Suspense and Tension in Short Stories of H.G. Wells Herbert George Wells was best known as the author of fantasy and science fiction novels: The Time Machine, The Invincible man, The War of the worlds, The Stolen Bacillus, The man who could work miracles and The Red Room. From this vast collection of different genres, three stories have been chosen to illustrate, compare and contrast how the different setups create tension and suspense. There are similarities and differences in the settings that the writers have chose for their stories by H.G.Wells. These stories though different in genre and plot illustrate how H.G.Wells manages to capture the imagination of the reader and create atmosphere and tension in contrasting ways. The Three stories I agreed to choose were The Red Room, the Stolen Bacillus and The man who could work miracles. The Red Room is a story about a young man 28 years old goes to this houses where people had been complaining about this ghost like figure they keep hearing in a room of there's. The young man arrives at the house only to be surrounded by a bunch of old people, these old people made the man feel very uncomfortable and unsure about what they want him to do. After a while even the young man confesses to himself how he wasn't expecting these miserable old people in this quote "I must confess I had scarce expected these grotesque custodians "(pg 4). The man later went on to describes how the men became ghost's of themselves "A monstrous shadow of him crouched upon the wall and mocked his actions as he poured and drank" (pg 6) A man with a withered arm repetitively keep saying the words "It's your own choosing to go in that room" (pg 6). The man then got described to him what had been happening in the house, and then he walked along the corridor with the old man with the withered arm and into the room. Only the young man entered the room to see that it was dark and no lights were working. So he stayed and settled for a while, he had a look around and then suddenly something came up behind him and the man blacked out. When he woke up all of the old people were surrounding him and he couldn't remember a thing. Then the old people are eager to know all about what happened to the young man. Then he explains to them that "there's neither a ghost nor an earl in the room but it's the worst thing of all that haunt poor mortal man", he said and that
In comparison The Red Room was written only thirty years later in 1894 by HG Wells although it feels more timeless. At that time technology had improved intensely, nevertheless Wells still imitated the old fashion gothic literature style writing, which is ironic, due to the time. Both stories have managed to engage its audience by creating suspense and tension. Besides that both stories have been written in first person, this in sequence makes it sinister, in a way because we get to know the narrator’s impressions and feelings. The authors of both stories have selected discomforting places in which to set their story, they are made more eerie because that in the 19th century time many people believed in ghosts and the supernatural.
it already informs us that the story is set a night, could this be the
In “The Most Dangerous Game” by Richard Connell and “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne both stories have very different themes. Brown is a man that has followed the right path all his life suddenly is challenged to face temptaion and ending all his curosity. He decides to go into the forest to face the devil. In Richard Connell's short story he centers his theme around how far peoople will go when they fear for their life, people will do anything to survive.
“The Destructors” by Graham Greene and “The Most Dangerous” Game by Richard Connell reveal similarities in both conflict, and brilliant use of suspense in a ploy to keep the reader engaged. The two short stories both hold interesting titles and take place in realistic environments under unrealistic circumstances. Nonetheless both stories relay vague similarities that create a proactive willingness to further explore the stories beyond the first few seconds of reading.
that private room was of the changes and promotions it might occasion among themselves or
Ralph heard the night watchman call lights out. The moon gleaming in the window was the only source of light within Ralph’s room now. Even in the dim light he could make out the sink and toilet. The room was padded, and the door had a glass window that reflected fluorescent light into the room. The combination of the artificial and natural light created a faint glimmer upon the mirror that hung above the sink.
The old mans bedroom is the only room that is mentioned in the story. The setting and tone is made scarier because the looks of the room are not described. This allows our imagination to run wild. The room is where the narrator watches the old man sleep and ends up taking his life.
How does Mary Shelley use elements of the Gothic in Chapter 5 to create an atmosphere of tension and dread?
The red room is the place that ignites Jane's passion. The red room is one of the novels great paradoxes as it parallels with ice in that it restricts Jane's freedom and imprisons her; yet the experience gives her the courage to stand up to her aunt. The fire that the red room ignites in Jane allows her to jump the 'containment lines'; to break the bonds of her Aunt that are restricting her, and achieve freedom. The red room becomes very symbolic of Jane's fight for freedom. Whenever she suffers from there on, Jane emotionally comes back to the red room, and adds new fuel to the fire, as she reminds herself why she wants to break free of oppression.
Herbert George Wells (or H.G. Wells for short) was born on September 21,1866 to a lady’s maid, and a gardener. HG Wells and his parents Sarah and Joseph, lived in Brombley, England. When HG Wells was seven years old, he had broken his leg. With all of the free time he had, he read and read. Wells had read so much, that he had a fascinating imagination, so filled with thoughts and ideas that he began writing his own little books by the age of ten.
How Writers of 19th Century Stories Create Tension and Suspense The writers in 19th century stories create tension and suspense through the use of gothic horror. This style of writing is designed to frighten and panic and cause dread and alarm. It innovates our hidden worst fears often in a terrifying, shocking finale, while captivating and entertaining us at the same time in a cathartic experience. Horrors effectively centre on the dark side of life, the forbidden, and the strange and alarming events. It deals with the audience’s most primal nature and its fears.
There’s a room upstairs that you might care to take a look at...There’s no tele-screen!” (100) --> Represents the contrast between the place where there is a sense of freedom and the Party 's control over the
The story of ‘The Red Room’ by H.G. Wells is told to us in first
Tension and Suspense in The Red Room by H.G. Wells In H.G Wells’ The Red Room tension and suspense are created through the characters, the plot and the setting. The setting is typical of Gothic and Victorian ghost stories. In these times there was no electricity so use of candles for light created an eerie atmosphere. They had no modern technology like televisions for entertainment so they used books and story telling.
wrote about him he based him on a man called Dr Joseph Bell. This man