The Signal-Man (a ghost story)

This there were major disruptions on the train line, so I arrived late at work. I don't mind when it is late in autumn, I can read more scary stories to put myself in a Halloween mood. I mentioned it here. But anyway, I said to my fellow disgruntled commuters that we needed a signalman. It made a few people smile. I was thinking of course about The Signal-Man, the ghost story written by Dickens which I discovered a few months ago in its play adaptation. Which I am going to read soon in this book. But you can find it in many anthologies of ghost stories. As I mentioned here, I love that it mixes elements of modernity and in particular technological progress with the supernatural. A common trope in many XIXth century ghost stories, and modern ones too. This morning, I was thinking that however technologically advanced we are, we are still vulnerable to nature and malfunctions of human inventions. Which is maybe the main theme of Dickens' story. I took this picture of a signal box in Devon, on the steam train from Totnes to Buckfastleigh. I was thinking of ghost and ghost stories. Like I did today. And I am certain you now noticed that you just read tonight's countdown to Halloween post.

The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories

I am plugging another anthology of horror stories which I have not completely read: The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories. I had mentioned it before, two years ago to be precise, when I had borrowed it from the library. So far my favourite anthology of ghost stories is The Oxford Book of Ghost Stories, but this might change when I read this one back to back. I found the stories I read interesting and scary enough to purchase it. And there is already a Penguin anthology of horror stories which I absolutely love. Of course buying anthologies like this means that I find in them stories I found in others (Oh Whistle, and I'll Come to You, My Lad, for instance), but I find enough unread text to make it worth a purchase. And knowing I already read some stories means I am getting closer to maybe not a specialist, but a connoisseur. In any case, I know from reading it that there are enough good stories in there, so I can safely recommend it. Be warned however that some Victorian stories have a very Christmas feel (as ghost stories were written for Christmas). And one last thing: look at the cover! I mean look at it. One cannot judge a book by its cover, of course, but this is a great cover all the same.

Musing on haunted houses

This picture was taken during our holidays in the Lake District, in Keswick. The austere, sinister beauty of this house struck me as perfect for a haunted house. "If that's how your mind works" said my wife when I told her this earlier this evening, and I have to put it as a great unknown line (number 12 if you are counting) before going any further. I will also put here a disclaimer: I have no interest here about "real hauntings", which I don't believe in. This post is about the haunted houses of folklore and literature.

I am reading ghost stories these days and it got me thinking about the haunted house as a theme and a dramatic setting. Ghost stories are probably more often set in houses, however old, than in ancient castles. There are a number of theories about this: both haunters and haunted can be perceived as intruders, stories are scarier when a familiar, seemingly secure environment reveals a malevolent presence, etc. If you are into literary analysis, you can can read the introduction of The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories by Michael Newton: there is a good part of the text that reflects about the significance of haunted houses. I have my own theories about them: for authors and readers, everyday life must have felt sometimes opressive and because of its very banality threatening. Having ghosts invade familiar environment could have been a way to introduce through fiction ecitement in the desperately boring nature of the life of ordinary people.  The same motivation might be at the basis of many claims of real hauntings: you appear more heroic if you said you struggled against the Forces of Darkness than if you tell your investment in a house was a poor decision.

There is a problem with haunted houses as a setting: when things start getting ugly, why wouldn't the tenants leave? The threatening environment is limited to a closed space. Writers have to be inventive to keep their characters in the place: the house is in a secluded area and blocked from external help, or the characters want to be there to see for themselves if the house is haunted, or something of the sort. I often wonder how I would deal with haunted houses if I ever decide to write a horror story. I dabbled with the plot device when I was playing Call of Cthulhu, but not all that much. During my days in Liverpool, I dreamt of turning the house I was living in in a haunted house in a short story. I had the perfect setting, sadly no plot ever came to my mind. Maybe one day I will give it proper thoughts. This post is a start.

More ghost stories

I borrowed from the library The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories. Well, yes, because it is this time of the year, autumn I always thought was the perfect season for reading horror stories, even like when it is warm like today. And of course it puts you in a good mood for Halloween.

I am a big fan of those kinds of anthologies of horror stories. I think short stories are often much more efficient than novels to give the reader the feeling of terror. It is simply difficult to maintain suspense and fear after the first shock and many horror novels, even the greatest ones, lack power after a few pages. Ghost stories are quick, sharp, they go straight to the darkest corners of the mind and never leave it. The downside to those anthologies is that they often all have the same texts: Oh Whistle and I'll Come to You, My Lad by M.R. James is on this one too, for instance. If I had bought the book, I would have the story for the third time! But on the plus side, anthologies make you discover forgotten authors and lovely little gems from the past. So I will read this one eagerly.