The Language in The Red Room by H G Wells and The Signalman by Charles Dickens
Throughout, The Signalman has suspense and the tension is gripping, as
the author, Dickens, has used exceedingly good description in the
language and the setting is just perfect.
Dickens had an advantage when writing this story as there were
similarities between himself and some of the characters; since he had
been involved in a train accident himself. He creates mystery in this
book very well. He uses repetition in the book, as the phrase,
'Halloa! Below there!' was repeated at least three times in the story.
The language used in this story sets the setting perfectly, here is an
example,
'a dripping wet wall of gagged stone excluding all but a strip of
sky,' it tells you, the reader, that it is a weird place and it says
what it feels like and looks like. Here are some other great
descriptive phrases that describe the setting, 'a gloomy red light and
the gloomier entrance to a black tunnel', 'a barbarous, depressing and
forbidding air.' These phrases give a sense that the setting is dark
and worrying.
Ultimately, it means that it is very hard to see because of the
limited light; it would be a very uncomfortable place to be.
The Red Room is about an old castle which boasts a dark room in it
which is theoretically meant to have a ghost in it. A man, who is not
named, enters this room to prove that there is nothing in there, no
ghosts or spirits. The old people would not show him the room, this
builds the tension. Once in the room, his candle goes out and then
everything begins... and the only thing really in the room is FEAR! An
extract from t...
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...alman and The Red Room were set in different times in
the Victorian period. Charles Dickens' story was set in middle
Victorian times, whilst H G Wells' was set later, when it was a new
time of discovery, when literature was more recent possibly.
In conclusion, I find that the stories both have excellent tension in
them throughout. An extract from The Red Room, I especially liked was,
'... However, the brooding expectation of the vigil weighed heavily
upon me. It was after midnightthat the candle in the alcove suddenly
went out, and that black shadow sprang back to its place there ...'
The suspense is well built as the language of the story was great. I
believe that the stories have 19th century language and the atmosphere
created fits the stories perfectly. The vocabulary was fairly aged
compared to today's language.
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.
we later find out that the ghost is in the other room. The ghost is
The aim of this essay is to explore the way in which the two authors
The Signalman by Charles Dickens, The Adventure of the Speckled Band by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
will happen next time. Furthermore, the fact that the phrase makes it seem that the shadows are scared of something, and the reader would normally associate shadows with blackness and fear, makes the reader. feel uneasy and heighten tension. It is almost as if fear is afraid of fear of the self. The setting of the story also creates tension and suspense; "the great red room of Lorraine Castle, in which the young duke died.
eyes of a child so it will be memorable to him as he will never forget
The Masque of The Red Death is a famous short story written by Edgar Allen Poe which talks about a party happening in a large amount of different rooms that were all painted different colors. The main room as the title says would be the red room. Everyone was at the gala; you had your ballet dancers, your musicians, and your wine. The wine is most likely a reference to sophisticated men buying drinking expensive fine wine or cognac. You have the beauty; this references girls and goes into the stereotype of models and bottles at most galas, events and nightclubs. This was most likely a party where men went to meet women. Similar, to that of a large city nightclub like Lavo or Avenue in Manhattan. In the 1800’s there were no nightclubs, as we
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.
Dream of the Red Chamber is one of the classics of Chinese literature and is considered by some to be eminent example of classic Chinese writing. Written in the middle of the eighteenth century, is serves as one of the last great tableaus of China prior to influence from the West. Its central story is that of boy, Jia Baoyu, growing up in feudal China. He lives a privileged life — the Jia family is by no means impoverished — and is attended on by maids as he spends his days with his cousins and friends. Throughout the novel, however, there exists a thread of rebellion on Baoyu’s part. He spurns many of the societal norms of his culture and parents through his acceptance of taboo subjects and rejection of what’s expected of him. Baoyu even attempts to fight his fate throughout the narrative; to put off the inevitable and live a life not predestined for him. Yet all his rebellions ultimately prove futile; Baoyu is eventually forced to play out his assigned role and live with the tragedy it brings.
Of the extraordinary amount of literary devices available to authors, Charles Dickens uses quite a few in his novel A Tale of Two Cities, which is set during the French Revolution. One of his more distinctive devices is character foils. The five sets of foils are Carton and Darnay, Carton and Stryver, Darnay and the Marquis de Evremonde, Madame Defarge, and Mr. Lorry and Jerry Cruncher. Dickens uses foil characters to highlight the virtues of several major characters in order to show the theme of personal, loving relationships having the ability to prevail over heartless violence and self-consuming vengeance.
the red room, and locked me up there, to my dying day; thought I was
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.
Use of Language to Portray 19th Century London Society in Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
Hobsbaum, Philip. A Reader’s Guide to Charles Dickens. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1972.
George Orwell once said, “[p]olitical language . . . is designed to make lies sound truthful and murders respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to a pure wind.” (1) This phenomenon describes the Victorian court system fairly accurately. Thus, it is unsurprising that in Bleak House, Dickens chooses to satirize this practice through his own usage of language. In Bleak House, Dickens provides a social criticism of the Victorian court system through the Chancery Court with his use of language surrounding it.