The Genre of Mystery in The Signalman and the Monkeys Paw...

How do dickens and jacobs use the genre of mystery in the signalman and the monkeys paw? To answer the question, I believe that the authors of The Signalman and The Monkeys Paw use the genres of mystery very well. I am going to explain why I think that in the following essay. The first idea that I am going to look at is the role of fate. We see this take place in both stories, but in slightly different ways. In The Monkeys Paw, we see fate take on a large role, as the story is about a monkeys paw that has been invested with a lot of evil power because an old fakir wanted to teach people not to interfere with fate and its course. In The Signalman however, the role of fate is not as large as the role in The Monkeys†¦show more content†¦Furthermore, I will look at the suggestion of spectre. In The Monkeys Paw, the paw had been invested with so much power because it had a spell put on it by an old fakir, as this holy man wanted to get a message across to people that they were not to interfere with fate and its course. The Signalman is a story about a man who sees a figure, or a spectre several times, and after the sightings, the next day somebody dies. The suggestion of spectre plays quite a big role in this story, and gives a very effective result. The left arm is across the face, and the right arm is waved, - violently waved. Moreover, the setting of The Monkeys Paw adds to the way Jacobs used the genre of mystery. Without, the night was cold and wet. You could imagine a typical mystery scene, with rain, claps of thunder etc - a effective setting. The atmosphere inside the house was equally successful in grabbing my attention, the fire was burning and the blinds were drawn, and this gives me the idea of being cosy inside when the weather outside is terrible and miserable - an appealing setting. The story is mostly set at night, which adds to the eeriness. Equally, Dickens grabs the readers attention with a disturbing atmosphere. The steep cutting nearly over his head gives me the idea of claustrophobia. The thought of a foreshortened and shadowed figure gives me the sense of a figure that is possessed and not as it seems. MostShow MoreRelated How typical are The signalman by Charles Dickens, The monkeys paw2862 Words   |  12 PagesHow typical are The signalman by Charles Dickens, The monkeys paw by W.W Jacobs and The red room by H.G Wells of the gothic genre? Gothic stories were written in the middle of the eightieth century these include ‘Frankenstein’ written by Mary Shelley and ‘Jane Eyre’ written by Charlotte Bronte. Other gothic stories also include ‘The Signalman’ by Charles Dickens, ‘The Monkeys Paw’ by W.W Jacobs and ‘The red room’ written by H.G wells. Gothic stories were started by Horace Walpole who wroteRead More This essay will consider four of this type of story, by short story2235 Words   |  9 Pageswriters of the period; Dickens’ The Signal Man, The Monkeys Paw’ by W W Jacobs, H G Wells The Red Room and The Dream Woman by Wilkie Collins. LOOKING AT THE ATTUTUDES OF THE PERIOD, EXAMINE HOW A RANGE OF 19TH CENTURY WRITERS CREATE MYSTERY AND SUSPENSE IN THEIR SHORT SHORIES The rise in popularity of magazines in Victorian times and the era’s fascination in the unknown and supernatural led to immense interest in the short story genre. The key to the success of short stories is holding