Explore the ways in which two short stories vividly create tension and atmosphere About authors Charles Dickens and Ray Bradbury vividly creates tension and atmosphere using several key literary devices. In the short story “The Signalman” Charles Dickens creates a sense of foreboding by slowly describing the events and setting in vivid detail. Ray Bradbury's story “There Will Come Soft Rains” creates a sense of emptiness by using detailed description and then creates tension later by describing the fire in the house in detail. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay First, in the story “The Signalman” Charles Dickens creates a sense of foreboding in the story. First, Dickens says that he is "bathed in the light of an angry sunset" and this suggests that there is danger ahead and that trouble may be near. Subsequently, Dickens says: "The cut was extremely deep and unusually precipitous." This tells us that the cut is not a good place to be and that it could be dangerous. After that Dickens says, “It grew slimier and wetter as I went down” and then “So little sunlight ever reached this spot, that it gave off an earthy, deadly odor.” This suggests that the signalman's post is haunted and creates the sense that the narrator will find something terrifying in the mail. This also sets the mood for the rest of the story. Finally, Dickens says "it gave me shivers", this suggests that there is some supernatural element to the story and this creates tension. Furthermore, the author also creates a supernatural element in the story which increases the tension. After the narrator spoke to the signalman and explained that the "ghost" might be a hallucination, he said "An unpleasant shiver ran through me." This suggests that the narrator is also starting to believe that a "ghost" exists and this convinces the reader that the "ghost" is real. In addition to this, the writer also creates tension by describing the strange behavior of the Signalman. An example of this would be when the author said, “while talking to me he stopped twice with a dropped color.” This tells us that there is something tormenting the Signalman and increasing the tension. Furthermore, the author wrote “but I am troubled, sir, I am troubled” and this further reinforces the idea that the Whistleblower has a problem and may be persecuted. This is also a narrative hook, so the reader can only find out what worries the signalman in the morning, which increases the tension. In another way, Charles Dickens also creates a sense of foreboding that heightens the tension. The narrator describes his path to the signalman's place in the story and sets the mood by saying something is wrong. He says, “With an overwhelming feeling that something was wrong.” This gives the reader a feeling that something undesirable is about to happen and creates nervousness in the reader as they don't know what to expect next. In the short story “There Will Come Soft Rains” Ray Bradbury creates an isolated and empty atmosphere in several ways. One way Ray Bradbury creates tension is by describing the isolation in the house. Bradbury describes the isolation of the house by saying “The house of the morning it was empty", which tells us that there is no one in the house. It also says "The rain beats on the empty house, echoing". This quote sets the mood by telling us that there is rain. The rain sets the mood unpleasant and adds a depressing atmosphere to the story. He also said that “the rain was beating on the empty house, echoing” which tells us how isolated the house is..