Genre Essays

At noon during sunset, I first encountered Mr Head. I called out to him, saying “Halloa! Below there!” Instead of looking up, he looked towards the tunnel entrance where a red light was present. So, I repeated myself and shouted ‘hallao! Bellow!’ This time, he looked up. I asked if there was a way for […]

These two short stories belong to the mystery genre and use some of the typical elements of the mystery and ghost story genre periodically. The four aspects of these ghost stories I am going to investigate and compare between the two stories respectively are; Plot, Setting, Style, and character. “Bang Bangs who’s dead? ” is […]

In this essay, I will define how, I think, Dickens creates tension and suspense in this short, ghost story titled, ‘The Signalman’. ‘The Signalman’ was written in 1863, during the era when the Victorians had a fascination with the paranormal. The other famous ghost story that Dickens wrote, was written shortly before this time, ‘A […]

A diary entry by the signalman Day 16 On that dark and somber Thursday, it was two minutes past midnight. In the tunnel, there was a refreshing breeze that proved helpful as this area is consistently damp. While engrossed in my task, I suddenly caught wind of a voice emanating from the red light. As […]

The 19th century was a time when religious belief was almost universal and extended to all sorts of additional beliefs in fate, the supernatural, ghosts and monsters. The three stories that I am going to discuss, exploit supernatural only to scare and entertain. Charles Dickens’ story “The Signalman” is a story about mysterious sighting of […]

The Red Room, a tale by HG Wells, recounts the experience of a man who embarks on a ghost hunting expedition to an antique castle. His endeavor yields success despite a close call with candles during his watch. Meanwhile, The Signalman written by Dickens, tells the story of a man haunted by spectral figures that […]

During the Victorian era, mystery was a common genre in literature. Each story delved into philosophical, religious, and social concerns through its use of mystery. Comparing the narratives, whether in first or third person, can reveal similarities and differences in the setting, role of the author, and language used. ‘The Red Room’ and ‘The Signalman’ […]

‘The Withered Arm’, and ‘The Call’, are both ghost stories. ‘The Withered Arm’ was written in the 1800’s, but was set in 1819. ‘The Call’, by Robert Westall, is a much more modern story. The atmosphere in ‘The Withered Arm’ is also older than ‘The Call’, due to the social and historical background. Women’s roles […]

Macbeth is one of the most dramatic plays ever written. It opens with witches, encompasses the murder of a king and the appearance of a ghost, and ends in madness, despair and death. The use of supernatural in the script, the witches, the visions, the ghost of Banquo, and the apparition are the key elements, […]

The poem “Villegiature” was written by Edith Nesbit in the late 19th century. The actual word villegiature means holiday or retreat in French. “Villegiature is a short poem which is about a woman who is being haunted by her former lover. The poem mainly deals with the woman’s idealised image of the man and the […]

Wells was born in the year ‘The Signalman’ was written. Like Dickens, he was of poor parents. He went to night school to better himself to be trained as a teacher. He was lectured by T. H Huxley, the famous Darwinist (The belief in the theory of evolution) and developed a life long interest in […]

The story was written in 1992/93. The story is about a residential home. The place has quite a history through the years. The story is about a lady who is visiting her aunt who lives in the residential home.The story of ‘The Red Room’ was written quite along way back. It was written in the […]

Both ‘The red room’ by H. G. Wells and ‘Farthing house’ by Susan Hill are examples of ghost stories. But what makes a ghost story? Obviously, there has to be some sort of ghost whether it be literally a ghost or someone’s imagination, it doesn’t matter as long as there is some sort of suspense […]

Having read and analysed two short stories which both deal with the un-natural, I now intend to compare them in detail. The Red Room is a short story from the nineteenth century, which is about a man who visits a haunted house to prove that there is no ghost or anything of such a nature […]

“The Red Room” was appealing to the Victorians as it was indeed quite a short story, Reading a story in less than say an hour gave them a great sense of achievement as they started and finished quite quickly. Through reading and understanding the plot and essence of the story they would be able to […]

Two short stories titled the Red Room by H G Wells and Examination Day by Henry Slesar, have used different techniques to build up a fear and tension in their stories. The Red Room was set in the 19th century and was aimed at Victorian readers who liked ghost and mystery stories. The Red Room […]

I believe that a well-crafted ghost tale must combine action and philosophy regarding the existence and purpose of ghosts. It should feel authentic, allowing readers to recall the story and become fearful when encountering similar situations. Furthermore, exploring human nature is beneficial in depicting how even seemingly insignificant things can terrify people. Both H.G. Wells […]

Using reference to style and content I will explain how and why these two short stories are typical 19th century stories. The two short stories that we have read, ‘ The Red Room’ by H.G. Wells and ‘The Judges House’ by Bram Stoker, are heavily concerned with the supernatural world, with people in the Victorian […]

Although both these stories are based around the theme of fear, the types of fear that the characters in each story experience are quite different.’The Whole Town Is Sleeping’ is the more modern of the two stories. It was written in 1950, just after the Second World War and at the beginning of the Cold […]

The word ‘Ghost’ can be described as many things; an illusion, a spirit, a sinister supernatural hallucination, a shadow, or even a figment of your imagination. All these words resemble a part of fear.Are there Ghosts?Have you ever seen a Ghost?Your answer to ‘Are there Ghosts?’ will probably be negative or vague, but a lot […]

The three characters I have chosen are the Narrator from Charles Dickens’ “Confessions Found in a Prison, Isaac Scatchard from Wilkie Collins’ “The Ostler” and the Narrator from H.G. Wells’ “The Red Room”.In C. F.I.P (Confessions Found in a Prison) the narrator seems quite a normal man, but is driven to the murder of his […]

I think the most successful ghost story; out of ‘The Red Room’ by H. G. Wells and ‘Farthing House’ by Susan Hill is the latter. Both of the stories that we have read explore the feelings of horror and fear. In each story the characters react very different to the different types of ghost that […]