Utilisation of Setting and Atmosphere in Victorian Short Stories

Utilisation of Setting and Atmosphere in Victorian Short Stories

Following a careful study of a range of Victorian Short Stories,

discuss the ways setting and atmosphere were utilised, to make the

stories successful for their designated audience.

Victorian stories, especially those with a supernatural theme,

cleverly utilised a range of devices to make them a literary success

to their respective audiences. The range, which we have studied,

covered a time period spanning all of Queen Victoria's reign and

consequently created tension in similar and different ways, as I will

show in this essay.

The setting of Dickens' wonderful creation, "The Signalman" differs a

great deal from the other stories. "The Signalman" was published in

1865, forty years prior to "The Man with the Twisted Lip", and "the

Red Room". Through the development of this genre in the late Victorian

era, we also notice a change in the plot and predictability of the

later pieces of writing. For example, when Dickens produced "The

Signalman", the latest technological development was the Steam Train.

However, in "The Man with the Twisted Lip", Conan Doyle, wished to

intrigue his audience by writing about a private investigator, seeing

as at the time the Police Force were failing to fulfil their potential

as 'Law Enforcers'. In the same way, the genre of "The Red Room",

which is of course a gothic mystery, accentuated the horror of haunted

rooms, secret passages and stairways. This allowed H. G. Wells to show

how the Victorian social standing contributed to the overall

appearance of neglect and welfare of the three oppressive untamed

custodians. This was used for eff...

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relate more to each other, than with the earlier piece. This is

because the way in which the authors portray characters and their

personalities through such short stories differs immensely from that

of Dickens' style of writing. However, just because I have made this

point, does not automatically mean that, "The Signalman" does not bare

any resemblance upon the writing from the late Victorian era, because

it does in that the use of settings and uses of light and dark

symbolism remain the same throughout the period. I preferred reading

the story "The Signalman", because it keeps you enthralled with the

plot as it is constantly changing the pace. Overall, the Victorian

short stories, utilise a range of devices, which ultimately make them

a literary accomplishment to their relevant audiences of the period.