Pre 1914 Gothic Horror Stories Techniques Used in...

The Tell Tale Heart and The Red Room are two short stories that share the genre of a gothic horror story. They are both based in the nineteenth century but the plots are very diverse from one another. The Tale Tell Heart tells the story of a man driven to insanity by his landlord’s eye whereas The Red Room is a story about an ignorant man whose disbelief in ghosts leads to him spending the entire night in a haunted room with ominous consequences. With both stories set pre 1914, the writers could expand upon their main ideas as the current time was one of huge conflict between religion and science. People were worried by the thoughts of witchcraft and magic in that era, but at the same time it intrigued them. In both stories, the title is†¦show more content†¦The whole story is limited to this setting giving the chilling feeling that it is apart from society. Not much in terms of furniture is described in the story thus making it sound empty and not ‘normal’. Night is when each part of the story is set, so the reader is never made aware of what happens in the day time. The use of night seems allow for some transformation in the main character; from a normal civilised person to a crazed psych-path. The Red Room is shown to be set in an old castle. The ‘Red Room’ is at a far end of the castle: â€Å"†¦along the passage for a bit†¦ until you come to a door†¦ through that is a spiral staircase†¦ half way up†¦ is a landing and another door covered with baize. Go through†¦ and down the long corridor to the end†¦ the red room is on your left up the steps. This shows the depth of which one has to venture into the castle to find the ‘Red Room’ likewise this sensation of isolation appears. In The Tell Tale Heart, the narrative is written in first person with the main character being the narrator. This pulls the reader into the action of what is happening in the story and makes it realistic. The main character addresses the reader on many occasions asking rhetorical questions; â€Å"How, then, am I mad?† but this along with his actions only makes himself seem more insane. The writer describes their actions with straight commands - â€Å"I proceed - with what caution - with what foresight† - No normal person would be