H.G. Wells's "The Cone" and Penelope Lively's "The darkness out there

¶ … Cone by H.G. Wells and "The Darkness Out There" by Penelope Lively. Specifically it will discuss how the authors create tension and suspense in the two works. Both of the short stories, written by skilled writers, include tension and suspense to build the story. The authors also use excellent characterization to place the reader in the middle of the story, so they can feel and sense what the characters are feeling.

In "The Cone," Wells builds tension by describing the trains the "men of iron" have created that disrupt the landscape and the peace and quiet. He writes, "The distant sound of a roaring and rushing drew nearer and grew in volume; the house quivered; one heard the metallic rattle of the tender. As the train passed, there was a glare of light above the cutting and a driving tumult of smoke" (Wells). The reader can almost feel the shuddering of the house and the roar of the train as it passes, and it shows how the trains rearranged and disrupted the landscape very vividly.

Wells also indicates great tension and suspense with his character. When Horrocks enters the room, it is clear the man and woman are surprised and guilty, but Wells indicates the real tension in Horrocks himself. He writes, "His big hands were clenched; one saw now the fire of his eyes under the shadow of his brows. He was trying to get his breath. His eyes went from the woman he had trusted to the friend he had trusted, and then back to the woman" (Wells). The emphasis here is on "had trusted," which makes it quite clear he knows what was happening in the room before his surprise arrival, and he is hurt by it. The tension between the characters is vividly real, and the reader understands Horrocks pain and suffering because of the depth of Wells' characterization and literary skills.

Wells also builds tension and suspense with the dialogue and the vague feeling of unease Mrs. Horrocks feels as the two men leave the room. He writes, "She had an impulse to warn him in an undertone, but she could not frame a word. 'Don't go!' And 'Beware of him!' struggled in her mind, and the swift moment passed" (Wells). It is clear Horrocks can be a violent man, and it is clear to the reader that something is going to happen at the "works," as well.

Finally, Wells builds the suspense when Horrocks saves Raut from the train. He writes, "The struggle did not last a moment. Just as certain as it was that Horrocks held him there, so certain was it that he had been violently lugged out of danger" (Wells). This makes the reader unsure of Horrocks intentions, and it raises a glimmer of hope for Raut, and that Horrocks is not as demented as he has been portrayed. However, in the end, he is, and the suspense builds to a climax as he shoves his friend into the cone and his death. Throughout the story, Wells uses tension and suspense to build to the ultimate end, and the characterization of Horrocks helps complete the story and the tension.

In "The Darkness Out There," the author indicates early on that there is something underlying this seemingly innocent story. She writes, Packer's End. You didn't go by yourself through Packer's End if you could help it, not after tea-time, anyway" (Lively 179-180). Later she continues, "When they were small, six and seven and eight, they'd been scared stiff of Packer's End" (Lively 180). Clearly, the center of the story is this area that is supposedly haunted by German soldiers, and this creates suspense and tension throughout the story.

Another addition to the suspense is the boy, who takes an instant dislike to the old woman. Lively writes, "She's all right. What's wrong with her, then?' He shrugged. 'I dunno. The way she talks and that'" (Lively 184). She alludes to something odd about the old woman, and as the story progresses, that becomes much clearer. She is cold-blooded and even evil, and Kerry's reaction to her is exactly what the story needed to come to its conclusion. He is disgusted by her story of leaving the young German soldier there to die, and it turns him into a man in the girl's eyes. Lively writes, "He had grown; he had got older and larger. His anger eclipsed his acne, the patches of grease on his jeans, and lardy midriff" (Lively 188).

The characterization of this short story is extremely important to build the suspense and tension. Lively makes all the characters seem sweet and innocent, but the story is anything but. She ends the story darkly, indicating both of the young people have learned more about life than they cared to that day, and that their lives will never be the same as a result. She writes, "She walked behind him, through a world grown unreliable, in which flowers sparkle and birds sing but everything is not as it appears, on no" (Lively 188). Thus, this story's tension comes from the children coming of age and discovering that the world around them is far different than it appears. The story is dark, even though it begins innocently enough, and Lively builds the tension and suspense throughout the story to reach the startling and disturbing conclusion.