to

The three eardily characters keep on reminding the young man that the room is haunted but he disregards this comment, “I said -its your own choosing”. However they make him feel a little uncomfortable because of their age, unattractiveness and belief in supernatural beigns.

“The Red Room” and “The Signalman” are of the same genre. They are both ghost stories. Futhermore know one is named in either story which adds to the tension and suspense of the story. This is a similarity between the two stories. They are both set at night which is typical of a gothic, horror genre. They both effectively build up tension and suspense. In both stories both of the main characters are manipulated. In “The Red Room”, he loses control of his feelings when he feels he is in control. In “The Signalman”, he believes the apparition is warning him of someone else’s death but it is in fact his own death. Both Stories don’t disclose details until the end and this keeps the reader in suspense until the closing lines. There are also differences between the two stories. There is no actual ghost in “The Red Room”. The writer is telling us that we are only alarmed by fear itself. Whereas, in “The Signalman” there is a ghost. I think that the build up of tension in “the Red Room” is effective and thought provoking. However, t the end of “The Signalman” the feeling of suspense is de

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